Most
children’s play time is comprised of imitating the things
that
they enjoy watching. Boys play the “Cops &
Robbers” that they
see on television, while girls play “House” – imitating
their parents
or other families they know of. Of course, the
imitation is often
“modified” to the children’s own liking and
perspective. In the
end, children realize that their own imitation can never
replicate the
fullness of their experiences in reality. No matter
how shiny and
detailed a toy car may be, it can never look and drive the
way a real
one does. No matter how “advanced” a girl’s toy oven
may be, it
can never be used to prepare a seven course
meal. Although play acting is a healthy part of childhood, most of us outgrow our desire to make up our own adventures. As maturing people live more in reality assuming greater responsibilities and getting involved in more complex relationships, the need or desire to “play act” fades away. Adults may still enjoy watching adventures on television or reading about them in books but it would be foolish for an adult to play “House” or “Cops and Robbers” with the seriousness of a child. Unfortunately, some adults who have not matured have evolved their desire to play “House” into more ambitious but spiritually dangerous endeavors.
Most Catholics who are brought up with a good catechetical program learn that the Church has four distinctive marks. The Church is One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic; and no other church has these marks to the degree that they are found in the Church of Rome. Every denomination that has split from her (especially those formed after the Protestant Reformation) has lost some aspects of those marks to varying degrees. But with due respect to those ecclesial communities, they never claimed to be what the Catholic Church is, therefore they took on different names and developed different theologies. For example, denominations that disregard papal authority do not claim to have their own Pope or someone of equivalent position as Vicar of Christ. Other communities do not value apostolic succession, so they do not regard their ministers in the same way that Catholics view the priesthood.
While the Protestant Reformation of the 16th Century and the constant multiplication of Christian denominations has compromised the witness of the Gospel, there is a more insidious and destructive phenomenon taking place in our day and age: peculiar groups that have abandoned the Catholic faith can neither be categorized as Protestant, Evangelical or Orthodox, but can be described as Pseudo-catholic. The founders of these denominations imitate reality like children and the results are superficial imitations of the real thing. The Church was founded by Christ to continue His work of healing and teaching. Unfortunately this form of imitation is creating rifts within the Christian community that are nearly impossible to heal because of the divisive nature of these groups.