Crosstalk: December 2, 2016

There is continued controversy within the Roman Catholic Church. There are concerns about false theories of conscience and moral law. Cardinal Burke has stated that if Pope Francis won't clarify a serious error, the Cardinals must make a formal act of correction.

Isn't the Pope supposed to be infallible? For Catholics, isn't the Pope God's designated voice on earth? What are some of the specific points of controversy?

Joining Jim to discuss this controversy was Mike Gendron. For over 30 years, Mike was a devout Roman Catholic and was taught to rely upon the authority of the church. He followed the priests, the sacraments and was depending upon his own good works for salvation. However in 1981, after attending an apologetics seminar called, 'Evidence for the Christian Faith', the Bible became his sole authority in all matters of faith. As he searched the Scriptures he was amazed to see how often the Bible contradicts the teaching and tradition of the church he had been a part of for so long. Mike placed his trust in Jesus Christ as Savior and the Bible became his sole authority in all matters of faith. He founded a ministry, Proclaiming the Gospel, that points people to Jesus Christ as the all-sufficient Savior.

Mike explained that this controversy started when the Pope issued his exhortation (Amoris Laetitia) that goes not only against Roman Catholic theology but also against the Word of God. In this exhortation the Pope says that no one is condemned to hell, that the divorced and civilly remarried are not in a state of serious sin and can receive sanctifying grace and grow in charity. The Pope also stated that a person with full knowledge of the divine law can sin by choosing to obey that law.

As this Crosstalk moves along, Jim has Mike explain papal infallibility and the role of sacred tradition in the Catholic church, the Pope's ecumenical agenda, his description of proselytizing as sin, the priestly authority to pardon mothers who've had abortions, his opinion on human induced global warming and much more.