Psychological Humanism Masquerading as Catholic Ministry

Vatican News portal reports on Sr. Jacqueline Githiri’s counseling work with the Visitation Daughters of Mary in Kenya, presenting psychological therapy as spiritual restoration while omitting essential Catholic sacramental theology. The article exemplifies the conciliar sect’s replacement of supernatural faith with naturalistic humanism.

Doctrinal Substitution of Grace for Secular Therapy

The article describes the congregation’s mission as “spiritual restoration of families” through counseling for depression, addiction, and divorce. This reduces the Church’s sacramental mission to social work, ignoring St. Pius X’s condemnation: “Faith is not a blind religious feeling…but a real assent of the intellect to truth” (Lamentabili Sane, 25). Nowhere does Sr. Githiri mention the necessity of sacramental confession for moral healing or the propitiatory sacrifice of Calvary as the sole remedy for sin.

The claim that “problems are rooted in spiritual emptiness” avoids naming sin as the true root cause. Pius XI denounced such equivocations: “The peace of Christ can only be in the Kingdom of Christ” (Quas Primas, 18). The article’s celebration of a divorced mother “back on her feet” through job attainment and childcare ignores her objective state of mortal sin (Code of Canon Law 1917, can. 1129) and the impossibility of true peace outside sacramental reconciliation.

Naturalism in Disguise

Sr. Githiri’s assertion that “people are not bad…but victims of upbringing” directly contradicts the dogma of original sin. The Council of Trent infallibly defined that Adam’s sin “is transmitted by propagation, not imitation” (Session V). Her therapeutic approach echoes the modernist error condemned by St. Pius X: “Religious sentiment is the only origin of faith” (Lamentabili Sane, 7).

The proposed “Family Restoration Center” focuses entirely on psychological and material needs while omitting chapel facilities for Mass or Eucharistic adoration. This implements the condemned proposition: “The Church is incapable of effectively defending evangelical ethics” (Lamentabili Sane, 63), reducing religion to social work rather than the sanctification of souls.

False Ecumenism of Method

Collaboration with “priests, religious, and lay people” without doctrinal distinctions illustrates the conciliar sect’s indifferentism. Pius IX explicitly condemned the notion that “Protestantism is another form of the same true Christian religion” (Syllabus of Errors, 18). The article’s praise for counseling “religious and priests” tacitly admits the spiritual bankruptcy of the post-conciliar clergy, yet offers no return to traditional seminary formation or ascetic practices.

Sacramental Dereliction

Nowhere does the article mention administering sacraments to those suffering depression or family breakdown. This silence violates Canon 1026 of the 1917 Code requiring priests to “hear confessions whenever the faithful reasonably ask.” The sisters’ shipping container “counseling office” starkly contrasts with the Catholic tradition of establishing monasteries as centers of Eucharistic worship and sacramentals.

The complete absence of references to Mary as Mediatrix of Graces or the Rosary as the weapon against family disintegration reveals the operation’s fundamentally naturalistic character. Pius XII warned against such therapeutic reductions: “Modern psychiatry and the ascetical teaching of the Church follow different paths” (Address to Psychiatrists, 1953).

Modernist Language as Symptom

The article’s vocabulary betrays its theological bankruptcy:

“Journeying together” replaces obedience to divine law with subjectivist accompaniment
“Ministry of presence” substitutes sacramental efficacy with emotional support
“Holistic care” avoids specifying the hierarchy of spiritual over temporal goods

These linguistic choices implement the condemned proposition: “The dogmas of faith should be understood according to their practical function rather than as principles of belief” (Lamentabili Sane, 26). The constant emphasis on psychological recovery (“she was back on her feet,” “she recovered,” “she is well and active”) reduces salvation to mental health outcomes.

Omission as Heresy

The gravest error lies in what the article never mentions:

No reference to the necessity of sanctifying grace for true healing
No distinction between valid and invalid sacraments for those “accompanying” divorced persons
No warning that receiving ‘Communion’ in post-conciliar structures constitutes sacrilege for those in mortal sin

This fulfills Pius X’s warning: “Modernists omit all mention of the Fall and Redemption” (Pascendi Dominici Gregis, 39). The sisters’ work aligns with the condemned naturalism of Antonio Rosmini, who sought “to reconcile faith with science by making faith the final evolution of nature” (Decree Post Obitum, 1887).

Source:
Kenya: Restoring families and healing hearts out of love (vaticannews.va)
Date: 09.02.2026