Each of the three Popes excommunicated the others.

The Church managed to survive that fiasco, the Crusades, the Inquisition, and the Reformation, but will it survive the global sex scandal and the machinations of Pope Francis?

In recent days, it was revealed that Francis has been up to some hanky-panky when it was discovered that he “liked” a seminude model’s picture on Instagram. The Vatican announced today that it has launched a probe into the nudie caper.

It seems the Pope keeps stepping in it almost weekly. Maybe he believes any publicity is good publicity.

Many Roman Catholics think Pope Francis is a loose cannon that has broken away from its mounting and constitutes a danger to the whole Church as it shoots in all directions. Headlines in the Daily Mail blared, “Vatican at War!” Even cardinals are running away from his latest folly. His latest shot was an endorsement of civil marriages for the LGBTQ crowd, thinking that such action would help him win a global popularity contest.

And stop the bleeding of money and members or, more crudely, nickels, and noses.

The Pope’s goal is to bring us all together in an attempt to undo the sixteenth-century Reformation and have a world church supporting a world government and world economy.

Was the Reformation a mistake, or was it one of the most significant events in world history?

Most educated people don’t have a firm grasp on the world’s religious, political, economic, and social conditions in the Middle Ages. Nor do they know what has been the dream, some say nightmare, of globalists—a united worldwide church. After all, who will disagree with everyone getting along? Of course, no one will, but there is much difference in getting along with people and uniting with those with whom you have vast differences.

The Roman Catholic Church (RCC) has always considered Protestants as “separated brethren” even though the Roman Church declared for hundreds of years that there was no salvation outside the RCC. They always invite non-Catholics back into the fold with the understanding that the Vatican will still run things, and their peculiar doctrines and practices will prevail. Catholic officials are willing to overlook minor theological disputes and ignore them as a condition of bringing the breakaway denominations “back home.”

As long as they bring their checkbooks and don’t try to run things.

While Rome is willing to concede on minor differences, they will not concede on the veneration of Mary or the mass. During the 18th century in France, ordinary Frenchmen ridiculed the Roman Catholic Church (their national church) for their teaching of turning a piece of bread into God. However, Rome will not concede on the mass.

Get ready, folks, the world church is being formed with headquarters in Rome, but here is one Bible-believer who will never “return to Rome” since my crowd was never in her! Independent churches were publicly baptizing converts in huge tubs throughout Germany, Switzerland, and other European nations long before the Reformation. I will stay independent (as were all original churches) as a hog on ice and free as an eagle until shrimp learn to whistle and pigs learn to fly.

An all-inclusive, world church is not going back to the Bible but back to bondage!

According to LifeSiteNews of August 22, 2019, a multi-faith committee was announced “to implement the ‘Human Fraternity’ document signed by Pope Francis and a Grand Imam in February that stated, among other things, that a ‘pluralism and diversity, of religions, is willed by God.’”

But then, the only way we can know the will of God is what is revealed in His Word. The Bible does not endorse a world church but a definite coming out from among them. Not unity but separation. The Bible never teaches denominationalism or world church, but each local church is to be a group of simple, sincere, and scholarly Christians who meet to sing, pray, and preach without any interference from any government or denominational authority.

The Pope has no more biblical authority than an ordinary pastor or priest in an obscure village.

Francis is aware that his biggest problem in constructing the world church will be Muslims who are accustomed to running everything, including the guillotine. Also, the Jews have been around longer than anyone has, so they will not be quick to respond to this theological courtship or, more correctly, seduction. Some Jews even believe all non-Jews are of a different and inferior species! How will that play in Rome? Or Tehran?

So, headlines yell, “Vatican issues a happy Ramadan to all ‘Muslim brothers and sisters’”; however, traditional Muslims do not consider any non-Muslims as spiritually related. The Koran often identifies all non-Muslims as “polytheists,” “unbelievers,” “infidels,” etc., with which Muslims are not to be friendly. And for sure not to cooperate with them.

The Pope asserted, “We Muslims and Christians are called to open ourselves to others, knowing and recognizing them as brothers and sisters…. this way, we can tear down walls raised out of fear and ignorance and seek together to build bridges of friendship that are fundamental for the good of all humanity.”

When Reformers broke with Rome in the 16th century, they did not do so out of fear or ignorance but because of overwhelming convictions and intelligence. The Bible had been translated and was now available to everyone, and it was obvious that what Catholic leaders were teaching was not found in its pages. The Bible reader had been intimidated and harassed and had his pockets picked for centuries to construct massive cathedrals all over Europe.

With the translated Bible, they discovered that the Bible said nothing about Popes, archbishops, cardinals, holy water, rosary beads, hail Mary, the immaculate conception, lent, the sign of the cross, vestments, relics, statues, purgatory, limbo, penance, confession to a priest, elevation of Mary, indulgences, pilgrimages, etc.

When one gets rid of all that, he almost ends up with an independent Bible or Baptist Church!

The average Christian finally read in the newly translated Bibles that independent churches were to be filled with simple and sincere people, where someone read the Bible, another prayed. Then the preacher (not a priest) delivered a sermon followed by the singing of hymns. No liturgy, no ceremony, no mass, no richly dressed preachers. The Europeans could find very little in the Bible that reflected what they had experienced for a lifetime in their vast cathedrals.

While Pope Francis spoke of “brothers and sisters” and friendship, ordinary Christians were chaffing under sharia in Muslim nations. Many were being persecuted as Francis gushed platitudes to appease and impress Muslim fanatics. He did not demand religious freedom or even tolerance on the part of Muslims in the Middle East nations.

Francis demands that Protestants forget about the doctrines and practices that precipitated the Reformation but does not require or even suggest that Muslim leaders must make major concessions with Koranic commands that deal with hating and killing Jews and Christians or even making friends with them. No demands that female sexual mutilation is barbarity and must be stopped; no demand that honor killings are beastly; no requirements that killing any Muslim if he or she converts to Christ is criminal; and no demand for Islamic nations such as Saudi Arabia to permit Christian churches (not one in the whole nation). It seems Francis is quiet about the absurd and vile teachings of Islam.

But then, Francis is a bridge-builder; however, here is one dude who will never cross that bridge.

Pope Francis is a hypocrite who is more interested in public relations than helping the hurting and Gospel-deprived people under Islamic rule. But how can he give something he probably doesn’t have?

The Pope shamelessly speaks of building bridges rather than a hated wall to keep out unwanted immigrants while he lives behind a massive wall. Did I mention that Francis is a hypocrite?

But the Pope keeps trying. He is the only person in Europe who can give an order and see it carried out by non-thinking zealots. Only the Pope can break the barriers and usher in the World Church.

For sure, I’m not going to be a part of his world church, not even if I am promised the Pope’s tiara, the keys to his Popemobile, and the combination of the Vatican vault.

I had to struggle with the combination to the vault.

(Dr. Don Boys is a former member of the Indiana House of Representatives who ran a large Christian school in Indianapolis and wrote columns for USA Today for 8 years. Boys authored 18 books, the most recent being Muslim Invasion: The Fuse is Burning! The eBook is available here with the printed edition (and other titles) at www.cstnews.com. Follow him on Facebook at Don Boys, Ph.D.; and visit his blog. Send a request to DBoysphd@aol.com for a free subscription to his articles, and click here to support his work with a donation.)

Moreover, the Church owns several billion dollars’ worth of gold according to the United Nations World Magazine with a large portion of it stored as gold ingots at the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank with the remainder stockpiled in Swiss and British banks.

The Vatican is headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church and represents 1.2 billion people in 180 nations of the world. The Vatican is a two-and-a-half square mile complex on the Tiber River in Rome.

The Church’s real estate holdings are enormous in that they own local churches (220,000 worldwide), massive cathedrals (3,300 worldwide), and colleges (1,358 worldwide) along with monasteries and nunneries all over the globe. The Church has been squirrelling away billions of dollars of inheritance from the faithful that have been invested worldwide for hundreds of years .

Apart from the horded gold, thousands of church buildings, thousands of estates, they own thousands of art, books, sculpture, and relics that are impossible to even guess their value.

The Roman Catholic Church’s emphasis upon relics is an embarrassment to sane people. In 1881, The New York Times published an article condemning “the silly worship of relics” and recounted an amusing anecdote of two rival French monasteries that each possessed a head of John the Baptist! The monks, with amazing mental gymnastics, explained this uncomfortable detail by saying that the first skull belonged to John as a man while the smaller skull was from “when he was a boy.” Sure.

I saw one of John’s skulls in a mosque in Damascus although I’m not sure which skull it was! Not sure what Muslims are doing with John’s skull. He sure would pound them for having multiple wives since preaching against King Herod’s adultery with his brother’s wife was what got John beheaded.

One expert whose work was financed by National Geographic said, “There are about eight or nine skulls of John the Baptist out there. He added with a massive understatement, “They can’t be all John the Baptist.” Even this simple Baptist preacher can understand that!

A church in St. Omer boasted of having the lance that pierced His side; some manna that dropped from Heaven to feed the Jews; Aaron’s rod; and the original stone Ten Commandments! Three different churches in France boasted of the complete corpse of Mary Magdalen and five different French churches boasted of the relic of Christ’s circumcision! One cathedral boasts of having some hairs of the Lord’s beard and the left arm of John the Baptist while other monasteries claim to have the right arm. If some enterprising monks got to work, they might be able to put John back together again.

Calvin wrote of His Holy Blood that was “exhibited in more than a hundred places.” That is not only relic worship but blasphemy. But each item would sell at a premium and if they sold everything quickly, they could always “discover” more relics.

In Bethlehem they claim to have a drop of Mary’s milk and a 17th century painting shows a statue of Mary holding baby Jesus as she squirts milk into the mouth of a male worshipper standing below! Great shot!

During the mid-fourth century, Cyril of Jerusalem (ca. 315-386) wrote that “already the whole world is filled with fragments of the wood of the Cross.” More than forty shrouds of Jesus exist, so the story goes. Exeter Cathedral displayed parts of the candle that the angel of the Lord used to light the tomb of Jesus and fragments of the bush from which God spoke to Moses! I seem to remember the words of P. T. Barnum that are most appropriate here.

The Roman Catholic Church is the wealthiest corporation in the world. Nothing compares to it yet it was allegedly started by Jesus Christ. So, the former carpenter, turned itinerate preacher, is the source for the wealthiest institution on earth? Doesn’t pass the smell test.

We are expected to believe that Christ lived and died poor and passed on to Peter and future popes the office that permitted them to wear gold embroidered silk robes and possess wealth and treasures unknown and have a mansion with 1100 rooms!

Francis, it’s time to make history, secular and religious, by having the biggest and richest yard sale in history at St. Peter’s Square and at the same time clean out your closets of those relics that are only gathering dust. Sell everything. Christ was the poorest of the poor and your church is the richest of the rich. Get poor again and gain a little credibility. On with the yard sale! I’ll see you in St. Peter’s Square.

Next, I hope to attend a yard sale sponsored by some of the super-rich television evangelists with the proceeds going to poor non-Catholics. Get ready Benny, Trinity, Morris, Kenneth, Creflo, Joel, and Paula.

I’ll not hold my breath since I don’t look good in blue and I don’t trust the televangelists any more than I trust Francis!

(Boys’ new book, The God Haters, will be published in hardback on Oct. 21 by Barbwire Books and on Amazon.com as an eBook.)

No, I have not apostatized nor have I joined the “rush to Rome” as have some Anglicans, Lutherans, Evangelical groups, and Mennonites. However, I find myself agreeing with the pope about bad church music. One headline screamed, “Pope to purge the Vatican of modern music.” It is not bad music because it is modern but because it is “atrocious” especially in Italy, including the Vatican. Benedict wants a return to “traditional sacred music.”

I’m concerned with the atrocious music in many Bible-preaching churches that have deserted traditional hymns and Gospel songs. The Christ-honoring hymns have been replaced with twangy, ear-assaulting, mediocre, non-memorable chorus that are usually without meaning.

The Pope has already started “cleaning house” by no longer using “rotating” choirs from all over the world to sing in St. Peter’s. Well, one does not have to be too bright to know that it is difficult to know what you are going to get with a different choir each week.

Some musicians have already been sacked by Pope Benedict and have been replaced by men “closer to his heart.” Others are expected to go. Well, the Top Honcho has the right to have people around him that reflect his philosophy, doctrine, etc.

The International Church Music Review recently criticized the St. Peter’s choir, saying: “The singers wanted to overshout each other, they were frequently out of tune, the sound uneven, the conducting without any artistic power, the organ and organ playing like in a second-rank country parish church.” Sounds as if they are describing the music in some independent Baptist churches where singers often sing without any preparation—and it shows!

Mgr Valentin Miserachs Grau, the director of the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music, which trains church musicians, said, “How far we are from the true spirit of sacred music. How can we stand it that such a wave of inconsistent, arrogant and ridiculous profanities have so easily gained a stamp of approval in our celebrations?” The director added: “Due to general ignorance, especially in sectors of the clergy, there exists music which is devoid of sanctity, true art and universality.”

The Pope hopes to solve the problem with a return to the Gregorian chant although that is not much of an improvement, in my opinion, but my opinion will not be considered by the Pope. He wants to use music by 17th century composers, etc., in St. Peter’s and his reformation musical message has gone out to all Catholic Churches.

Damian Thompson, editor-in-chief of the Catholic Herald opined: “The next generation of choir directors have been charged by the Pope with the task of reintroducing beautiful music into church. If they succeed, then at long last the pews may begin to fill up again.” But that won’t happen without a major battle and while the Pope can control the music at St. Peter’s, he cannot control it in thousands of churches worldwide. He will have a major fight on his hands since many music directors in Catholic churches are highly paid and some musicians write and publish their own music so it is in their self-interest to stay with the music that produces additional income for them.

Damian Thompson, declared, “There’s something troubling about diocesan composer-liturgists advising churches to use liturgical material in which they themselves have a commercial interest. This already happens a lot in America, where the coziness of the relationship between dioceses and composers is little short of scandalous.”

Thompson reports that music composers attended a summer school for Catholic musicians “who may not know how to write music, but they hold the right ‘progressive’ (c. 1968) political views and are fluent in the vocabulary of ethnic sensitivity and ‘empowerment.’ ” It seems they ended their summer sessions last year by producing an outdoor performance of “dancing, drumming and singing in African that ‘Satan has had it.’” Sure sorry I missed that. Evidently, Satan did also.

Thompson, dripping with justified sarcasm said of much of the Catholic Church music: “There are few more terrifying sounds than the fumbled guitar chords that herald a Gospel number sung by arthritic Christian hippies.” Wish I had said that.

So Catholic Churches have major problems with music as do many evangelical and fundamental churches although the generational perpetrators are reversed. In Catholic Churches, the bad guys are older, more mature, well ensconced musicians who are supported by rebellious priests. They won’t surrender without a fight.

In Bible-oriented churches, the perpetrators are usually young men who like trendy, light music that compares to Kumbaya. Often the lyrics don’t offend but neither do they teach, inspire, or motivate us to godliness. But what is lost in value they make up for it in volume. As Rick Warren says of his church music, “It is loud, very loud.” Scuttlebutt says that sometimes it is so loud, it breaks street lights a block away!

Music is not an end in itself. It is preparatory to the preaching of God’s Word. If the music detracts from that or does not enhance that end, then it is out of place. It may be all right in other environments but not in a worship service.

The Apostle Paul wrote in Eph, 5:19, “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.” Then in Col 3:16, he wrote, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” Note that the music should be Scriptural (if not actual Bible verses then at least Biblical in content); melodious (that would eliminate about half of modern music); and admonishing.

Evangelical and fundamental churches have come a long way baby–in the wrong direction. We are being led into the swamps of this world by the pied pipers of second-class music, often followed by feel-good messages.

I’m with the Pope. Let’s have a musical reformation.