EWTN Officially Jumps the Shark: No Longer Catholic

Raymond Arroyo, EWTN's own beloved Pee Wee Herman, announced The World Over's Best and Worst Persons of 2018 on its last show of 2018.  And sadly, it was no shocker.

As I have discussed many, many times on this blog, Raymond Arroyo and his buddies have consistently and repeatedly criticized and denounced Pope Francis and everything he does and says.  They have done so through half truths and outright lies.

Arroyo and his buddies have also exalted and praised anyone who has stood in defiance against Pope Francis.

And of course, no one has taken a bigger stand against Pope Francis than Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, who broke every promise and vow of loyalty he made as priest and bishop when he called for the resignation of Pope Francis, an action which no human being on earth has the right or authority to do.

Part III: The Papal Posse/Papal Hanging Mob Attacks Pope Francis

This is the third in a series of posts I am doing in an analysis of an EWTN "Papal Posse" attack on Pope Francis and the Apostolic Exhortation, GAUDETE ET EXSULTATE.  I have renamed the "Papal Posse" as the Papal Hanging Mob, because that is a much more apt description of their actions.  As I have shown in my previous two posts (HERE and HERE), Raymond Arroyo and his two buddies, Robert Royal and Fr. Gerald Murray, have completely missed the meaning of this papal document, and are doing a grave disservice to all who listen to them.  They are spreading dissent and division in the Church, and they will have much for which they will have to answer.

Here, once again, is the video of the "discussion" by the Papal Hanging Mob.  We begin at the 19:49 mark.

At this point in the "discussion", Arroyo complains that the Aposotolic Exhortation equates the pro life cause with caring for migrants. Arroyo tells us that Pope Francis "puts them on the same plane". Arroyo and the Papal Hanging Mob obviously do not feel that the oppression and slaughter of those outside of the womb is as great an evil as the death of the unborn. Arroyo, as his custom, gives us a manipulated, partial quote, spliced together from different paragraphs of the Exhortation, obscuring the true meaning of the statements:

Some Catholics affirm that it is a secondary issue with respect to the 'serious' issue of bioethics . . . Our defense of the innocent unborn, for example, needs to be clear, firm and passionate. Equally sacred, however, are the lives of the poor, those already born, the destitute the abandoned.

EWTN Again Attacks and Distorts the Message of Pope Francis

“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.

Go and learn the meaning of the words,

I desire mercy, not sacrifice.

I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”

Matthew 9

A few weeks ago, I did a blog post in which I showed that Raymond Arroyo of EWTN led the "Papal Posse", consisting of Robert Royal and Father Gerald Murray, in a discussion about Pope Francis's attitude towards marriage. I clearly showed how they manipulated and outright lied regarding Pope Francis's statements, totally changing the true meaning of Pope Francis's message regarding the marriage crisis in the 21st Century.

Well, Arroyo and the "Papal Posse" (better referred to as the "Papal Hanging Mob") were at it again on the World Over broadcast of September 15, 2016. This time they went after the Holy Father for his response to guidelines written by the Bishops of Argentina. The subject of these guidelines was implementation of the papal exhortation, Amoris Laetitia. Once again, Arroyo and his "Papal Posse" gave us half quotes and poor translations, never allowing us to see anything in context, and they once again slandered Pope Francis and misrepresented his message of hope to the world.

EWTN Slanders and Defames Pope Francis

EWTN, the Catholic network founded by the late Mother Angelica, played a crucial role in my return to the Catholic Church, as it has in the lives of countless others around the world. There is no doubt in my mind that the Holy Spirit guided Mother Angelica to found this network and bring the beauty and wonder of the Catholic Church to the world.

However, in the last few years, EWTN seems to be losing its way.  Mother Angelica, of course, has not been in charge since she suffered a major stroke in 2001.  That was 15 years ago, and I think little of her influence is left in this network.  I watched some of their coverage of Pope Francis' visit to the US last year with Raymond Arroyo and Father Gerald Murray, and I was very disappointed and even somewhat scandalized by their constant disagreement with statements by the Holy Father.

But they reached an all new low with the June 23, 2016 broadcast of the "World Over" in which Arroyo, Father Murray and Robert Royal, denounced Pope Francis by mischaracterizing and distorting his statements and outright slandering him.  Of course, the traditional catholic blogosphere - always quick to condemn Pope Francis - could not be more ecstatic.