No, not Michael Voris's apostolate, the term 'Church Militant'. When I was younger we talked about the Church consisting of three states, the Church Militant (Ecclesia militans) on earth, the Church Suffering (Ecclesia dolens), Penitent (poenitens) or Expectant (expectans), in purgatory, and the Church Triumphant (Ecclesia triumphans), enjoying the Beatific Vision in heaven.
Last night I was reading our Diocesan newspaper, the Southern Nebraska Register. Each week it carries a feature, 'Ask the Register', in which a reader's question on some aspect of the Faith is answered.
This week's question was why do we invoke St Anthony for help in finding lost objects? I have no problem with the complete answer, but in answering the general question of invoking the Saints, the author writes, 'The Communion of Saints consists of three states: the pilgrim Church on earth, the souls in purgatory, and the saints in heaven'.
Now, I am in no way denying that those of us in this vale of tears are pilgrims, with the longed for destination of heaven. What I am concerned about is what appears to me to be the complete loss of the older terminology.
I suppose it was too militaristic sounding for the post Vatican II Church of Nice. Since everyone seems to go to heaven, if modern Novus Ordo funerals are any indication, there's no need to struggle militantly against the World , the Flesh, and the Devil. And since all religions are the same with all of us worshipping the same God, according to the modernists, I suppose there's no longer any need to militantly work to convert the world.
However, I suppose we could struggle militantly for 'LGBTQXYZ Rights' and 'Environmental Justice' to fit in with new, modern, liberal 'Church of Nice'!
Has anyone heard 'Soldier of Christ' recently, outside of Traditionalist circles? That's a pretty militant term!
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