VIDEO: Firing Line: Wm. F. Buckley Jr: the fight over Catholic Orthodoxy

The crisis within the Roman Catholic Church is not new. The fight to protect the True Faith against modernist novelties and heresy began about 30 seconds after the end of the Second Vatican Council (aka Vatican II). 

The Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), at the centre of the latest controversy (WWW passim) was founded on 1 November 1970, in Écône, Switzerland, by French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. It was established to preserve traditional Catholic theology and the Latin Mass, so to resist the "reforms" of Vatican II. 

Some 10 years later, William F. Buckley Jr., a traditional Catholic (and leading political conservative), invited Michael Davies, Joseph Champlin, and Malachi Martin onto Firing Line, his popular TV show, to discuss the issues and the future of Holy Mother Church. 

Their thoughts resonate clearly today, as the destruction of Holy Mother Church by Her enemies within looms on the horizon. Listen up.

 

Now would be a very good time to pray to "St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our defencc against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly hosts, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan, and all the evil spirits, who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen."

Crisis in the Catholic Church coming to a head... as in Head (= Pope)

I am no prophet [We leave that to Poor Len Canayen. Ed.] but, dear Catholic readers, it looks to me as if we may be mere months, or even weeks away, from a revolution in the Roman Catholic Church -- a revolt of the faithful against the leadership into perdition of Pope Francis. By "the faithful", I mean not just traditional Catholics like Michael Matt, but all those who cling to what's left of the True Faith after what Mr Matt rightly calls "universal dumpster fire" that was Vatican II.

The Unholy Father calls those of us who cling to the Faith of Our Fathers, "orthodox Catholics". I'm just as proud to be an "orthodox Catholic" as I am to be a "deplorable". The appellation reminds me of a school cheer I learned in my university daze.

We are the salt of the earth, so give ear to us

No new ideas shall ever come near to us

Orthodox, Catholic, crammed with divinity

Damn the dissenters, hurrah for the Trinity.

But I digress... The news... the sad news... is that, according to a transcript published in the National Catholic Register September 11th, Francis told a plane-full of international reporters on a flight from Madagascar to Rome that if you're an "orthodox" Catholic, he doesn't want you in his church! The Pope (if such he is) is obviously smarting from criticisms from many quarters that he is a heretic and a schismatic, even that is not a valid pope. These denunciations have come from his own Cardinals and bishops, the Curia, the religious press, and devout Catholic laymen like Michael Matt and Christopher Ferrara, not to mention lesser-known traditional Catholics like Yr Obdt Servant.

Francis called such attacks "the criticism of arsenic pills...throwing the stone but hiding the hand." Then he rambled on, denouncing his critics -- he mentioned the late Archbishop Lefebvre by name -- as being "schismatics". Yet it is Francis himself who is not only a heretic, but the true schismatic. The great Jesuit theologian Francisco Suarez wrote (translated): ...the pope could be schismatic, if he were unwilling to be in union and association with the whole body of the Church, as would occur if he attempted to excommunicate the whole Church, or, as both [Cardinal-Theologians] Cajetan and Torquemada observe, if he wished to overturn the rites of the Church established in Apostolic Tradition. (De Charitate, Disputatio XII de Schismate, sectio 1)

Yet that is exactly what Francis has done, in rejecting (along with every pope since Vatican II) the traditional Latin Mass and substituting for it an invalid and heretical Protestant service. Francis is the man who has destroyed the Catholic liturgy, Catholic doctrine, and Catholic morality! The "orthodox" Catholics, those who preach and practise correct doctrine (that's what "orthodox" means -- "correct doctrine") are the true Catholics. Those who don't, like the Unholy Father and his followers, are the true schismatics.

Two of the prelates who Pope Francis would judge to be "orthodox" are Cardinal Raymond Burke and Bishop Athanasius Schneider, both mentioned on WWW before. The National Catholic Register reports their call for a Crusade of Prayer and Fasting, from September 17th to October 26th, for the welfare of the Church. Their plea cites the dangers of "implicit pantheism" in the working document for the upcoming Amazon Synod, and argues against tailoring Catholic ordained ministries to the ancestral customs of the aboriginal people."

Faithful Cardinals, Bishops, priests and laypeople -- 1000s of them -- are righteously indignant over the direction in which Pope Francis is leading Holy Mother Church. He is not the good shepherd, but a false prophet leading us to the edge of the cliff at the bottom of which lies heresy, apostasy and the punishment of eternal separation from a just God.

How much longer can Francis' perversion of the Faith and destruction of the Church continue? It is not easy to "impeach" a pope, but it is possible. The opposition of the "orthodox" seems about to reach the tipping point. God bless those who stand up for the True Faith, and confound the enemies of Holy Mother Church, both without and within... even those at the very top!

Further reading: "Pope Francis: 'Need some more nails?'", WWW 1/7/19.
Further viewing: "Vatican II a "'universal dumpster fire'", video with Michael Matt, editor of The Remnant newspaper, WWW 7/9/19.

A real surprise from Pope Francis

What an amazing pope is Pope Francis! We -- not just Catholics but the entire world -- never know what's coming next. When he opens his mouth or takes pen in hand, it's impossible to know what to expect. Sometimes his pronouncements make us traditional Catholics laugh. Sometimes they make us cry. Sometimes they leave us confused. And sometimes we are left speechless in disbelief or, rarely, appreciation.

Today's headline news, so surprising and important that even the lamestream media are giving it major coverage, is the Pope's letter to Archbishop Rino Fisichella, President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization, on the subject of the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, a year of penance and prayer which begins on December 8th, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.

In line with the Holy Father's emphasis on compassion and mercy, he has ruled that during the Jubilee Year, all priests will have the authority to give penitents absolution from the grave sin of abortion. For those (including most mainstream Catholics) who don't know it, having or procuring an abortion is a "reserved" sin under canon law, which can be absolved only by the diocesan bishop or priests to whom the bishop delegates that authority. In England, Scotland, Wales and some American dioceses, bishops have already delegated the authority to all their priests, but now this authority is given to all priests, worldwide, for the duration of the Year of Mercy.

The Pope said many [Walt's emphasis] women sought an abortion because they "believe that they have no other option". He said he had "met so many women who bear in their heart the scar of this agonizing and painful decision." But he regards compassion and mercy as virtues that outclass all others, so "I have decided, notwithstanding anything to the contrary, to allow all priests for the Jubilee Year to absolve of the sin of abortion those who procure it and who also seek forgiveness."

The BBC's David Willey reports that Pope Francis is aware that the decision will not be welcomed by traditionalists. That's putting it mildly. However, there is a second part to the Pope's letter -- so far unreported by the secular media -- which will gladden the hearts of traditional Catholics, particularly those who align themselves with the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), the traditional Catholic order founded by the late Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre.

In an astounding volte-face, the Pope has declared that priests of the SSPX will validly and licitly absolve sins during the Jubilee Year of Mercy. "A final consideration concerns those faithful who for various reasons choose to attend churches officiated by priests of the Fraternity of St. Pius X," the Pontiff wrote. "This Jubilee Year of Mercy excludes no one. From various quarters, several brother bishops have told me of their good faith and sacramental practice, combined however with an uneasy situation from the pastoral standpoint.... I trust that in the near future solutions may be found to recover full communion with the priests and superiors of the Fraternity.

"In the meantime, motivated by the need to respond to the good of these faithful, through my own disposition, I establish that those who during the Holy Year of Mercy approach these priests of the Fraternity of St Pius X to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation shall validly and licitly receive the absolution of their sins."

Walt, who is one of "these faithful", is happy to read this, and grateful to the Holy Father for the indult. Hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions of Catholics who harbored some doubt about the validity of sacraments administered by bishops and priests of the SSPX will (or should) rejoice and give thanks to God.

However... Walt can't help but wonder what affected the Pope's "disposition". I understood the Vatican's position on the SSPX to be that its bishops were in schism and excommunicated (although the excommunication was lifted a couple of years ago), and therefore could not licitly ordain new priests. That would mean that the hundreds of SSPX ministering to the needs of the faithful worldwide aren't really priests, right? At least, that's what a lot of "regular" bishops and priests have been telling people. But now, all of a sudden, they can hear confessions and give absolution.

What does this mean? The clue may be in the line about solutions being found to "recover full communion". That could mean that the Vatican may declare the "schism" ended and accept the traditional Catholics back into the fold, allowing them to keep the pre-Vatican II Faith and practices of the Church, particularly the Latin Mass.

Or (and, sadly, more likely) it could mean that the SSPX is going to give in to the demands of the Vatican and "reform" itself, eating the poisoned fruits of the Council, in order to gain some sort of "personal prelature" or other accommodation. In very blunt language, the Pope's indult may have been made in anticipation of a sell-out. God help us and Our Lady guide us! Let it not be so!

Further reading: Full text of the letter of Pope Francis granting indulgence during the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy

Former Society of St. Pius X priest calls "close co-operation" with Rome "harmful, even destructive"

We are not against a return to a normal juridical status in the Church for Catholic Tradition, but the circumstances and timing have to be right.
Regular readers of WWW will know that Walt is an old-fashioned, traditional Roman Catholic -- a "scary right-winger" -- and unrepentant about being criticized by the likes of Jeff Mirus and others who have partaken of the poisoned fruit of Vatican II.

There are some "Catholics of Tradition", notably Bishop Bernard Fellay, head of the Society of St. Pius X, who wish and work for reconciliation with Rome. There are others, like Bishop Richard Williamson and a growing number of former SSPX priests, who think bending the knee to Rome and accepting the "principles" of Vatican II would be tantamount to spiritual suicide.

Father Brendan King is one of those who have become disaffected with the SSPX. On May 3rd, he left the order, joining Fr. Edward MacDonald, who quit just after Easter to become an independent Traditional Catholic priest. Fr. Paul Morgan, District Superior of the SSPX in Britain and Ireland, is leaving his position shortly for a year's "sabbatical".

On the occasion of his departure, Fr. King gave a sermon explaining his reasons for leaving, which you can read in full on the Respice Stellam blogsite. Here Walt presents the conclusion, Fr. King's "Statement of Position", which is a very good summary of Traditional Catholic thinking on the problems of the modernist Church.

In our opinion we think close co-operation with the post conciliar authorities at the present time would be harmful and even destructive for the goal that we are working towards which is the full restoration in the Church of Catholic tradition and the establishment of the Social Reign of Our Lord Jesus Christ. This was the aim and objective of our founder Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and that of all the modern Popes up to the time of Vatican II.

Rome has always been the centre of Catholic unity and the Papacy the guardian of orthodoxy for two thousand years. Tragically, Catholic Rome and the successors of Peter have for the past forty years succumbed to the powerful influences of liberal protestantism and modernism leading to the weakening of the faith of millions of souls and drawing the Church of Christ towards apostasy. As a consequence of this, devout Catholics have been obliged to withdraw their obedience and allegiance from the post-conciliar authorities in order to preserve their faith and Catholic way of life. We must obey God and the authority of Catholic Tradition, rather than the false modernist shepherds of contemporary Rome. This situation and choice has been forced on traditional Catholics by modernist Rome because Vatican II is the cause of the crisis.

We do not accept that Rome is now more sympathetic towards Tradition and is more favourably disposed towards the Society. Rather and on the contrary, there are so many instances of a very aggressive attitude towards any group or individual turning to tradition coming under ecclesiastical censure. It is beyond dispute that Rome is now more modernist and liberal than during the Pontificate of John Paul II, so rather than seek a rapprochement with Rome, we need to maintain our position of prudent but respectful detachment.

Surely, our firm and constant adherence to the perennial magisterium of the Church is the best witness we can give to modernist Rome. We have no right to imperil the hard earned fruits of forty years of combat for the Faith simply because the Roman authorities are nice and approachable and tell us we can trust them. We have far too much to lose and in our opinion such a rapprochement would be an enormous gamble. We must not and cannot squander the glorious legacy and heritage of Archbishop Lefebvre.