" To love them doesn’t mean we accept the lie.

 " Archbishop Alexander Sample on continuing to love friends who say they are transgender
Archbishop Alexander Sample on June 13 described abortion, disregard for family life and transgender ideology as instances of a satanic attack on the image and likeness of God.

At the same time, the 61-year-old churchman called for deep love and concern for those who have been drawn into the cultural shifts.

During an hourlong appearance on the Catholic Answers Live national radio program, Archbishop Sample said that since Satan can’t assault God directly, the evil blitz gets launched against God’s children, especially when they are most clearly signs of divine creative power.

“The Enemy despises the image of God in us,” Archbishop Sample told host Cy Kellett. The two men were face to face in the Catholic Answers studio in San Diego, where the nation’s bishops were gathered for their mid-June assembly.

“I think Satan has engineered this whole acceptance of the evil of abortion,” the archbishop said, explaining that an innocent child is a reflection of Jesus’ incarnation, an event that led to Satan’s downfall. Both the archbishop and Kellett said the virulence of the response to the May 2 leaked Supreme Court decision on abortion had a feeling of evil.

The family, the archbishop said, is an icon of the Holy Trinity. As the love between Father and Son is so intense that the Holy Spirit proceeds from it, so children come from a marriage. Satan hates that parallel and so seeks to undermine families, the archbishop explained.

“Culture has devolved so marriages fail,” said the archbishop, explaining that the church can’t be judgmental but still must hold up the ideal of what God made us to be and what is reflected in nature.

The same truth applies to gender, the archbishop told listeners.

“A man’s body doesn’t make sense without a woman’s body and a women’s body doesn’t make sense without a man’s body.”

Archbishop Sample asked Pope Francis about transgender ideology during a 2020 Vatican visit, and the pope was clearly opposed to the notion that people can choose a gender that is different from how they were created.

“A lot of this insanity with gender ideology today is an attack on the image of God in each of us,” Archbishop Sample said. “The pope was very clear and strong on altering gender — he called it an assault on God himself.”

The archbishop criticizes schools where young children are taught that gender is fluid and a matter of choice.

He expressed compassion for those who suffer from genuine gender confusion, saying they need good counselors to help them discover their true identities.

One caller asked Archbishop Sample how to speak to transgender friends. He encouraged the man to keep loving without dismissal or rejection before finding a good time to suggest proper help.

“To love them doesn’t mean we accept the lie,” the archbishop said.

See the entire interview: youtube.com/watch?v=yFxdePp1HGI