Should I be intolerant toward error?
Holy intransigence for error is inseparable from holy tolerance for people.
The spirit which God wants for us is as far removed from intolerance for people as it is from tolerance for error. “I'm aware of the difficulties you'll encounter. It's true - as I always point out to you - that this world, which you belong to and where you remain, has many good things, signs of God's inexpressible goodness. But men have also sown cockle, as in the Gospel parable, and propagated false teachings which poison minds and cause rebellion, sometimes even violent rebellion, against Christ and his holy Church." St. Josemaría
“Faced with all this, how should a child of God react? Should we ask our Lord, like the sons of thunder, to send fire on earth to consume sinners? Or perhaps lament continually, like a bird of ill omen or a doomsayer?"
“You well know that this is not the spirit of a Christian because it is not our Lord's: ‘The Son of Man has come to save men's lives, not to destroy them.’ … We must drown evil in an abundance of good. Our first obligation is to spread doctrine, while loving all souls."
“You also know the rule of thumb to practice this spirit: holy intransigence for error and holy tolerance for people, who may be mistaken. You need, however, to teach many people to practice this doctrine, because it's not difficult to find those who confuse intransigence with blind stubbornness, and tolerance with abdicating rights or compromising the truth."
“We Christians do not hold the legacy of Christ's truth, which is safeguarded by the Church, as our personal property to dispose of it at whim. It belongs to God, and his Church keeps it, and we have no right to cede, cut back, or give way in what is not ours."
We cannot yield in anything that pertains to the deposit of faith entrusted by Christ to the Church, for the simple reason that “it's the truth, and the truth does not admit of compromise. But together with holy intransigence, the spirit God asks of you is a constant tolerance, which is also holy. Being faithful to the truth, accurate in doctrine, defending the faith, does not mean having a sad attitude, nor should it be accompanied by a desire to destroy those who are mistaken."
“Perhaps some do act in this way, but it can't be our way. We can never be like that poor, deranged fellow who, applying Scripture his own way, ‘blessed’ his enemies by calling down upon them fire and brimstone and stormy winds."
“We don't want anyone to be destroyed. Holy intransigence isn't a rude and irritable intolerance. Nor is it ‘holy’ unless it is accompanied by holy tolerance."
“Our Blessed Mother understands and forgives her children's errors and weaknesses better than anyone. And no one has ever been more faithful to God's Will than our Lady. Let us ask her to help us spread abundant understanding for people, along with loyalty to God."
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