- Fri Jan 22, 2021 4:35 am
#232084
An interview that Mario Vasilj Totin conducted with Archbishop Henryk Hoser for the Glasnik Mira magazine published December 2020 The interviewer’s questions are in bold and Archbishop’s answers follow
Your Excellency, first of all I would like to thank you for your patience and time for this conversation. The coronal virus pandemic that struck us at the beginning of the year exposed the misconceptions about the globalized world. The world, which until yesterday was rushing with a lot of noise towards the supposedly unprecedented progress, suddenly proved to be weak and vulnerable.
Exactly! The pandemic did not reveal the strength and unity of this world but its weakness and division. It has shown our helplessness and paralyzed all the activities of modern society on an economic, communication, social and political level, which is characteristic of a catastrophe in which we notice that we are not omnipotent and have no dominance over this world. It is a sign that needs to be read because we as Christians are called to recognize the signs of the times. This is therefore a great sign of the times which has, I dare say, an apocalyptic nature which is opposed to our limitations of action and the possibility of renewal because it transcends us in the face of cosmic and biological forces.
We live in a time of dictatorship of relativism that recognizes nothing as definite and recognizes no goal other than ego and self-desires. Pope Benedict XVI said on one occasion: "Relativism is proving to be the only position that suits today's times." Such a culture considers us Christians to be fundamentalists and extremists. How can we stay true to the Faith and be free?
The dictatorship of relativism is a term introduced by Pope Benedict XVI. It is a phenomenon that ultimately destroys our social fabric because it deprives us of everything that is stable, that represents our foundations and roots, that is timeless, that is, everything that is forever verified and valid through generations. All reference components are now relativized. It also means a change in our perception of reality that results from the denial of the existence of objective truth. We have now become slaves to our personal truths. Everyone has their own truth and everyone considers their truth universal, which is why the existence of one truth is denied. On this phenomenon, Pope John Paul II reacted with an encyclical entitled Veritatis Splendor ( The Splendor of Truth) in which he defends the existence of a universal and objective truth which is equal for every man and whose name refers to the fundamental measure of truth. Thus the dictatorship of relativism is an instrument of action by which man is deprived of the opportunity to acquire his freedom. Jesus said that truth liberates man, which is universal freedom, while the dictatorship of relativism imposes partial freedoms that are in line with the ruling forces in the world, with those who want to create a globalized world but globalized only at the level of profit.
We are in a crisis where man loses joy and enthusiasm because his dignity is stifled in the process of developing technology and the economy of inequality and exclusion. How to get out of this crisis?
This question is very difficult to answer because so much needs to change, to find all that we have lost. It is clear that we are subject to determinants, some of which are secondary but which serve the ruling forces. Thus, technological and economic desires begin to rule us, stifle us, and make of us helpful people deprived of their inner freedom of spirit, which imposes sorrow and fear. We should rebuild, rebuild. Every man must find his identity and objectivity, but also his effectiveness. All people are equal to each other, and today that is exactly what is denied, the one and only human nature. This last indication that we are all human, that we share the same human nature is forgotten today because the emphasis is on culture. But culture does not exist, as nature does. There are only cultures, in the plural, such as national, personal and all others. Therefore, there are cultural differences all over the world, but we miss what unites us, which means that we distance ourselves from each other. It is a very critical moment in which we must return to what is fundamental, what shapes our universal human identity. Such a situation will have inevitable consequences in the future because in the new culture man becomes a model of man, and a damaged model. For us believers, God is the measure of our humanity, especially Jesus Christ who is the model of the true man. In our resemblance to God we must find in ourselves the qualities by which we are like Him. This resemblance is not limited to mercy or individual faculties such as reason or will, but also implies the ability to create interrelationships, because God also exists in a triune relationship. Therefore, we too have a duty to create true relationships with one another in order to achieve a resemblance to God, a relationship that strives for unity that will prevent dispersal and alienation.
Wrapped in an alleged struggle for ‘human rights’, a cultural revolution is taking place on the world stage that is slowly turning into open totalitarianism.
The cultural revolution in the end always has a Marxist character. Let us recall, for example, the cultural revolution in China, which sought to break with Chinese tradition and secular culture and create a new man in the Soviet style. Today we have dominant neo-Marxist currents that also seek to create a new, different man who breaks with his past, identity and values that have been valid for centuries and that are passed on unchanged to generations such as fundamental human and other rights which are changing today. Let us remember only the fundamental right to life, which is being relativized in a dictatorial way today, and which is the first and supreme human right above all other rights, because every human being depends on life, on existence. Today we are witnessing the relativization of life in which a person qualifies as useful or useless. Those marked as useless are removed from society. Such a cultural revolution underlies all dictatorships such as Italian fascism, German Nazism or Soviet communism. In principle, it is the idea of creating a new man not in a biblical and theological sense that is shaped in relation to God, but a man who is shaped in relation to the imposed ideology.
In these times a ruthless war is being waged against the body, against man, against the dignity of the human person, against life. Day by day we are witnessing perfidious attacks on fundamental truths about man.
Behind everything is obviously the Marxist ideology, but - as I explained in another conversation - it is an ideology of a new class struggle that takes place at the level of the biological sex, that is, man and woman. God created us as men and women, and that is denied today. In addition, we no longer accept the gifts we have received. These are biological determinants that we reject and advocate for sociocultural gender. Thus, intellectual deviance and paranoid complexes occur because some may declare themselves as women or men without contradicting what is obvious. The new man who ultimately denies his original identity and who imposes himself in it becomes extremely unstable because they are two different identities. It is at this level that a very deep and powerful cultural revolution is taking place.
The words of the Fatima seer Lucia echo all the ominous words that the last battle for man will be fought through the family.
The family is the fundamental community, the core of society, the first school of human socialization in which we learn to create relationships with others. It is based on the relationship within the family, between parents and children. The family is also the reality of married life and the unity in diversity that is achieved fundamentally. The family can be considered an icon of earthly holiness. But in today's world, it is in the family that we notice the motives of the Evil One. Sister Lucia warned us about that. Today, the family is trying to be destroyed because the natural family, not just the sacramental one, ensures fidelity to life, when we talk about spouses, parents and children. The global process seeks to destroy a society in which man is deprived of the relationships that determine him, which role he represents and what binds us. Today, anyone can say that he wants to live a certain kind of freedom that frees him from all determinants and that makes him mobile and ready for change. In this way, anyone can change into a woman or a man and this will be considered the realization of personal freedom in terms of our contemporary post-Christian culture.
By introducing gender ideology into all segments of society, is it trying to redefine the very anthropology of man?
Yes! It is precisely the anthropological redefinition of man himself. We have moved from the period of postmodernism and post-nationalism to a period called transhumanism. This means that there is a need to cross the boundaries of what is human and "transgression", ie remove the restrictions. We are currently in an advanced stage of posthumanism. Man must function as a hybrid, partly a hybrid of a biological mechanism, but increasingly also by integrating a technological process that is implanted in the human being itself. The lie is that it liberates us, but ultimately it makes us slaves.
Today, the role of women and their equality is being debated around the world. And the role of women in the Church is becoming an increasingly topical issue. How does the Church really view the role and mission of women today? Men are also women, togetherness in diversity. Is that really the case?
The identity of a woman is most visible and best defined from a biblical point of view and our Christian faith. We recognize that man and woman are equal in their human dignity. These are the same beings in their essence, but with respect for their anatomical, physiological, psychological, but also spiritual differences. The spirituality of man and woman is different. Examples include St. Paul and St. Teresa of the Child Jesus.
Didn’t the feminist movement that dominates today’s society actually ensnare the modern woman by making her a slave to false idols?
It is true that modern society nullifies the differences between men and women that need to be respected, which is influenced by the feminist movement, which is also a kind of Marxism and which also introduces class struggle. It is a struggle between men and women. The feminist ideal seeks to appropriate all male privileges and traits and thus remove men to whom a supporting role belongs. It is women who want to dominate, and women with masculine traits who, for example, engage in aggressive male sports that are otherwise repulsive to normal women. Martial arts have always been reserved for men because they show the strength that comes from their physical characteristics that are the result of these biological differences. Also prominent today is feminism, which at the same time imposes a denial of motherhood. These are women who do not want to start a family or have children because they despise such values, because they enjoy living in the intersex and other relationships they want to have. It is forgotten that a woman's calling is imposed in itself by her capacity for motherhood. A woman is not only a wife but also a mother. She is the bearer of life. Society should ensure to every woman her self-realization as a mother because without it there is no succession of generations. It is very characteristic of European and North American countries that fertility declines over time, which is why there is no replacement of generations, which is the result of the professionalization of women who are forced to be just as effective in corporations as men. Therefore, their right to family life is not recognized. In some countries, family life is also considered a profession, which is fundamental to survival of one society.
Where should today's women and men look for a role model?
A woman should be where a man cannot replace her as such. Female motherhood in itself imposes the need for protection by men. He needs to protect her, bring her the help she needs. Two models of masculinity are: St. Joseph and Jesus Christ. We also have a model of femininity: the Virgin Mary who was also a mother. It is especially striking to me that the great writers of Our Lady are always men: St. Louis de Montfort, St. Maximilian Kolbe, and St. John Paul II, while women such are Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, Saint Faustina, and many others are at the forefront of devotion to Jesus Christ.
Does the Church sufficiently listen to the needs of a person today and how and to what extent does it act?
The Church listens very carefully. It is enough to read the papal teachings, for example of Paul VI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Pope Francis, to notice that there are always reactions to the current state of the world. I am just reading in detail the Pope's last encyclical Fratelli tutti (We are all brothers) in which he makes an extraordinary diagnosis of today's world. The problem arises when pastoral values do not reach people, because our sermons generally go unnoticed and are quickly forgotten because one gets the impression that the same things are being repeated. In this sense, respect for catechetical values is important, but not enough. The Church is the mother who teaches her children, she is the Mater et magistra (Mother and Teacher) and as such should play her role, as spoken in the said encyclical which is in this sense the most convincing and constant. But there is also the synod's petition of Pope Francis Christus vivit (Christ lives) which is intended for young people in today's world and others. So, the media like the Messenger of Peace should do everything to present what the Church teaches in order to reach people, about how the Church reads what is happening and what surrounds us - all phenomena and everything that is happening. In that sense, we need to work together.
Today, more than ever, the Church should bear witness to the faith in Jesus Christ with her life. Is the Church in crisis today and is it taking on, especially the Church in the West, the spirit of this time?
This crisis did not begin today, but appeared immediately after the second Vatican Council, exactly in 1968 after the publication of the encyclical Humanae Vitae (Human Life) when the Western bishops unfortunately expressed their disagreement. From that moment on, challenging papal teachings became the rule in the West, as in Germany, France, Switzerland, and elsewhere. What Paul VI challenged was disputed. The Pope represents the authority, but in the West, his authority was not respected.. Everyone has their own truth, authority and role model built according to individual rules. We have seen Pope John Paul II calm that storm with his long pontificate. Yet today we are in the second wave of the conciliar crisis in the Western Church.
What is the role of young people in today's world?
The role of young people is important, although it should be emphasized that adolescence is a transient phase of life. They are not young all their lives and when they grow up, today's young people will shape the world in their own way with their ideas. If young people have not received the right upbringing, humanity is in danger of disappearing. One fact that you also mentioned should be pointed out here, and that is the problem of media lynching. Today's young people are becoming media products in which partial information arouses a lot of emotions. It is not about the usual emotions caused by distinguishing between good and evil. Therefore, young people cannot build a solid foundation. They shape uncoordinated ideas in which they lack wisdom. Thus, what characterizes new generations is the absence of the possibility of cognition and true values. They lack freedom because they are addicted to various media devices, literally glued to their cell phones and computers from a young age. They lose the ability to remember valuable information. All the information that interests them happens in one hour and is temporarily served on various servers, which causes them to lose their internal structure and ability to learn continuously.
The more the universal truth is relativized, the more one gets the impression that young people are looking for it.
Yes, they are looking for the truth, but they do not find authorities they can trust. Their authorities may be media stars, but their true authority was annulled after the 1968 revolution, which was directed against everything that was truly valuable. The problem now is that young people have a wide range of possible choices, but they lack selection criteria. They can't tell what's good and what's bad, what's bearing long-term fruit, what's bearing fruit at all, and so on.
Your Excellency, first of all I would like to thank you for your patience and time for this conversation. The coronal virus pandemic that struck us at the beginning of the year exposed the misconceptions about the globalized world. The world, which until yesterday was rushing with a lot of noise towards the supposedly unprecedented progress, suddenly proved to be weak and vulnerable.
Exactly! The pandemic did not reveal the strength and unity of this world but its weakness and division. It has shown our helplessness and paralyzed all the activities of modern society on an economic, communication, social and political level, which is characteristic of a catastrophe in which we notice that we are not omnipotent and have no dominance over this world. It is a sign that needs to be read because we as Christians are called to recognize the signs of the times. This is therefore a great sign of the times which has, I dare say, an apocalyptic nature which is opposed to our limitations of action and the possibility of renewal because it transcends us in the face of cosmic and biological forces.
We live in a time of dictatorship of relativism that recognizes nothing as definite and recognizes no goal other than ego and self-desires. Pope Benedict XVI said on one occasion: "Relativism is proving to be the only position that suits today's times." Such a culture considers us Christians to be fundamentalists and extremists. How can we stay true to the Faith and be free?
The dictatorship of relativism is a term introduced by Pope Benedict XVI. It is a phenomenon that ultimately destroys our social fabric because it deprives us of everything that is stable, that represents our foundations and roots, that is timeless, that is, everything that is forever verified and valid through generations. All reference components are now relativized. It also means a change in our perception of reality that results from the denial of the existence of objective truth. We have now become slaves to our personal truths. Everyone has their own truth and everyone considers their truth universal, which is why the existence of one truth is denied. On this phenomenon, Pope John Paul II reacted with an encyclical entitled Veritatis Splendor ( The Splendor of Truth) in which he defends the existence of a universal and objective truth which is equal for every man and whose name refers to the fundamental measure of truth. Thus the dictatorship of relativism is an instrument of action by which man is deprived of the opportunity to acquire his freedom. Jesus said that truth liberates man, which is universal freedom, while the dictatorship of relativism imposes partial freedoms that are in line with the ruling forces in the world, with those who want to create a globalized world but globalized only at the level of profit.
We are in a crisis where man loses joy and enthusiasm because his dignity is stifled in the process of developing technology and the economy of inequality and exclusion. How to get out of this crisis?
This question is very difficult to answer because so much needs to change, to find all that we have lost. It is clear that we are subject to determinants, some of which are secondary but which serve the ruling forces. Thus, technological and economic desires begin to rule us, stifle us, and make of us helpful people deprived of their inner freedom of spirit, which imposes sorrow and fear. We should rebuild, rebuild. Every man must find his identity and objectivity, but also his effectiveness. All people are equal to each other, and today that is exactly what is denied, the one and only human nature. This last indication that we are all human, that we share the same human nature is forgotten today because the emphasis is on culture. But culture does not exist, as nature does. There are only cultures, in the plural, such as national, personal and all others. Therefore, there are cultural differences all over the world, but we miss what unites us, which means that we distance ourselves from each other. It is a very critical moment in which we must return to what is fundamental, what shapes our universal human identity. Such a situation will have inevitable consequences in the future because in the new culture man becomes a model of man, and a damaged model. For us believers, God is the measure of our humanity, especially Jesus Christ who is the model of the true man. In our resemblance to God we must find in ourselves the qualities by which we are like Him. This resemblance is not limited to mercy or individual faculties such as reason or will, but also implies the ability to create interrelationships, because God also exists in a triune relationship. Therefore, we too have a duty to create true relationships with one another in order to achieve a resemblance to God, a relationship that strives for unity that will prevent dispersal and alienation.
Wrapped in an alleged struggle for ‘human rights’, a cultural revolution is taking place on the world stage that is slowly turning into open totalitarianism.
The cultural revolution in the end always has a Marxist character. Let us recall, for example, the cultural revolution in China, which sought to break with Chinese tradition and secular culture and create a new man in the Soviet style. Today we have dominant neo-Marxist currents that also seek to create a new, different man who breaks with his past, identity and values that have been valid for centuries and that are passed on unchanged to generations such as fundamental human and other rights which are changing today. Let us remember only the fundamental right to life, which is being relativized in a dictatorial way today, and which is the first and supreme human right above all other rights, because every human being depends on life, on existence. Today we are witnessing the relativization of life in which a person qualifies as useful or useless. Those marked as useless are removed from society. Such a cultural revolution underlies all dictatorships such as Italian fascism, German Nazism or Soviet communism. In principle, it is the idea of creating a new man not in a biblical and theological sense that is shaped in relation to God, but a man who is shaped in relation to the imposed ideology.
In these times a ruthless war is being waged against the body, against man, against the dignity of the human person, against life. Day by day we are witnessing perfidious attacks on fundamental truths about man.
Behind everything is obviously the Marxist ideology, but - as I explained in another conversation - it is an ideology of a new class struggle that takes place at the level of the biological sex, that is, man and woman. God created us as men and women, and that is denied today. In addition, we no longer accept the gifts we have received. These are biological determinants that we reject and advocate for sociocultural gender. Thus, intellectual deviance and paranoid complexes occur because some may declare themselves as women or men without contradicting what is obvious. The new man who ultimately denies his original identity and who imposes himself in it becomes extremely unstable because they are two different identities. It is at this level that a very deep and powerful cultural revolution is taking place.
The words of the Fatima seer Lucia echo all the ominous words that the last battle for man will be fought through the family.
The family is the fundamental community, the core of society, the first school of human socialization in which we learn to create relationships with others. It is based on the relationship within the family, between parents and children. The family is also the reality of married life and the unity in diversity that is achieved fundamentally. The family can be considered an icon of earthly holiness. But in today's world, it is in the family that we notice the motives of the Evil One. Sister Lucia warned us about that. Today, the family is trying to be destroyed because the natural family, not just the sacramental one, ensures fidelity to life, when we talk about spouses, parents and children. The global process seeks to destroy a society in which man is deprived of the relationships that determine him, which role he represents and what binds us. Today, anyone can say that he wants to live a certain kind of freedom that frees him from all determinants and that makes him mobile and ready for change. In this way, anyone can change into a woman or a man and this will be considered the realization of personal freedom in terms of our contemporary post-Christian culture.
By introducing gender ideology into all segments of society, is it trying to redefine the very anthropology of man?
Yes! It is precisely the anthropological redefinition of man himself. We have moved from the period of postmodernism and post-nationalism to a period called transhumanism. This means that there is a need to cross the boundaries of what is human and "transgression", ie remove the restrictions. We are currently in an advanced stage of posthumanism. Man must function as a hybrid, partly a hybrid of a biological mechanism, but increasingly also by integrating a technological process that is implanted in the human being itself. The lie is that it liberates us, but ultimately it makes us slaves.
Today, the role of women and their equality is being debated around the world. And the role of women in the Church is becoming an increasingly topical issue. How does the Church really view the role and mission of women today? Men are also women, togetherness in diversity. Is that really the case?
The identity of a woman is most visible and best defined from a biblical point of view and our Christian faith. We recognize that man and woman are equal in their human dignity. These are the same beings in their essence, but with respect for their anatomical, physiological, psychological, but also spiritual differences. The spirituality of man and woman is different. Examples include St. Paul and St. Teresa of the Child Jesus.
Didn’t the feminist movement that dominates today’s society actually ensnare the modern woman by making her a slave to false idols?
It is true that modern society nullifies the differences between men and women that need to be respected, which is influenced by the feminist movement, which is also a kind of Marxism and which also introduces class struggle. It is a struggle between men and women. The feminist ideal seeks to appropriate all male privileges and traits and thus remove men to whom a supporting role belongs. It is women who want to dominate, and women with masculine traits who, for example, engage in aggressive male sports that are otherwise repulsive to normal women. Martial arts have always been reserved for men because they show the strength that comes from their physical characteristics that are the result of these biological differences. Also prominent today is feminism, which at the same time imposes a denial of motherhood. These are women who do not want to start a family or have children because they despise such values, because they enjoy living in the intersex and other relationships they want to have. It is forgotten that a woman's calling is imposed in itself by her capacity for motherhood. A woman is not only a wife but also a mother. She is the bearer of life. Society should ensure to every woman her self-realization as a mother because without it there is no succession of generations. It is very characteristic of European and North American countries that fertility declines over time, which is why there is no replacement of generations, which is the result of the professionalization of women who are forced to be just as effective in corporations as men. Therefore, their right to family life is not recognized. In some countries, family life is also considered a profession, which is fundamental to survival of one society.
Where should today's women and men look for a role model?
A woman should be where a man cannot replace her as such. Female motherhood in itself imposes the need for protection by men. He needs to protect her, bring her the help she needs. Two models of masculinity are: St. Joseph and Jesus Christ. We also have a model of femininity: the Virgin Mary who was also a mother. It is especially striking to me that the great writers of Our Lady are always men: St. Louis de Montfort, St. Maximilian Kolbe, and St. John Paul II, while women such are Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, Saint Faustina, and many others are at the forefront of devotion to Jesus Christ.
Does the Church sufficiently listen to the needs of a person today and how and to what extent does it act?
The Church listens very carefully. It is enough to read the papal teachings, for example of Paul VI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Pope Francis, to notice that there are always reactions to the current state of the world. I am just reading in detail the Pope's last encyclical Fratelli tutti (We are all brothers) in which he makes an extraordinary diagnosis of today's world. The problem arises when pastoral values do not reach people, because our sermons generally go unnoticed and are quickly forgotten because one gets the impression that the same things are being repeated. In this sense, respect for catechetical values is important, but not enough. The Church is the mother who teaches her children, she is the Mater et magistra (Mother and Teacher) and as such should play her role, as spoken in the said encyclical which is in this sense the most convincing and constant. But there is also the synod's petition of Pope Francis Christus vivit (Christ lives) which is intended for young people in today's world and others. So, the media like the Messenger of Peace should do everything to present what the Church teaches in order to reach people, about how the Church reads what is happening and what surrounds us - all phenomena and everything that is happening. In that sense, we need to work together.
Today, more than ever, the Church should bear witness to the faith in Jesus Christ with her life. Is the Church in crisis today and is it taking on, especially the Church in the West, the spirit of this time?
This crisis did not begin today, but appeared immediately after the second Vatican Council, exactly in 1968 after the publication of the encyclical Humanae Vitae (Human Life) when the Western bishops unfortunately expressed their disagreement. From that moment on, challenging papal teachings became the rule in the West, as in Germany, France, Switzerland, and elsewhere. What Paul VI challenged was disputed. The Pope represents the authority, but in the West, his authority was not respected.. Everyone has their own truth, authority and role model built according to individual rules. We have seen Pope John Paul II calm that storm with his long pontificate. Yet today we are in the second wave of the conciliar crisis in the Western Church.
What is the role of young people in today's world?
The role of young people is important, although it should be emphasized that adolescence is a transient phase of life. They are not young all their lives and when they grow up, today's young people will shape the world in their own way with their ideas. If young people have not received the right upbringing, humanity is in danger of disappearing. One fact that you also mentioned should be pointed out here, and that is the problem of media lynching. Today's young people are becoming media products in which partial information arouses a lot of emotions. It is not about the usual emotions caused by distinguishing between good and evil. Therefore, young people cannot build a solid foundation. They shape uncoordinated ideas in which they lack wisdom. Thus, what characterizes new generations is the absence of the possibility of cognition and true values. They lack freedom because they are addicted to various media devices, literally glued to their cell phones and computers from a young age. They lose the ability to remember valuable information. All the information that interests them happens in one hour and is temporarily served on various servers, which causes them to lose their internal structure and ability to learn continuously.
The more the universal truth is relativized, the more one gets the impression that young people are looking for it.
Yes, they are looking for the truth, but they do not find authorities they can trust. Their authorities may be media stars, but their true authority was annulled after the 1968 revolution, which was directed against everything that was truly valuable. The problem now is that young people have a wide range of possible choices, but they lack selection criteria. They can't tell what's good and what's bad, what's bearing long-term fruit, what's bearing fruit at all, and so on.