In spite of all the difficulties  prior to Vatican II the church grew and did its job.  We had good popes, bad popes, saintly popes, thousands of martyrs, people leaving and forming their own churches...all sorts of ups and downs.   The singular issue of the office of Pope kept the original  historical line of descendency intact - notwithstanding assaults made by false claimants....and so on down to the present day.

 

For explanation of this diagram go to: 

Thoughts of a Pewsitter

 The diagram will show how the church stagnated  for the 46 years following the completion of Vatican II.   The whole body of teaching built up since the time of Christ has been dismantled piece by piece until nothing is left, virtually taking us back to the time before Christ - to Adam and Eve's condition which is re-presented to us - minus sin, therefore no sin-free Paradise  preceded his creation, no redeemer, no heaven, no hell.   Indeed  the whole notion of sin has been obliterated; of good and of evil.  There is no such thing as good and evil and man can do what he likes.  It removes any mention of need of a Redeemer, of man's need of a Redeemer, salvation, or resurrection of the body.   So there we have it...the Church historically founded by Christ teaching and baptising people throughout the world  in the Name of the Father, Son  and Holy Ghost, offering sacraments to bring us to salvation has now turned on itself and its founder...it is teaching pure atheism which is a lack of belief....God is not!  


Comment:  Many people believe that a secular world is the ultimate reality...that religion is fantasy, and in particular that the Catholic faith is false.   Their philosophy is that man is what he is whether 'good or evil'....in fact that there is no such thing as good and evil....that nobody can define it so that it applies to everyone....we just get on with what we've got.   The product of such thinking is what exists today in the world.   Anybody who calls evil by its name has to be a Catholic or a person influenced by Catholicism and its definitions of good and evil.   This applies to Protestantism as well where grave sins defined by the Catholic church are not considered to be so.  Variations occur between various denominations each with its own interpretations.   A good man is known as a decent human being who has a sensitive conscience where he instinctively knows what is good and what is evil.   Such a man, caught up in some dilemma, can and does choose what goes against his conscience in order to escape an intolerable situation.   This applies to everyone in fact whether Christian or not.    The Catholic has to resort to supernatural weapons,  counsels and power to overcome the evil he is presented with...to conquer it....to not succumb.   Such a man is continually falling and getting back on his feet again through the power-generating Sacraments.

There is no basic difference between the first 'good decent' man and the ordinary practising Catholic.   But some go so far as to challenge God...saying ....'if this or that is evil, and my conscience tells me it is and I don't want to do it but I have to because of the circumstances I am in - then  you have to help me - give me something I haven't got!'    Such a prayer, from my experience, is never unanswered...and it makes sense.   It confirms the deep longing in the human heart to be good 'as God is good.'    This is the Church's stated Reason for Being.   It gives hope to us confronted time and time again with impossible situations..a hope that is not in vain for it is a 'sure hope.'   The supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit issuing from the Father and his risen Son are given to the man who recognises that his heart has a longing that nothing on earth can satisfy.
It cannot be destroyed.   Why is it there?   Who has implanted it?
                                                        
Continuation of above dialogue:
A state if confusion therefore prevails not only within the Church but outside in the world because civil laws were based on Christian principles.  The treasured contents of Mother Church were being sucked out supplanting in their stead - untruth.   'Destruction!  Everything was taken away as if it had never existed and since the Church was the only authority to authenticate our faith, and to challenge the world keeping it accountable,  the people inside and outside were abandoned and left to the wolves.   Shepherds deserted the flock and by extension the world-at-large.


The world at large was affected by the outward destruction of a false ecumenism (more on this later) resulting in getting lost in the tower of babel where faith and belief were just a matter of personal opinion and personal interpretation.... with death as our final end.   If you really follow this to its rightful conclusion then no Christian denomination has any ground to stand on.   If Christ is non-existent, was not the promised Redeemer are ALL the biblical scriptures a lie?  All the historical prophets, kings, Jewish patriarchs, Messiah, apostles together with their on-the-spot witnesses and writings -  all non-existent?   Even if you take the biblical scriptures at face value you know these are historical documents written by people who lived and died in the times that were written about. 



                                 Varying  Reactions  to  Vatican II  Council 

MANY CATHOLICS WERE RELIEVED, GLAD TO BE FREE OF ANY COMMITMENT TO REMAIN. MANY REMAINED BECAUSE THE LANGUAGE CHANGE MEANT THEY COULD INTERPRET HER TEACHINGS ANY WAY THEY LIKED AND BE ASSURED OF 'GOING TO HEAVEN'. A SMALL NUMBER REMAINED AND CHALLENGED THE HIERARCHY VALIANTLY DEFENDING HER PERENNIAL TEACHINGS THAT HAD BEEN HANDED DOWN SINCE HER FOUNDATION BY OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.  OTHER SOME WENT INTO A KIND OF SPIRITUAL HIBERNATION DESERTED BY THEIR SHEPHERDS AND UNCARINGLY FORGOTTEN ABOUT.

LOOKING BACK ON THOSE TIMES IT WAS AS IF WE WERE BEING SIFTED. THE SCANDAL OF CLERICAL ABUSE SURFACED EXPOSING THE DOUBLE-LIFE OF TOO MANY PRIESTS. THIS CAUSED THE LOSS OF FAITH OF LARGE NUMBERS OF PRACTISING CATHOLICS. IT IS AS IF THE DEVIL HIMSELF COULD NOT HAVE DONE A BETTER JOB. THROUGH IT ALL FAITHFUL CATHOLICS HAD TO LOOK DEEP WITHIN THEIR OWN HEARTS TO FIND IF THERE WAS AN ANCHOR TO STABILISE THE BARQUE OF PETER. SUCH ENTERED INTO THIS DESERT EXPERIENCE AND REALISED THAT WHAT HAD BEEN BELIEVED EMERGED FROM THE DEBRIS LIKE A PHOENIX RISING.