Catholicism 'false' says textbook - News

Christian Century, May 5, 1993

Some Catholics call it "deplorable"; some Protestant fundamentalists call it "truth." "It" is the description of Roman Catholicism in a fifth-grade social studies textbook produced by Bob Jones University Press of Greenville, South Carolina, and used by fundamentalist schools around the country. The book, titled Heritage Studies for Christian Schools describes Catholicism as a "false religion." The text is required reading at Greenbrier Christian Academy in Chesapeake, Virginia, whose students include more than 20 Catholics.

This negative characterization of Catholicism has prompted a variety of responses. The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, a Washington-based antidefamation group, has denounced the school's use of the textbook as "deplorable." Norfolk Catholic School has canceled sports events with Greenbrier, including baseball, football and basketball games, and a local priest has mailed a letter to more than 1,000 parishioners warning them about the fundamentalist school.

Greenbrier's principal, H. Ron White, defended the textbook, as did an official at another school that uses the book, Atlantic Shores Christian School in Virginia Beach. Other schools in the area declined to comment or said they use a different book. "We will not let the Catholic Church dictate to Greenbrier Christian Academy what we do or do not teach," White declared. "We have an open administrative policy. You come here by choice." White said he had no plans to remove or reconsider the book, read by the school's 43 fifth graders. Greenbrier has a kindergarten-through-12th-grade program.

The textbook's denunciation of Catholicism appears in a section on geography, in which students are urged to become missionaries to Canada, described as a nation with many Catholics. The book teaches that "Roman Catholicism is a false religion that is believed by millions of people in Canada, the United States and around the world. It is often called a Christian religion because it teaches that Jesus Christ was a leader and example for people. The Roman Catholic Church even says that Jesus was the Son of God. It does not, however, preach the truth of the gospel - that Jesus Christ paid for all our sins by His death on the cross, and that only by trusting Him alone can we be saved." According to the book, Catholics are taught that salvation is a matter of "doing works," such as "following the teachings" and "being members" of the church.

Contended Don Ollinger, Bob Jones University's director of product development for secondary-level textbooks: "When there is false teaching going on, we feel it is our duty to expose it." He said the book is used by schools across the country but declined to name other schools or specific regions. Patrick Riley, a spokesman for the Catholic League, maintained that the book has it all wrong about Catholics. "Whatever that textbook may say, we Catholics most certainly believe that our Lord Jesus Christ paid for all our sins by his death on the cross," Riley said. "Far from denying that salvation comes from him alone, we hold that only by trusting in him can we find salvation."

The book was also denounced by Keith Fournier, executive director of Pat Robertson's American Center for Law and Justice in Virginia Beach. Fournier, a Catholic, is the author of Evangelical Catholics, a book which attempts to build bridges between Catholics and Protestants. "This comes from the same school [Bob Jones University] that said a couple of years ago that the Bible requires the separation of the races. . . . This uncovers an unfortunate truth, that there is a lot of hostility and prejudice against Catholics," Fournier said. "This is not a matter of religious liberty. This is a matter of discrimination. Period. What they're saying is wrong.