The Passion of Christ Movie, and the One World Church

2004 Pastor Tony Cirigliano

Preached at New Life Fellowship In Boone on Sabbath, March 13, 2004

     Even though churches profess faith in Jesus as the Son of God, they have not been able to find a way to form a single, united group. For nearly 2000 years, doctrinal differences have splintered Christians into hundreds of independent denominations. But many within Christianity desire to reverse this.

     Foremost in the effort for Christian re-unification is the Pontiff of Rome. He has worked throughout his pontificate to pave the way for a single world church. Vatican Spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls reports that the pope “has pushed hard on the accelerator toward unity.” Several times during the last ten years before his recent illnesses, the pope confessed the sins of the Roman church as a move toward re-unification. At a mass in the Czech Republic in 1995 he said, as reported by USA Today, “I the pope of the church of Rome, in the name of all Catholics ask for forgiveness for the wrongs inflicted on non-Catholics during the turbulent history of these peoples.” But  we are told this, “Let the restraints now imposed by secular governments be removed, and Rome be re-instated in her former power, and there would speedily be a revival of her tyranny and persecution.” – GC, 1888, page 564. Proof of this can be seen today in Italy and Spain, which are Roman Catholic countries. There heresies against the Roman church are punished by law! Pope John Paul II has also bridged the gap between the Catholic and Orthodox churches. In his book Crossing The Threshold, Pope John Paul wrote, “we need to be more united, more willing to advance toward the path of unity for which Christ prayed on the eve of His passion.”

     Today Protestants and Catholics are uniting to obtain common goals. A classic example of this is the way that Protestant and evangelical churches are all excited about promoting the movie, The Passion of The Christ. Dr. Samuelle Bacciocchi calls it the “Slaughter of the Christ”, and has written a 16 page essay on the thoroughly Catholic film calling it Catholic evangelism. The movie is partly based on visions of a nun who claimed she was shown the crucifixction in vision.

     A few years ago, as Mel Gibson was rediscovering and renewing his Catholic faith, Mel Gibson purchased a library of hundreds of books from a closed nunnery. Mel claims as he was reaching for a book on the library shelf a supernatural intervention caused another book to "miraculously" drop into his hands. And that "miracle" book, not the Bible, not the Gospels, is the inspiration of The Passion. The book was The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to the Meditations of Anne Catherine Emmerich. Gibson claims like "magic" this book opened up a new world. “Amazing images,” he said. “She supplied me with stuff I never would have thought of.” Many of the scenes in the movie come from this catholic mystic and not the Bible!

     The church of Rome bases its teachings upon tradition above the Bible. Protestants believe that the Bible alone must form the basis for faith and practice. In fact, that was a major issue in the Reformation – the split with Rome in the 15^th century. John Wycliff, John Huss, Jerome, Martin Luther, and many others began as faithful members of the Roman Church. But while pursuing a closer relationship with God, they discovered the practices of their church to be in opposition to the Scriptures.

     Martin Luther was tortured by his conscience and tried to earn his salvation by painful penances, fasts, and self-mutilation. He was delivered from Rome’s theology when he realized that the Bible book of Romans taught that salvation was a free gift, and that nothing man could do could add to it one bit! Somehow the tradition of the church had darkened this most important truth. For centuries the church of Rome taught that salvation could be earned by penance, pilgrimage, payment, and various works. Salvation as a free gift of God had been completely forgotten. Tradition and Scripture were at odds. The everlasting gospel Paul preached and the apostles preached was obscured, and whenever this happens, the Lord must raise up men to re-emphasize the gospel of righteousness by faith alone.

     In Worms, Germany, Luther stood before an august assembly of bishops, prelates, priests, and noble men to answer for his strange “new” doctrine of salvation as a free gift to those who receive Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. When commanded to renounce his “heretical” teaching, he said, at peril to his life: “Unless I am refuted and convicted by the testimony of the Scriptures, or by clear arguments from the Word of God alone, I cannot, and I will not recant. Here I stand. God help me.” – History of the Christian Church, p. 306.

Tradition or Scripture, Luther had drawn the Mason-Dixon line for the Reformation. He protested the errors of the church of Rome, errors that Rome still teaches today! And yet, today, many Protestants are uniting with Rome and will continue to do so Bible prophecy says till Jesus comes! Those who love the truth and hunger and thirst for righteousness will heed the call to come out of Babylon!

     Dear reader of this article, every one in the world is going to have to make a choice between the Word of God and the traditions of men! Ideas like the immortal soul, everlasting torture in hell, salvation by faith plus works, Sunday sacredness, the secret rapture, prayer to saints, Mary worship, that the Sabbath is no longer binding, that God’s law has been done away with, and a whole host of other un-Scriptural errors have permeated the church. God is calling His people out of confusion, which He terms “Babylon” in His word. God is calling people back to the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints! He has a message to be delivered to the world by His true last day followers called “the remnant” in the book of Revelation. The Remnant keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus – which is the Spirit of Prophecy!  The Book of Revelation speaks of the 144,000 who are alive when Jesus comes. They are called virgins in the book of Revelation because they have no dealings with the Great Harlot of Revelation – Babylon the Great – the fallen Roman church!

     In 1545, the Catholic Church convened the Council of Trent in Austria to answer the questions raised by the Protestant reformers. What would it be? Scripture or tradition? The archbishop of Reggio made a speech in which he openly declared that tradition stood above Scripture. The council agreed that the church could not therefore be bound by the authority of the Scriptures. This verdict is recorded in the book Canon & Tradition, by Heinrich Hiltzman, on page 263. Like a ax hitting a block of wood, a split was created that has never been mended. But now, 459 years later, Rome is calling for re-unification, Protestants are no longer protesting, and they are even excited about joining with Rome, and endorsing her work!

     So what is correct? Is it Scripture, or tradition? What does the Bible say about tradition?

Well the Bible does say that traditions that are in harmony with God’s Word are to be respected. In 2 Thessalonians 2, verse 15, it is written: “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” But traditions that violate God’s word or law are not pleasing to God. In Mark, verses 7 through 10, Jesus said, “Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.”

     Traditions which replace God’s commandments and Word are vain traditions. For this reason Seventh-day Adventist Christians reject Sunday as the day of worship because it is based and established on tradition – Rome’s tradition rather than the Word of God. God has promised that He will rid His church of unscriptural traditions! In Matthew 15, verse 6-13, Jesus said, “And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. ⁷   Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, ⁸   This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. ⁹   But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. ¹⁰   And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand: ¹¹   Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man. ¹²   Then came his disciples, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Pharisees were offended, after they heard this saying?¹³   But he answered and said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up.”

     Traditions are often an erring guide. It used to be that Protestants protested unbiblical traditions. But today, even though Rome has never changed her unscriptural traditions and teachings, there is no longer heard protest to them from most pulpits! In His book, An Essay On The Development of Christian Doctrine, Catholic Cardinal John Neumann makes this very candid and true statement that should make all Bible believing Christians think seriously about the traditions of the fallen church. “The use of temples, and those dedicated to particular saints, and ornamented on occasions with branches of trees; incense, lamps and candles; votive offerings on recovery from illness; holy water, holy days and seasons, the use of liturgical calendars, processions, blessings on fields, sacerdotal vestments, the ring in marriage, turning to the east for sun-rise services. . . are all of pagan origin, and sanctified by their adoption into the church.” pp. 372-373.

     But this is no thrust on Catholics alone! Many Protestants also have unscriptural traditions and teachings that contradict the Word of God. This fact has not been missed by Catholics!

Notice the following Catholic challenge to Protestants to be consistent with the Protestant philosophy of the Bible and the Bible only! It’s found in the 1974 book The Faith of Millions by Catholic priest John O’Brien on pages 137, and 137. “The Bible does not contain all the teachings of the Christian religion, nor does it formulate all the duties of its members. Take for example, the matter of Sunday observance, the attendance of divine services and the abstention of un-necessary servile work on that day, a matter upon which our Protestant neighbors have for many years laid great emphasis. Let me address myself to my dear non-Catholic readers: You believe that the Bible alone is a safe guide in religious matters. You also believe that one of the fundamental duties enjoined upon you by your Christian faith is that of Sunday observance. But where does the Bible speak of such an obligation? I have reads the Bible from the first verse of Genesis to the last verse of Revelation, and have found no reference to the duty of sanctifying the Sunday. The day mentioned in the Bible is not the Sunday – the first day of the week, but the Saturday the last day of the week.  It was the Catholic Church which changed the observance to the Sunday . . . In observing the Sunday as you do, is it not apparent that you are really acknowledging the insufficiency of the Bible alone as a rule of faith and religious conduct, and proclaiming the need of a divinely established teaching authority which in theory you deny?” John O’Brien’s logic is glaringly accurate. If Protestants are going to insist that Catholics return to the Bible, they must do the same. This priest acknowledges that if Protestants really went by the Bible, they would keep the Seventh-day Sabbath!

     In 1994, the St. Catherine Catholic Church of Algonac, Michigan included this in its Sentinel newsletter: “Perhaps the boldest thing, the most revolutionary change the church ever did, happened in the first century. The holy day, the Sabbath, was changed from Saturday to Sunday. “The Day6 of the Lord” (Dies Dominica) was chosen, , not from any directions noted in the Scriptures, but from the churches sense of its own power. . . People who think that the Scriptures should be the sole authority, should logically become Seventh-day Adventists, and keep Saturday holy.” I think I have to agree with this writer!

     There are certain blasphemous things being taught that should make Protestants very concerned. For example, Mel Gibson, the producer of The Passion of Christ is a Latin Mass Catholic. I have a family member who is one, and so I am familiar with their beliefs. Latin Mass Catholics believe that the present Catholic Church is too liberal, and that Vatican II was apostasy. They also believe that anyone outside the Catholic Church cannot be saved!

     Rome has not changed her doctrines, but Protestantism has. For example, Jesus was accused of blasphemy when he said, “your sins are forgiven.” In Luke 5:21, the Pharisees said, “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Yet in The Question and Answer Catholic Catechism, on page 264, it says, “All priests and bishops have the power to forgive sins or absolve sins.” In A Catechism for Adults, Catholic priest William Cogan says, “What do you have to do to have your sins forgiven? You have to be truly sorry for them and confess them to a Catholic priest.” P. 78. Protestants have always viewed the bread and grape juice used in communion as symbols of Jesus’ body and blood. But according to the Catholic Church, when the priest blesses it and says Latin words over them, they become literally the body and blood of Jesus. “The Eucharist is a sacrament which really, truly, and substantially contains the body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ under the appearances of bread and wine.” – Question and Answer Catechism, p. 29.

     As a boy in Catholic Church I learned that at the mass Christ was sacrificed again. That’s why they call it the sacrifice of the mass. But notice what it says in Hebrews 10:12: “But this Man, (Jesus), after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down at the right hand of God.” In verse 14 of the same chapter it is written: “For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.” Also, in Roman Catholic services, only the priests partakes of the wine, but in the Bible in Matthew 26:28 it says, “And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them saying, ‘Drink ye all of it.’”

     Again I ask, how can born-again Christians, and especially Seventh-day Adventists give overwhelming support to what is blatantly Roman evangelism in the movie The Passion of Christ? Mel Gibson said that the movie was “very Marian.” To Protestants, Mary indeed was blessed, but still an ordinary woman, and not someone to be worshipped or adored.

In the Catholic church, Mary is worshipped, prayed to, adored and even vies with the Godhead for the devotion of the people! In the Catholic prayer, Hail Holy Queen, it says, “Turn your eyes most gracious advocate, your eyes of mercy toward us.” In 1 John 2:1 it says that we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” Mary is called a meidiatrix, but the Bible says there is one Mediator between God and man, the Man Christ Jesus.

     Many people are confused about the Catholic term, the “Immaculate Conception.” They think this is referring to Jesus’ miraculous birth, but it is talking about Mary’s birth! In the Catholic, The Faith of Millions, on page 321, Jesuit priest John O’Brien writes: “The Immaculate Conception refers to the conception of Mary in the womb of her mother without the stain of original sin.”But the Bible teaches that all have sinned – Mary included! If she had no sin, she would not need a Savior, but Luke 1:47, Mary called God “her Savior.” Only Jesus was tempted as we are, yet without sin.

     John Paul II has said, “The one church of Christ subsists in the Catholic Church. Full unity will come about when all share in the fullness of the means of salvation entrusted by Christ to His church.” In other words, unity will come when the Protestant Churches recognize that the Roman Catholic Church is the true church of God!

     The Holy Bible tells us that a one world church is coming. In Revelation 13, verse 8, it says: “And all that dwell on the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” In Revelation chapter 17, the fallen church is pictured as a harlot, and look what it says in verse 12 & 13.

“And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength to the beast.” The Bible says that the kingdoms of the earth, Europe especially (the horns represent the nations that came out of the break-up of the Roman Empire.) will rule with the beast as their spiritual head for a short time in the future. A one world church is coming, but it will be unity based on error.

     The current movie The Passion of the Christ could be yet another step in Protestantism’s move toward unity and sympathy with Rome. Yes, I believe God will use the film, and that hearts will be touched, but we should not endorse it, but rather use the sentiments of the people to share the real gospel and the true teachings of God’s word!

     In March of 1994, a major step in unity with Rome was when the leading evangelists of the country signed the document Protestants and Catholics Together, the Christian Mission for the Third Millennium. It was signed by leading evangelicals like Pat Robertson, Chuck Colson, Bill Bright, and Cardinal O’Connor and many other Jesuit priests and leading Protestants. Brothers and sisters – that makes strange bed-fellows!

     A one world church is coming – but better than that – Jesus is coming! We live in a grand and awesome time – just before the final scenes of earth’s history!  Today the supreme court is stacked with Roman Catholics ready to do the bidding of their spiritual leader the pontiff who has already called for Sunday legislation in his encyclical Dies Domini! The Christian Coalition has joined with the Catholic Alliance to place Evangelical politicians into office from the local school boards on up! It is time for God’s people to take a stand for truth as Luther did.

     As Seventh-day Adventist Christians, we are seeing fulfilled today words written over 100 years ago and contained in the book, The Great Controversy Between Christ and Satan. Here is a quote from this book written by Ellen White. It is found on pages 588-589. “Through the two great errors, the immortality of the soul, and Sunday sacredness, Satan will bring the people under his deceptions: while the former lays the foundation of spiritualism, the latter creates a bond of sympathy with Rome. The Protestants of the United States will be foremost in stretching their hands across the gulf to grasp the hand of spiritualism; they will stretch over the abyss to clasp hands with the Roman power; and under the influence of this threefold union, this country will follow in the steps of Rome in trampling on the rights of conscience. . . .they will see in this union a grand movement for the conversion of the world and the ushering in of the long awaited millennium.” Today, the churches are reaching across and clasping hands with Rome today – the current overwhelming support for the thoroughly Roman Catholic film – The Passion of Christ of Christ displays this.

     God has a message for the world. He is sending it through His remnant church. The true remnant church will not proclaim Mary worship, but Jesus worship! The true remnant church will teach that Jesus alone can forgive sins, and He alone is our advocate. The true remnant church will teach that obedience to God’s commandments as He wrote them with His own finger is God’s way of determining if we truly love Him. The true remnant church will not give heed to traditions of men that contradict the Word of God! The true church will call God’s people out of Babylon – out of falsehood to His truth. Jesus cared about truth! He said My Father wants to be worshipped in Spirit and in truth! Jesus said He was the truth!

     Jesus did suffer for us, and if our heavenly Father wanted us to see all the horrible physical details of it, He would have described it in the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy. Even Jesus mother Mary, we are told in the spirit of prophecy was carried away from the scene so that she would not have to see it all. But much worse than the physical suffering of our Lord was the spiritual and mental anguish He suffered. And that could never be put on screen by Hollywood! Your mind’s eye aided by the Bible, the Spirit of Prophecy, and your Holy Spirit guided imagination will make the scenes vivid enough for you to know how much your Savior loves you!

     The cross indeed was brutal! The Lord’s servant tells us that “never was a criminal treated IN SO INHUMAN A MANNER AS WAS THE SON OF GOD!” I don’t need to watch a 45 minute long Hollywood style scourging described by a Catholic mystic to know that with His stripes I am healed! I don’t need to hear the cries of anguish from an actor to know that my Savior suffered for me. If I was the only One – if you were the only one – He would have done it! Think of that! You were on His mind! Ask Him, why Jesus? Why? His answer will be, “Because I love you!” Let’s show our love for Him by obeying His Word, His law, and keeping His Sabbath day holy! What do you say?