Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira

Let us not seek instant success and fleeting applause from the crowds or even from our adversaries; such are fruits of the common ground tactic.

Our Lord often shows us that we should despise popularity among the wicked:

"A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country, and in his own house. And he wrought not many miracles there, because of their unbelief." (58)

As some would have it, the supreme triumph of a Catholic work is not the blessings and praise of the hierarchy, but the applause of the adversary. This criterion is fallacious because, among a thousand other reasons, at times it contains a mere ambush in which we fall, and in fact we sacrifice principle at this price:

"Woe to you when men shall bless you: for according to these things did their fathers to the false prophets." (59) "A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign: and a sign shall not be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet. And he left them, and went away." (60)

Our Lord went away but we, instead, wish to stay on the barren field, distorting and diminishing truths until we draw applause. When applause comes, it will be, in many cases, the sign that we have become false prophets.

True, Our Lord has pity on those who are not so hardened in evil that they could not be saved by a miracle:

And looking round about on them with anger, being grieved for the blindness of their hearts, he saith to the man: Stretch forth thy hand. And he stretched it forth: and his hand was restored unto him. (61)

But many will perish in their blindness:

And he said to them: To you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but to them that are without, all things are done in parables: That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand: lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them. (62)

In view of so much severity, it is not surprising that the "meek Rabbi of Galilee" would at times inspire real terror even in his intimate friends: "But they understood not the word, and they were afraid to ask him." (63)

Being an apostle means to live fighting rather than receiving praise, as shown by the prophecy below, which certainly would cause no smaller terror:

But look to yourselves. For they shall deliver you up to the councils, and in the synagogues you shall be beaten, and you shall stand before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony unto them. (64)

Why so much hatred for the preachers of Good? “I know that you are the children of Abraham: but you seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you." (65)

In all ages there will be hearts in which the word of the Church will have no place. These hearts will then fill with hatred and try to ridicule, diminish, calumniate, lead to apostasy and even kill the disciples of Our Lord.

Also for this reason, Our Lord said to the Jews:

But now you seek to kill me, a man who have spoken the truth to you, which I have heard of God. This Abraham did not. You do the works of your father. They said therefore to him: We are not born of fornication: we have one Father, even God. Jesus therefore said to them: If God were your Father, you would indeed love me. For from God I proceeded, and came; for I came not of myself, but he sent me: Why do you not know my speech? Because you cannot hear my word. (66)

It is no wonder, then, that His very miracles aroused hatred. This is what happened after the awesome miracle of Lazarus' resurrection:

Jesus said to them: Loose him, and let him go. Many therefore of the Jews, who were come to Mary and Martha, and had seen the things that Jesus did, believed in Him. But some of them went to the Pharisees, and told them the things that Jesus had done. (67)

In view of all this, how can the apostles hope to be always esteemed by all? Do they not notice that this general esteem often contains an unmistakable sign that they are no longer with Our Lord?

Indeed, every true Catholic will have enemies:

If the world hate you, know ye, that it hath hated me before you. If you had been of the world, the world would love its own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

Remember my word that I said to you: The servant is not greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you: if they have kept my word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for my name's sake: because they know not him that sent me. If I had not come, and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. He that hateth me, hateth my Father also. (68)

The following passage is also in the same sense:

These things have I spoken to you, that you may not be scandalized. They will put you out of the synagogues: yea, the hour cometh, that whosoever killeth you, will think that he doth a service to God. (69)

And also:

I have given them thy word, and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world; as I also am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldst take them out of the world, but that thou shouldst keep them from evil. (70)

As for the barren and worthless praises of the devil and his henchmen, let us see how they should be dealt with:

And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain girl, having a pythonical spirit, met us, who brought to her masters much gain by divining. This same following Paul and us, cried out, saying: These men are the servants of the most high God, who preach unto you the way of salvation. And this she did many days. But Paul being grieved, turned, and said to the spirit: I command thee, in the name of Jesus Christ, to go out from her. And he went out the same hour. (71)

We should indeed be glad when, from the enemy camp, we get a word of praise from some soul that, touched by grace, begins to approach us. But how different this applause is from the fallacious and turbulent joy displayed by the wicked when certain naïve apostles present them with maimed and mutilated truths similar to the errors of impiety! Applause in this case does not signify a movement of souls toward good but the joy they experience imagining the Church does not want to wrench them from evil. This is the applause of one who rejoices in being able to continue in sin, and it means an even greater hardening in evil. This applause we must avoid. Hence, he who is not resigned with being unpopular collides with the New Testament: “Wonder not, brethren, if the world hate you.” (72)

Irritating the wicked is often the fruit of most noble actions:

And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry and shall send gifts one to another, because these two prophets tormented them [the wicked] that dwelt upon the earth. (73)

Those who think that Catholic doctrine will unanimously draw applause when preached in an exemplary way by word and deed, are in serious error. Saint Paul says: “And all that will live godly in Christ Jesus, shall suffer persecution." (74) As this passage shows, a pious life is what exacerbates the hatred of the wicked. The Church is not hated for the imperfections found in this or that of her representatives through the ages. These imperfections are almost always mere pretexts for the wicked in their hatred to wound that which the Church has of divine.

The good odor of Christ is a perfume of love for those who are saved, but it stirs up hatred in those who are lost:

“For we are the good odor of Christ unto God, in them that are saved, and in them that perish. To the one indeed the odor of death unto death: but to the others the odor of life unto life." (75)

Like Our Lord, the Church has to the highest degree the capability of making herself loved by individuals, families, peoples and entire races. But by the same token she has, like Our Lord, the attribute of seeing the unjust hatred of individuals, families, peoples and entire races rise up against her. A true apostle could not care less if he is loved when such love is not an expression of that love which souls have, or at least begin to have for God, or otherwise does not lead to the Kingdom of God. Any other popularity is useless for him and for the Church. Thus, Saint Paul says: "For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? If I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ." (76)

As we can see, the approval of men should frighten an apostle with a delicate conscience, rather than make him happy: could he have neglected doctrinal purity to become so widely esteemed? Is he certain that he castigated impiety as his duty called for? Would he really be in one of those situations like Our Lord's on Palm Sunday? If so, a warning: remember the worth of human applause and do not be attached to it. Tomorrow, perhaps, false prophets will appear who will attract the people by preaching a less austere doctrine. And the man still applauded on the eve should tell those who praised him:

Am I then become your enemy, because I tell you the truth? They (the false apostles) are zealous in your regard not well: but they would exclude you, that you might be zealous for them. But be zealous for that which is good in a good thing always: and not only when I am present with you. My little children, of whom I am in labor again, until Christ be formed in you. And I would willingly be present with you now, and change my voice: because I am ashamed of you. (77)

But this language cannot be changed: the interest of souls prevents it. And if this warning were to go unheeded, the popularity of the apostle will wreck once and for all.

Then, if he lacks a detached and manly supernatural spirit, behold him tagging along after those who abandon him. There he goes diluting principles, corroding and defacing truths, diminishing and cheapening precepts to save the last fragments of that popularity which he had unconsciously turned into an idol.

How could such behavior compare with that of Our Lord Who, though deeply saddened took his direct and courageous fight against impiety even unto death, and death on the Cross?

While truths clearly spoken at times lead the perverse to become even more hardened in evil, great is the joy of an apostle who manages to overcome his own pacifist spirit and with strong blows, to save souls.

For although I made you sorrowful by my epistle, I do not repent; and if I did repent, seeing that the same epistle (although but for a time) did make you sorrowful; Now I am glad; not because you were made sorrowful; but because you were made sorrowful unto penance. For you were made sorrowful according to God, that you might suffer damage by us in nothing. For the sorrow that is according to God worketh penance, steadfast unto salvation; but the sorrow of the world worketh death. For behold this selfsame thing, that you were made sorrowful according to God, how great carefulness it worketh in you; yea defense, yea indignation, yea fear, yea desire [to remedying the evil], yea zeal, yea revenge [of the insult made to the Church], in all things you have showed yourselves to be undefiled in the matter. (78)

This is the great, the admirable reward of apostles who are supernatural and clear-sighted enough not to make popularity the only rule and supreme desire of their apostolate.

Let us not retreat facing momentary failures, and Our Lord will not refuse identical consolations to our apostolate, the only ones we should long for.

Notes:

58) Matt. 13:57-58. (Our emphasis.)

59) Luke 6:26.

60) Matt. 16:4. (Our emphasis.)

61) Mark 3:5.

62) Mark 4:11-12.

63) Mark 9:31.

64) Mark 13:9.

65) John 8:37. (Our emphasis.)

66) John 8:40-43.

67) John 11:44-46.

68) John 15:18-23. (Our emphasis.)

69) John 16:1-2.

70) John 17:14-15.

71) Acts 16:16-18.

72) 1 John 3:13.

73) Apoc. 11:10.

74) 2 Tim. 3:12.

75) 2 Cor. 2:15-16.

76) Gal. 1:10.

77) Gal. 4:16-20.

78) 2 Cor. 7:8-11. (Saint Paul refers to the case of an incestuous person, mentioned in the first epistle.)

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