Some things never change. It seems that if the Pope goes to Northern Ireland, as part of his prospective Irish visit then the Free Presbyterian Church will protest.
This has happened before. When St John Paul II visited Britain in 1982, the Rev Ian Paisley protested, with the help of his friend Pastor Jack Glass. In 1988 when the saint visited the European Parliament, Paisley was on hand to denounce him as the anti-Christ. When Benedict XVI came to Britain, members of the Free Presbyterian Church were there to protest, alongside other groups. It would be most strange if a Papal visit were not to be accompanied by a Free Presbyterian protest.
As it is, the words of the current leader of the Free Presbyterians, Rev Ian Brown. are remarkably moderate. He said that because the current Pope is “no closer to proclaiming the one true biblical Gospel, that salvation is by faith alone through Christ alone, the only proper response to his high publicity visit is a solid protest.”
It is good to know that the objections to the Pope are theological; rather like the objections of Catholics to sola fide; though it has to be said that few Catholics, if any, ever feel moved to protest about that. At the same time, some Presbyterians are quite keen on seeing the Pope and like his theology, as the News Letter reports here.
