Building A City For Mary

Now, Religion in the News, a report and comment on religious trends and events being covered by the media.This week’s item is from the UK Sunday Times, February 26, 2006, with a headline:Ave Maria Florida.The following are excerpts:A former Marine who was raised by nuns and made a fortune selling pizza has embarked on the two hundred thirty million pound, or half billion dollar plan to build the first town in America to be run according to strict Catholic principles.Tom Monaghan, the founder of the Dominos Pizza chain has stirred protests from civil rights activists by declaring that Ave Maria’s pharmacies will not be allowed to sell condoms or birth control pills.The town’s cable television network will carry no X-rated channels.The town will be centered around a 100 foot tall oratory and the first Catholic university to be built in America in 40 years.The university’s president Nicholas J. Healy has said future students should help rebuild the city of God in a country suffering from catastrophic cultural collapse.Monaghan, 68, sold his take away chain in 1998, for an estimated one billion dollars.A devout Catholic who has plowed millions into religious projects, including radio stations, primary schools and a Catholic law faculty in Michigan, Monaghan has bought about 5,000 acres previously used by migrate farmers.Monaghan has argued that the owners of the town’s commercial properties will be free to impose conditions in leases notably the restriction on the sale of contraceptives.Law suits appear inevitable once the new town begins functioning in 2007.But Monaghan believes he has more than the law on his side.I think it’s God’s will to do this, he said.

Tom:

Dave, you have to admire somebody who’s concerned about where the culture is going and wants to do something good and right.But good luck to him because down through history, I mean, he refers to, I guess to Augustine helped rebuild the city of God.Actually, that’s the president of the AveMarieUniversity.Calvin tried that in Geneva.It just doesn’t quite work, does it?

Dave:

Well, the Bible doesn’t tell us, and Jesus certainly didn’t tell us to change the world.I know that sounds very nice.One of my dear friends for many years, that’s how he ended his letters, Yours for changing the world in this generation.We are not out to change the world.The world is going to hell.The Bible says evil men and seducers will wax worse and worse.You just talked about apostasy back there.Men will be lovers of themselves.So, we are to get people to leave this world, loosen their grip on this world, stop loving this world and begin to love the Lord and look forward to eternity.And we want to rescue people from this world and rescue them from the hell that awaits all those who follow the ways of this world.So, it’s a hopeless task.On the other hand---

Tom:

Well, Dave, along with this hopeless task, just as you articulated so well in our last segment, the gospel.I don’t find---well, as a former Roman Catholic for 30 years I never heard the gospel.So now to have a city named after the co-redemptress, according to what we believe as Roman Catholics, even though it’s not official dogma, that Ave Maria, that Mary the co-redemptress and a city that’s going to have morality, a higher level of ethics, and so on.But that doesn’t bring anybody out from under condemnation for being a sinner, only Christ can do that.

Dave:

Right.So Tom, this city, the more successful it would be the worse it would be, because it will only reinforce people in their own pride, their own self righteousness.And why would anybody need Christ to die for their sins who lives in this wonderful city where people don’t sin.So, the worst thing you can do is to build up people’s sense of righteousness, self righteousness, they don’t need a Savior then.It’s not biblical, it’s tragic.But anyway, as you said, this man----this is what he believes.But if he knew Christ, wouldn’t it be wonderful if he spent this kind of money bringing the gospel, how that Christ died for our sins, that all have sinned.See, Tom, without getting into that because I know we are about out of time, but you know what the Catholic church teaches, that Christ’s sacrifice of Himself on the cross was not enough.That’s why they call the mass the sacrifice of the mass, and you’ve quoted it a number of times.It even says---these are the official documents of the Catholic church that He is being immolated on Catholic altars.Thatmeans that they are offering Christ as a sacrifice for sins for the living and the dead and you are condemned to hell if you deny this.

Tom:

Right.Well, you could add purgatory to that.What’s the need for purgatory if Christ paid the full penalty for our sins?Now Dave, here’s an interesting note, this is further on in the article.Sources close to the project said Monaghan was particularly disturbed by what he regards as the failure of Western civilization to resist Islamic fundamentalism.In a speech to students last year at the university, the president Healy warned that Islam not longer faces a religiously dynamic West.Healy described the virtual collapse of Europe as one of the most profound and unsettling developments of our new century.Now the reason I bring that up is because they are a little bit out of tune with the Catholic catechism, Vatican 2, and so on.Their overtures toward Islam by the Catholic church that are overwhelming, and this sounds to me like they are not going well.

Dave:

Well, not only that, Tom, but you know Vatican 2 says that Allah is the God of the Bible.But I’m glad they got that straight, and I wish they could do something in that regard.But is it---he calls it a religious collapse, a collapse of religion in the West, but it’s not just that, it’s the collapse of truth, because if we don’t know the truth about ourselves as sinners, about Jesus Christ, who He really is, about the true God.Jesus Christ said, This is life eternal to know thee, the only true God.Islam has a false God.Unfortunately the Catholic church has a false Christ who is still dying for our sins.But it’s a collapse of morality and truth, because if you don’t understand the truth, you don’t know the Bible, you’re not going to be able to defeat Islam, and we must face Islam for the religion.This is Islam that’s doing this.Tom, I give them credit for having that straight anyhow.

Tom:

Yeah, but on the other hand, Dave, he ends with---I think it’s God’s will to do this.Well, not according to the scriptures.

Dave:

Right.