Yeah, we've been hearing all about "man" since John XXIII's encyclical Pacem In Terris (1963), ad nauseam. What we need to serve is God and His Kingdom, and not man. The traditionalist suspicion about the Pope's view of missionary activity is especially corroborated by his actions, by what he does in the presence of non-Catholics, especially the most recent scandal in Assisi. 'At the service of man' is precisely the most fitting description. It's not at the service of God or the Truth, but the service of man. It is quite ironic, then, that the New Catechism should testify:

"Before Christ's second coming the Church must pass through a final trial that will shake the faith of many believers. The persecution that accompanies her pilgrimage on earth will unveil the 'mystery of iniquity' in the form of a religious deception offering men an apparent solution to their problems at the price of apostasy from the truth. The supreme religious deception is that of the Antichrist, a pseudo-messianism by which man glorifies himself in place of God and of his Messiah come in the flesh" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 675).

    That we are indeed facing an outright apostasy in the Church, starting with the highest ranking member, the Pope, can be seen by the following quotes I will now supply, taken from John Paul II, in no particular order. They all bear witness to the Pope's humanism, which has supplanted the Gospel starting with the election of John XXIII and Vatican II, as the title of this series indicates: Vatican II and the Gospel of Man. Sit back, then, and ponder in horror (as I certainly did) these hardly-known but documented despicable statements made by the Holy Father:

• "Brothers and Sisters, the example of a saint who lived close to us can strengthen in us the courage of hope. Brother Mutien-Marie goes before us on the path of fidelity to God's invitation and of tireless service of our brothers and sisters. We ask his intercession, that we may be given in our day to make straight the way of the Lord and of man, which is the path of the Church." - Homily of December 10, 1989.

• "In reality, the name for that deep amazement at man's worth and dignity is the Gospel, that is to say: the Good News. It is also called Christianity. This amazement determines the Church's mission in the world. . . ." - Redemptor Hominis, No. 10.

• Speaking of Christmas night: "'A child is born to us, a Son is given to us.' Yes! A son has been given to us. In this Son we are all once more given back to ourselves!" - Urbi et Orbi, December 25, 1980.

• "Man must be reconciled with his humanity." - Message at the Angelus, April 20, 1980.

• "The 'keys of the kingdom of heaven' are not entrusted to Peter and the Church to be used arbitrarily or to manipulate consciences, but so that consciences can be freed in the full Truth of man, who is Christ, 'peace and mercy' (cf. Gal 6:16) for everyone." - General Audience, February 22, 1984.

    It hurts me to say it, but it looks as though John Paul II is a Pope of Man, not of God. And I do not mean to deny by this that he is a valid Pope - it is merely a description of how I perceive the status quo. Surely, a dark night has descended upon the Church. And yet, we have hope, we have a Lenten hope that waits in expectance of Easter, the Resurrection of Our Lord.

    As I am writing this, I know the first day this installment will appear online is Good Friday, 2002. Certainly, looking at the Church undergoing so much suffering on earth right now, we can better identify with our Lord on the Cross, who suffered so much for love of us. By being alive in the middle of this most horrendous crisis in the Church right now, may the Lord, who predestined us to live at this point in time rather than another, deign to give us a glimpse of the sufferings He bore on the Cross for us.

    I believe that the only way we can make sense of this catastrophic state of our Holy Church right now is by looking at the Cross. At the Cross, all suffering becomes sweet, all anguish becomes bearable, and all distress starts to make sense. As Our Lord cried, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34), so let us make these Words of His our own in this hour of great agony: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

    In these three parts of razzmatazz, I hope I have been able to share with you at least a tiny bit of what's out there in terms of confusing, disturbing, and erroneous statements made by the Popes and Vatican II, ever since 1958. The essays about razzmatazz fit perfectly into this series of "Vatican II and the Gospel of Man", of which Pope John Paul II seems to be a hero, as sad as it is to say that. This being the case, next week I would like to start a new series focusing exclusively on Pope John Paul - his humanism and his ecumenism in particular.

    I realize that touching as exhaustive subjects as the ones we've been discussing necessarily opens up a Pandora's Box. But better to open that box and expose what's out there than to keep silence and fail to warn others about the dangers to their faith, "For woe is unto me if I preach not the gospel" (1 Corinthians 9:16). During this Passiontide, may God have mercy on us."

Editor's Note: So many of the post-conciliar bishops today refer to those clinging to the true Roman Catholic traditions that were in vogue for 2000 years prior to the reforms of Vatican II as 'fossils,' 'dinosaurs,' 'old folks who will die off soon.' We beg to differ and offer as proof the youthful wisdom and enthusiasm of the younger generation in the Traditional Insights of Mario Derksen who exemplifies the thinking of many more young men and women today who realize the new thinking of the post-conciliar church does not add up to true Catholic teaching. Thus they long for those traditions so tried and true. His insight shows great promise, optimism and hope for the future of Holy Mother Church.