Mail Box		Rome Never Changes
	Itinerary		Roman Catholicism Today
	Ruth's Diary		Testimony: Michael Scotto
CHALLENGER Archives

Many today are being deceived by the Roman Catholic Church’s feigned love of liberalism and democracy. They forget that it was this ecclesiastical organization that spawned Mussolini, Hitler, Franco, Salazar, and the like. But it continues to masquerade as the Bride of Christ, the Lamb of God, The only Gate of Heaven.

History proves that the Roman Catholic system has always been the greatest enemy of God and man. The famous scholar, Birks, described its position as follows: "Let us suppose a rebel in some distant province to forge the royal seal and handwriting, and pretend to act in the name of the sovereign. He then claims to himself entire and unreserved allegiance. He abrogates whatever laws he pleases and enacts contrary ones in their room. He enforces his own statutes by the severest punishments against those who still adhere to the old laws of the kingdom. He clothes himself with the robes of state, applies to himself the royal titles, claims immunity from the laws, even of his own enacting; and pretends that all the statutes derive their sole force from his sanction and must borrow their meaning from his interpretations. Last of all, he banishes, strips of their goods, imprisons, and puts to death all those subjects who abide by the laws of the king and reject his usurpation. Surely, in this case, the pretense of governing in the monarch’s name does not excuse, but aggravates the rebellion. It lessens greatly, it is true, the guilt of the deceived subjects, but increases, in the same proportion, the crime of their deceiver."

The Council of Trent, by its Creed of Pius IV, makes it impossible for the Roman Catholic Church to change. It added the following twelve new articles to the Nicene Creed:

1. I most firmly admit and embrace apostolic and ecclesiastical traditions and all other constitutions and observances of the same Church
2. I also admit the sacred Scriptures according to the sense which the holy mother Church has held and does hold, to whom it belongs to judge of the true sense and interpretation of the Holy Scriptures; nor will I ever take or interpret them otherwise than according to the unanimous consent of the Fathers.
3. I profess also, that there are truly and properly seven sacraments of the new law, instituted by Jesus Christ our Lord and for the salvation of mankind, though all are not necessary for every one; namely, baptism, confirmation, eucharist, penance, extreme unction, orders, and matrimony; and that they confer grace; and of these, baptism, confirmation, and orders cannot be reiterated without sacrilege.
4. I also receive and admit the ceremonies of the Catholic Church received and approved in the solemn administration of all the above said sacraments.
5. I receive and embrace all and every one of the things which have been defined and declared in the holy Council of Trent concerning original sin and justification.
6. I profess likewise that in the mass is offered to God a true, proper, and propitiatory sacrifice for the living and the dead; and that in the most holy sacrifice of the eucharist there is truly, really and substantially the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ; and that there is made a conversion of the whole substance of the bread into the body and of the whole substance of the wine into the blood, which conversion the Catholic Church calls transubstantiation.
7. I confess also, that under either kind alone, whole and entire, Christ and a true sacrament are received.
8. I constantly hold that there is a purgatory and that the souls detained therein are helped by the suffrages of the faithful.
9. Likewise that the saints reigning together with Christ are to be honoured and incovated; that they offer prayers to God for us; and that their relics are to be venerated.
10. I most firmly assert that the images of Christ and of the mother of God ever virgin and also of the other saints, are to be had and retained and that honour and veneration are to be given them.
11. I also affirm that the power of indulgences was left by Christ in the Church and that the use of them is most wholesome to Christian people.
12. I acknowledge the holy Catholic and apostolic Roman Church, the mother and mistress of all churches; and I promise and swear true obedience to the Roman bishop, the successor of St. Peter, the prince of the apostles and vicar of Jesus Christ.

This Creed of Pius IV is a millstone around Rome’s neck. It binds the Roman Catholic Church forever to all its pagan errors. It is its answer and challenge to the Reformation. Dr. H. Grattan Guinness, in his famous book Romanism and the Reformation (p. 80), wrote as follows: "See the almost incredible spectacle of 1870! See those seven hundred bishops of the Church throughout the world gathered in Rome at the high altar of St Peter’s. See them and hear them! In this Romish book, entitled ‘The Chair of Peter,’ p. 497, is a description of the scene. "The pope recited in a loud voice the profession of faith, namely the Creed of Nice and Constantinople, together with the definition of the Council of Trent, called the Creed of Pope Pius IV; after which it was read aloud from the ambo by the Bishop of Fabriano; ‘then for two whole hours,’ to use the words of one of the prelates present, ‘the cardinals, patriarchs, primates, archbishops, bishops, and other fathers of the council, made their adhesion to the same by kissing the Gospel at the throne of the head of the Church.’ A truly sublime spectacle, even seven hundred bishops from all parts of the earth, the representatives of more than thirty nations and of two hundred million Christians, thus openly making profession of one common faith, in communion with the one and supreme pastor and teacher of all!"

The Creed of Pius IV is Rome’s final, deliberate rejection of God’s Word; its final answer for all ages. It forever stamps the Roman Catholic Church as the Babylonian Harlot, the persecuting Church of Satanl This creed of Pius IV makes the Roman Catholic Church the enemy of every free nation. Because of it, the Roman Church must condemn the principles of our democracy and aim to destroy our great Constitution.

This is the Church which gives mere lip service to our Lord; which is trying to make America Catholic; which as filled the world with infidelity, atheism, ignorance, superstition, hatred, poverty, and fear—and which is scheming to subdue these United States and lay them at the feet of its so-called vicar of Christ.

In This Issue

In 1991 an amazing thing happened. I went from being an enemy of God (Col. 1:21), dead in trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1), to being made alive and called a son of God (1 Jn. 3:1)! It was not easy. I was moved by the conviction and weight of my own sin and compelled by the undeniable truth of Scripture. I say it was not easy because to believe the gospel of the grace of God, I had to deny twenty-five years of devotion and service to the Roman Catholic Church.

I was born, raised, and educated in the Roman Catholic faith, was an altar boy, then spiritual director of the youth group, youth representative to the parish council and taught confirmation classes. I had no desire to leave the Roman Church and was convinced it was the true church of the Lord Jesus Christ.

In 1991 my sister was in a horrible accident, my father had a heart attack, I nearly totaled my car, and my fiancee left me with no warning. I turned to the church. I prayed for Mary to intervene. I lit candles and gave money to the church. I said a Novena, went to confession, sang songs of adoration to Mary and gazed upon the crucifix in prayer for hours. As a last resort, I began to read the Bible. In short, I was struck with the reality of my spiritual emptiness, the worthlessness of my good works, and my need of a Saviour. In due course I sought answers from some men of God who shared the Gospel with me and I was Biblically born-again.

In 1996 another amazing thing happened. Some evangelical leaders said that I had no need of this conversion. They said that, as a devout Roman Catholic in good standing, I was already part of the Body of Christ. According to these evangelical leaders, I already had eternal life as a Roman Catholic. Interestingly, as a Catholic I would never say I was eternally saved (I Jn 5:13). It was a sin to do so. Now, if those evangelical leaders were correct, those who shared the Gospel with me were sinning by drawing me away from Rome’s doctrines of salvation.

This whole ecumenical movement baffles me. A young man who was trusting his good life, the prayers of Mary and the saints, the sacrifice of the mass and other sacraments, the cleansing of Purgatory, and the church to get him to heaven is now labeled a "vociferous ex-Catholic" and a "bigot" by large Christian organizations, merely because he placed his trust solely in the once-for-all, finished work of Christ at Calvary and desires other Roman Catholics to also know this salvation. I cannot explain this except to say that either these evangelical leaders are ignorant of Romanism or they are tools of the Devil! I pray the former is true.

The truth of the Gospel—new birth, forgiveness of sins, reconciliation, sonship, liberty in Christ—is being compromised on the altar of ecumenism. We have decided that a church which has declared the one, true Gospel of grace to be accursed of God (Council of Trent Session VI: Canon XXIV) is somehow united in the same Gospel! I praise God that there are Christians who still preach the only Gospel that can save.

In the name of love and truth, let us oppose any system that denies the faith "once for all delivered to the saints." Let us never forget those who were tortured and executed for simply preaching the same Gospel we preach today. The Gospel which Rome still calls "accursed," but a Gospel we know to be "the power of God unto salvation." (Rom. 1:16).

In This Issue

Former East German spy chief, Markus Wolf, says the Swiss Guard commander slain at the Vatican was once an East German spy. Earlier in the week a Berlin tabloid reported that the slain commander had fed secrets to East Germany’s Stasi spy agency. According to the Vatican, the Swiss Guard, Estermann, and his wife were fatally shot in their Vatican apartment by a disgruntled Swiss Guard who then killed himself.

When Mexican federal agents investigated a drug-traffic suspect from Rosarito Beach, it was no surprise that in this most Catholic of countries, the 58-year-old suspect called for protection upon the ghost of Jesús Malverde. The police also found voodoo dolls among the marijuuana, meth-amphetamines, guns, knives, and cellular telephones. "Malverde will protect me," she proclaimed. Malverde was a Robin Hood-like figure who robbed from the rich and distributed his ill-gotten gains among the poor. Over the last 20 years, the nation’s drug smugglers have embraced the Malverde legend and adopted him as their own patron saint, and they are serious in their worship of him. A shrine in his honor was built in Culiacán, one which annually draws pilgrims from across Mexico and even Mexicans living in the United States. Another smaller shrine is found in Tijuana. They say, "Malverde was unjustly killed by the government. That’s why he is a saint. He can do miracles."

French Catholic missionaries fought traditional demons to bring Catholicism into eastern Nigeria. Now Pentecostalism is claiming many in that area. The Pentecostal churches arose from the belief that the Catholic Church was too rigid in its doctrines, stiff in ideas and routine in style of worshipping. John Paul II has recently visited the area.

In This Issue

"It is good to read your newsletter and the CHALLENGER each month. I always nail them on the wall so anyone can see how God is blessing your ministry. I can’t understand how Van Impe takes some of the positions he takes in the name of ‘love’ and thinks that will plug the spiritual blindness of religious, but lost sinners. I want lost people to be saved no matter what their religion. Isn’t that ‘Christian love?" EDITOR: We believe that the position being taken by many religious leaders today is a sign of the end times. Many have itching ears and show no real love for truth!

"I’ve enclosed an article from the religion section of the Los Angeles Times entitled ‘Catholics Are Reaching Out To Gays While Standing Firm On Abstinence.’ It’s a good example of double-talk! May our heavenly Father continue to draw millions of Catholics out of Rome and into a real relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. Believers need to be awakened to the Catholic denial of the Jesus of the Bible and Rome’s false way of Salvation." (CA)

"We enjoy the CHALLENGER and the news of your ministry. You are on the front lines of a difficult, but important ministry. We rejoice to hear of your ministry and how the Lord is providing and blessing." (CA)

"I hand out tracts to a lot of immigrants coming into our country. I believe most of them are Catholic. They are seeking a better life in America, but wouldn’t it be nice for them to have Eternal Life in Christ!" (CA)

"We want you to know that our church is praying for you. We appreciate both of you so much for all of these many years of faithfulness and dedication to our Lord and Saviour. Thank you for your love and compassion to the Catholics. They need to know the truth! God bless you." (LA)

"God bless you for your concern and contribution of Christian literature towards the only open Christian library in our whole district." (Uganda)

"Thank you very much indeed for your uplifting epistle and the Christ exalting tract, Scriptural Truths For Roman Catholics. My heart is with you and I sincerely believe that you are called at the ‘height of time’ for God’s glory." (NIGERIA)

"Just a very brief note to thank you for the tracts and video which arrived yesterday. God’s blessings to all at MTC." (CA)

In This Issue

The Lord keeps us singing more and more, the busier we get. Bart likes to whistle and hum and hearing a tune gets me singing. It is wonderful to be able to praise the Lord all day long! What a fantastic privilege to be able to work where we can do that! Sometimes when I get tired I wonder why we work so hard when we could live a relaxed lifestyle without the stress involved with traveling to meetings and meeting deadlines, etc. Then I think of how boring that lifestyle would be. Just thinking of all the blessings we would miss keeps me plugging away, no matter what. But most of all, we long to see souls saved out of religious darkness. There is nothing so spiritually encouraging as seeing lives changed by the indwelling Christ!

Last month, the senior class from Beth Eden in Denver came to see the ministry. It was great having a gang of teenagers here and to be able to challenge them with the importance of living sold-out lives for Christ. We trust that after being here, some of them will have a burden to witness to Roman Catholics and to pray for this ministry. We also ministered in two California churches in May. Our continual prayer is that the people where we minister would be as blessed by our ministry as we are in ministering. It is always encouraging to speak with ex-Catholics, to hear their testimonies, and to be an encouragement to them. It is also very special when Roman Catholics attend the meetings and we have opportunity to share the truth with them. Roman Catholics attended services at both churches. We had opportunity, also, to speak personally with them. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to minister truth to their hearts until they understand the Gospel and place their trust in Jesus Christ alone.

We began June in Germany where Bart spoke in six off base American military churches in the nine days we were there. Thank God for the missionaries who work with the military overseas! Many of them were saved in churches like those in which they serve. Thank God for those in the military who will take a stand for Biblical Fundamentalism! Please pray for these pastors, their families, and their congregations. They face challenges that most of us could never understand. At one church, some men told how impressive it was to visit the military cemetary in Luxumburg. The associate pastor offered to drive us there the next day. It was an incredible reminder of the price that has been paid for our freedom! We also visited several Reformation sites. Let us be thankful for our political and religious freedom and for those who sacrificed to secure it! Let us do our part to protect both!

In This Issue

In This Issue