Cardinal Zen again warns Vatican not sell out to Chinese Commies

I confess that I have been remiss in not writing in years, literally, about the plight of the Catholic Church -- the underground Church -- in China. As I wrote in "China -- not a good place to be a democrat or a Catholic", WWW 15/6/14, I do pray Chinese Catholics who, if they wish to be loyal to and in communion with Rome, must worship in secret, like the first Christians. Theirs, not the so-called Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, a puppet of the Communist government, is the true Catholic Church in the Middle Kingdom.

After seizing power in 1949, the Mao's Communists set up the CPCA to separate China's Catholics from Holy Mother Church, requiring them to choose between China and Roman. Some bishops and priests, in fear of becoming martyrs, joined the schismatic puppet "church". Other remained loyal to the Pope and to Rome, and went underground, meeting secretly in private homes and other places. And many of them did become martyrs -- incarcerated in prisons and mental institutions, tortured and in many cases executed for their faith. See "Cardinal Zen: Vatican appeasement hurts true Church in China", WWW 23/2/13.

In recent times, during the papacy of John Paul II and his successors, under the misleadership of successive secretaries of state --  Cardinals Casaroli, Sodano and Bertone -- the Vatican has extended one olive branch after another to Beijing, bending over backwards to find some way of reconciling the "Communist Catholics" (an oxymoron if ever there was one) with the mainstream Roman Church. But the Commies keep appointing their own bishops and persecuting the few remaining bishops consecrated, some secretly, by the popes.

Now it appears that Rome is about to cave. The latest news is that the Vatican recently sent a delegation to China to ask two of the bishops it appointed to make way for two appointed by the Communist government -- a move that would represent a major concession by the Catholic Church. Cardinal Emeritus Joseph Zen (陳日君), erstwhile leader of the battle for China's Catholics, believes that "unifying the churches" in China would amount to an open persecution of true Catholics and a silencing of the underground church. He has tried to inject some iron into the jelly-like backbone of the Vatican by hand-delivering to the pope a plea from the faithful Catholics in China.

CNA reports that on Wednesday of this week, the prelate appeared in Saint Peter's Square, lined up in the cold with other petitioners, to deliver directly into the hands of Pope Francis a letter from the underground Catholic congregation in China, so that the Pope would better understand the situation on the ground. According to Italian media, Cardinal Zen said the letter was successfully delivered, and the Pope promised him that he would read it.

The meeting, however brief it may have been, and the secret letter from the underground church in China, is a clear signal that Cardinal Zen and other Catholics in Hong Kong and China object to the concessions of Pope Francis. The Cardinal has been an advocate for democracy and religious freedom throughout his life and service to the Holy See in Hong Kong. For this reason, he has often been the target of criticism and surveillance by the Communist government of China.

In December 2017, the prelate publicly made clear his views about the talk to "unify the churches" in China, referring to the underground Catholic community and the officially sanctioned CPCA. He lamented what he sees as a misguided change in policy on the part of the Vatican, and stated that he did not believe it was the aim of Pope Francis to pursue such an "evil plan".

If it's not the aim of Pope Francis, then who? Step forward Cardinal Pietro Parolin -- "Peter the Roman" -- who, as the Secretary of State of the Holy See is responsible for, among other things, international relations. For more on Petrus Romanus, see "'Peter the Roman' ready to take over from Pope Francis", WWW 14/1/18. Catholics! Don't say you haven't been warned!

Further reading: "My fight with the Vatican: An exclusive interview with Cardinal Zen on his battle for China's Catholics", Catholic Herald cover story, 19/5/17.

Further reading (more recent): "Danger of Schism in China. Cardinal Zen: 'The Pope Told Me...'", by Sandro Magister, in Settimo Cielo, 29/1/18. Of course I'm only a layman [no reference to #MeToo! Ed.] but it seems to me there is already schism in China. The CPCA is schismatic, having broken away from Holy Mother Church, just as Cardinal Zen affirms in paragraph 4 of his statement.

VIDEO: "Peter the Roman" ready to take over from Pope Francis

Sunday is my day to catch up on my reading on topics religious, especially the parlous state of Holy Mother Church. First on my list today was "Curia Stories: The Comeback of the Cardinal Secretary of State", by noted Vaticanista Sandro Magister, in his blog, Settimo Cielo, 14/1/18. [Kudos to Matthew Sherry, who does the English translation, for coming up with the excellent pun in the headline! Ed.]

The article is about Pietro Cardinal Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, or, in political language, the No. 2 man in Rome, after Pope Francis. Of Cardinal Parolin, Sig. Magister writes, "He flies high. So high as to be now the only candidate for succeeding Francis with a serious chance of being elected pope."

If Pope Francis was validly elected -- a matter of considerable debate for many reasons -- he is the 111th pope to have headed the Roman Catholic Church. If he dies or purports to resign, and Cardinal Parolin is chosen to succeed him, he (Parolin) would be No. 112. "Pietro" is Italian for "Peter". And Cardinal Parolin is a Roman. Is he, then, "Peter the Roman"?

"Peter the Roman" is the last pope mentioned in the Prophecy of Saint Malachy (1094-1148), renowned as a great prophet. In 1139, while on his way to the Vatican to assume the post of papal legate for Ireland, he fell into a trance and saw a line of papal reigns stretching from the successor to Innocent II and extending through the centuries to the last of the line, identified as "Peter of Rome" or "Peter the Roman".

When he committed his vision to paper, Saint Malachy assigned short Latin descriptions to each pope. These mottoes usually refer to a family name, birthplace, coat-of-arms, or office held before election to the papacy. Some of the phrases are multiple prophecies, written with ingenious word play. According to his prophecy, John Paul II was No. 110. Benedict XVI is No. 111. The motto given for him is "Glory of the olive". To explain this, those who believe in the Prophecy draw a connection between Benedict and the Olivetan order. Benedict chose his papal name after Saint Benedict of Nursia, founder of the Benedictine Order, of which the Olivetans are one branch.

The next line in the Prophecy is "In persecutione extrema S.R.E. sedebit." which means "In the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church, there will sit." forms a separate sentence and paragraph of its own. While often read as part of the "Peter the Roman" prophecy, some interpreters view it as a separate, incomplete sentence explicitly referring to additional popes between "glory of the olive" and "Peter the Roman". Whether it refers to Benedict or Francis or Peter the Roman, there can be no doubt that Holy Mother Church is today being persecuted as never before. Every year of this century has seen hundreds, even thousands of Catholic Christians imprisoned, tortured and martyred for the Faith.

We come now to the last lines of the Prophecy of Saint Malachy. "Petrus Romanus, qui pascet oues in multis tribulationibus: quibus transactis ciuitas septicollis diruetur, & Iudex tremẽdus iudicabit populum suum. Finis."



Peter the Roman, [who] will pasture his sheep in many tribulations, and when these things are finished, the city of seven hills [Rome] will be destroyed, and the dreadful judge will judge his people. The End.

The final pope, Peter the Roman, will likely be the Antichrist whom students of prophecy have long foretold. Satan, taking the form of a man named Peter, will gain worldwide allegiance and adoration. Even the very elect -- the leaders of the Church and all but a small remnant of the faithful -- will be deceived. And then will come the destruction of Rome, something like the vision attributed to Sister Lucia in what the Vatican alleges is the Third Secret of Fatima. And then will come "the dreadful Judge" who will judge the people. Let us not say we were not warned.

UPDATED: Something must be done about Pope Francis!

People are beginning to wake up! The Roman Catholic Church is in crisis, more so than at any time since the days of Pope Pius XII. Pope Francis keeps making statements -- some planned (like Amoris Laetitia) and some apparently off-the-cuff (in-flight interviews) -- that are contrary to Catholic Faith and morals. His failure to watch his mouth -- indeed his whole pontificate -- is nothing less than a scandal.

Catholics and non-Catholics alike are confused by the Pope's reckless pronouncements on marriage, homosexuality, the sacraments... so many things! We have never seen anything like this in the living memory of the Church. You know something is really going wrong in the Vatican when two powerful Catholic voices -- The World Over and The Remnant Forum -- are in agreement that something must be done! Listen to what these faithful Catholic priests and laymen have to say.



Further reading (posted 24/7/16): "A Pope Like None Before. Somewhat Protestant", by Sandro Magister, on Chiesa.

Can a Protestant receive Holy Communion? The Pope's non-answer

On 15 November 2015, Pope Francis visited the Christuskirche, the church of the Lutherans in Rome. Once upon a time no Catholic, not even a pope, would darken the doors of a Protestant house of worship, but times have changed. As reported in "Luther's Revenge: The Surrender of Pope Francis" [Contains a great video! Ed.], the Francis will travel to Sweden in October to commemorate and "thank God for" the Protestant Reformation. What next?! Declaring Luther a saint, perhaps?! But I digress...

While the Pope was visiting Luther's "church", a Protestant lady asked him if she could receive Communion together with her Catholic husband. In "Communion For All, Even For Protestants", our old friend Sandro Magister calls Francis' answer "a stupefying pinwheel of yes, no, I don’t know, you figure it out." He quotes, in its entirety, the official transcription of the Pope's lengthy and incomprehensible response:

"Thank you, Ma'am. Regarding the question on sharing the Lord's Supper, it is not easy for me to answer you, especially in front of a theologian like Cardinal Kasper! I’m afraid! I think the Lord gave us [the answer] when he gave us this command: 'Do this in memory of me'. And when we share in, remember and emulate the Lord's Supper, we do the same thing that the Lord Jesus did. And the Lord's Supper will be, the final banquet will there be in the New Jerusalem, but this will be the last. Instead on the journey, I wonder – and I don’t know how to answer, but I am making your question my own – I ask myself: "Is sharing the Lord's Supper the end of a journey or is it the viaticum for walking together? I leave the question to the theologians, to those who understand. It is true that in a certain sense sharing is saying that there are no differences between us, that we have the same doctrine – I underline the word, a difficult word to understand – but I ask myself: don't we have the same Baptism? And if we have the same Baptism, we have to walk together. You are a witness to an even profound journey because it is a conjugal journey, truly a family journey, of human love and of shared faith. We have the same Baptism. When you feel you are a sinner – I too feel I am quite a sinner – when your husband feels he is a sinner, you go before the Lord and ask forgiveness; your husband does the same and goes to the priest and requests absolution. They are ways of keeping Baptism alive. When you pray together, that Baptism grows, it becomes strong; when you teach your children who Jesus is, why Jesus came, what Jesus did, you do the same, whether in Lutheran or Catholic terms, but it is the same. The question: and the Supper? There are questions to which only if one is honest with oneself and with the few theological lights that I have, one must respond the same, you see. 'This is my Body, this is my Blood', said the Lord, 'do this in memory of me', and this is a viaticum which helps us to journey. I had a great friendship with an Episcopalian bishop, 48 years old, married with two children, and he had this concern: a Catholic wife, Catholic children, and he a bishop. He accompanied his wife and children to Mass on Sundays and then went to worship with his community. It was a step of participating in the Lord's Supper. Then he passed on, the Lord called him, a just man. I respond to your question only with a question: how can I participate with my husband, so that the Lord’s Supper may accompany me on my path? It is a problem to which each person must respond. A pastor friend of mine said to me: 'We believe that the Lord is present there. He is present. You believe that the Lord is present. So what is the difference? Well, there are explanations, interpretations…'. Life is greater than explanations and interpretations. Always refer to Baptism: "One faith, one baptism, one Lord", as Paul tells us, and take the outcome from there. I would never dare give permission to do this because I do not have the authority. One Baptism, one Lord, one faith. Speak with the Lord and go forward. I do not dare say more."

Walt notes and deplores the Pontiff's use of the term "Lord's Supper", which is a formulation of the Protestant heretics who would transmute the Sacrifice of the Mass to a mere church supper, celebrated not on an altar but a picnic table. That doesn't bother Pope Francis, apparently. Whatever it is -- a commemoration of the Sacrifice of the Saviour of Mankind or just a nice community meal -- Francis seems agreeable to everyone helping themselves. Sgr Magister says "It is impossible to gather a clear indication from these words. Of course, however, by speaking in such a “liquid” form Pope Francis has brought everything into question again, concerning intercommunion between Catholics and Protestants. He has made any position thinkable, and therefore practicable."

VIDEO: Pope Francis turns 80: many hope this will be his last year

Walt failed to wish Pope Francis a happy birthday, and many more, on the 17th. It wasn't forgetfulness. I just can't bring myself to write something which I manifestly don't mean. Like many traditionalist and conservative Catholics -- yes, there is a difference -- I hope the Pontiff's 80th year will be his last, at least in the Petrine office.

It must be said that Pope Bergoglio remains enormously popular among most rank-and-file, jump-through-the-hoop-yes-Father Catholics (Hello, Jeff Mirus!), the number of those who hold to the Faith of Our Fathers, who disapprove of the Pope's radical agenda, grows every day, especially now that his priorities are out in the open for all to see. (Except for those who will not see, that is. Hello again, Jeff Mirus!)

When you look at the recent Synod on the Family, the Pope's environmental alarmism, and his statement last week that Jews don't have to convert to Christianity to be saved, there's plenty to criticize. Here's some calm and well-reasoned crticism from Michael Matt, editor of The Remnant, and Christopher Ferrara.



A few days ago, The Remnant published an open letter arguing that Francis's papacy is causing grave harm to the Church, and begging him to resign. If you sign the petition at the end of the letter, your name and e-mail address will NOT be published. Walt hopes you will join him in doing so.

Returning to the point about many Catholics hoping this will be the Pope's last year... In an interview with La Stampa, Francesca Chaouqui, appointed by Francis himself as a Vatican PR person, said "Many people in the Vatican want Francis dead."

Ms Chaoqui explained that the Pontiff's in-house reforms and nominations have emboldened his enemies, many of whom were in the Vatican when Francis was archbishop of Buenos Aires and had a less-than-pleasant relationship with Rome. Some of these Cardinals and bishops are openly resisting his reforms, she said, while others inside and out of the Vatican are simply waiting out his pontificate under the argument that popes come and go but the Curia remains.

Tomorrow we will see just how far the Pope is willing to push the envelope when he gathers the Curia for his traditional Christmas greeting. A year ago, Francis threw a very wet blanket over the usually jovial affair by issuing a blistering public dressing-down of the Cardinals and bishops, accusing them of using their careers to grab power and wealth, of living "hypocritical double lives" and of forgetting, due to "spiritual Alzheimer's" that they’re supposed to be joyful men of God. The Pope's remarks were not well received.

Sandro Magister, a senior Vaticanista often quoted in WWW, wrote: "Since then, the murmuring of criticism of Jorge Mario Bergoglio has grown, always though anonymously given the the pope's reaction to anyone who criticizes or irritates him. Many are wondering what he’ll say this time."

In fact, many wonder what the Pope says a great deal of the time! Canon lawyer Edward Condon, one of Francis's supporters, writes in the Catholic Herald that the Pope’s casual and free way of speaking has nevertheless led to confusion among the faithful about where he stands on certain key issues.

"[Pope Francis's] interventions, when they come," Mr. Condon writes, "seem to have an almost impatient tone at the inability of the rest of us to get with the programme, whatever it might be. So, if the Pope isn’t trying to leave himself open to constant contradictory interpretations, what is going on? The most obvious answer seems to be that he is simply unaware of the turmoil carrying on outside the Vatican walls."

Speaking of the Vatican walls, consider what transpired there on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. The feast day (and Holy Day of Obligation) also marked the beginning of Pope Francis's Holy Year of Mercy. To mark the occasion, St. Peter's Archbasilica was pimped out -- there's no more apt term -- with a light-show promoting "climate change". Politically-slanted images of overcrowded city centres, depictions of pollution, and negative portrayals of industry, were projected onto the facade of St. Peter's, one of the holiest shrines in Catholicism.

The profane, even sacrilegious show had nothing to do with religion or mercy, but was a shameless copy of Barack Hussein Obama's rainbow projection onto the White House after the Supreme Court approved "gay marriage". Even the Pope's own followers denounced him for turning "this most sacred space into a backdrop" for political propaganda. You can see some of the horrors of the light-show in the video.

Bad enough that he should do so at any time, but truly sacrilegious in that he ordered it done on one of the most important Marian feastdays, the Immaculate Conception, when Catholics celebrate the Blessed Virgin Mary being conceived in the womb of her mother, Saint Anne, without the stain of original sin.

Criticism among conservatives on both sides of the Atlantic was swift and severe. Catholic leaders from around the world said they were flabbergasted that Pope Bergoglio would allow St. Peter's Archbasilica to be used as a backdrop for promoting the political "climate change" agenda. On his Facebook page, noted Catholic author Antonio Socci wrote, "The sense that St. Peter’s Basilica has been profaned is strong. The holy place par excellence, the heart of Christianity transformed on a maxi-screen for the show of the ‘New World Power Ideology’ -- and the Nativity crib was left in darkness."

Dear Catholic reader, if you're confused about Pope Francis's beliefs and intentions, think about the implications of the sacrilege of December 8th, and be confused no longer. As Chris Ferrara says in the video, you couldn't have a more perfect representation of what has gone wrong in the Church since Vatican II. Please click on the link above to sign the petition!

13 Cardinals write Pope to denounce manipulation of Synod

From Rome we hear shocking reports of strong pushback by conservative Roman Catholic bishops against the plot of Cardinals Baldisseri and Kasper and other "progressives" to change traditional teachings of the Church on matters of divorce and homosexuality.

Vatican insider Sandro Magister, an eminently reliable source, reported Monday in Chiesa that 13 leading Cardinals wrote to Pope Francis on October 5th to express the "serious concerns" of themselves and other bishops over the procedures of the Synod on the Family. In their judgment, the rules and documents of the conclave are "designed to facilitate predetermined results on important disputed questions". They also view "Instrumentum laboris" (working document) as inadequate as a "guiding text or the foundation of a final document."

In layman's language, as Walt revealed on October 2nd, the fix is in!

Sig. Magister named 10 of the 13 Cardinals who signed the letter as:
- Carlo Caffarra, Archbishop of Bologna, Italy, theologian, formerly the first president of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family;
- Thomas C. Collins, Archbishop of Toronto, Canada;
- Timothy M. Dolan, Archbishop of New York, United States;
- Willem J. Eijk, Archbishop of Utrecht, Holland;
- Gerhard L. Müller, former bishop of Regensburg, Germany, since 2012 Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith;
- Wilfrid Fox Napier, Archbishop of Durban, South Africa, President Delegate of the Synod (a position he also held at last year's session);
- George Pell, Archbishop Emeritus of Sydney, Australia, since 2014 Prefect in the Vatican of the Secretariat for the Economy;
- Robert Sarah, former Archbishop of Conakry, Guinea, since 2014 Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline;
- Jorge L. Urosa Savino, Archbishop of Caracas, Venezuela;
- Angelo Scola, Archbishop of Milan, Italy.

Click here to read the complete text of the Cardinals' letter to the Pope, in English, as revealed by Sig Magister in Chiesa, 12/10/15. See also "Archbishop Chaput feels 'sense of hopelessness' about Synod on Family" (WWW 9/10/15)

Yesterday, Father Federico Lombardi, the sock puppet in charge of the Vatican press office, called the leaking of the Cardinals' letter a "disruption". Because the authors of the letter intended it to remain confidential, he said, "It would be inappropriate to allow it to have any influence."

In layman's language, "Don't listen to those guys with the red hats. Just listen to the Pope, who speaks through me!"

Father Lombardi then muddied the water more than somewhat, by claiming that Cardinal Pell, who has acknowledged writing to the Pope, has said that neither the text published in Chiesa nor the list of signatories was accurate. He also said that Cardinals Erdo and Scola, named by Sig. Magister, and Cardinals Piacenza and Vingt-Trois, not identified by Sig. Magister, had denied having signed.

Meanwhile, the Jesuit periodical America reported in "Thirteen Cardinals, Including Di Nardo and Dolan, Challenged Pope’s Decisions on Synod" that the correct list of 13 cardinals includes Cardinals Caffarra, Collins, Dolan, Eijk, Müller, Napier, Pell, Sarah, and Savino -- named by Sig. Magister -- and four not on his list: Daniel Di Nardo (Archbishop of Galveston-Houston), John Njue (Archbishop of Nairobi, Kenya), Elio Sgreccia (President Emeritus of the Pontifical Academy for Life), and Norberto Rivera Carrera (Archbishop of Mexico City).

Another Vatican spokesthingy, Father Thomas Rosica, posted a link to the America article on his Twitter account, thus lending credence to the new report.

And now... this very morning, Rome time... Sig. Magister has published a follow-up to his original account, headed "The Letter of the Thirteen Cardinals to the Pope. Episode Two". He confirms the names of the signatories, and stakes his reputation on the authenticity of the text, apart perhaps from a few marginal inaccuracies and questions of form. Above all, he says, the letter is important for underlining what is at stake: control of the procedures of the Synod, and thus its outcome.

"The substance," he writes, "remains that which the statement of Cardinal Pell and even more so the interview with Cardinal Napier have confirmed: a widespread and growing unease among many synod fathers over the insistence in imposing upon them as the basis of discussion a document, the 'Instrumentum laboris', which every day shows itself more and more to be inadequate, and the fear that this with its ambiguities will contaminate the 'Relatio finalis', the writing of which is in the hands of a commission entirely appointed from on high, with an overwhelming presence of innovators."

Abp. Chaput feels "sense of hopelessness" about Synod on Family

As Walt told you a few days ago, there's a strong feeling that the fix is in at the 2015 Bishops Synod on the Family, in progress (???) at the Vatican this month. It is clear that, in spite of the opposition of bishops from America, Asia and Africa, the Pope and the Gay Mafia in the highest echelons of the Roman Catholic Church are determined to water down the traditional teachings of the Church on divorce, Communion for divorced and remarried Catholics, homosexuality and same-sex "marriage".

One of those battling for adherence to the Faith of our fathers is Philadelphia's Archbishop Charles Chaput. Earlier this week, in his address to the Pope and the bishops assembled, the prelate said that the Instrumentum Laboris (working document) for the Synod "engenders a subtle hopelessness".

The document, published by the Synod's general secretary, Cardinal Baldisseri, as a "guide" to the bishops' deliberations, has been criticized by many of the prelates. Abp. Chaput told the assembly that it fails to inspire a sense of Christian hope. Moreover, the Instrumentum does not convey confidence that Catholics, with the help of grace, can resist the pressures that are undermining marriage and family life. He continued:

This leads to a spirit of compromise with certain sinful patterns of life and the reduction of Christian truths about marriage and sexuality to a set of beautiful ideals, which then leads to surrendering the redemptive mission of the Church. The work of this synod needs to show much more confidence in the Word of God, the transformative power of grace, and the ability of people to actually live what the Church believes. And it should honor the heroism of abandoned spouses who remain faithful to their vows and the teaching of the Church.

Responding to a question about the demand for a Synod message that will make all people (read: not only divorced Catholics but the LGBT crowd whose lifestyle is objectively disordered) feel welcome in the Church, Abp. Chaput said that the need for attractive language must be balanced against the demand for truth. "We have to be careful with our language so that people don't get hurt, but also we must be faithful to Church doctrine."

Click here to read the full text of Abp. Chaput's address to the Holy Father and the Synod, on RNS (Religion News Service)

Further reading: "Synod. First Shot on Target Comes From the Conservatives", but the "progessive" innovators are already on the counter-attack, and counting on the support of the Pope. Sandro Magister in Chiesa, 8/10/15.

Synod on the Family: the Pope's fix is in

The 2015 installment of the Roman Catholic Bishops' Synod on the Family will unfold in Rome later this month. Walt predicts (lifetime pct .981) that Pope Francis and the Gay Mafia in the Vatican, having failed to get their agenda -- welcome homosexuals, let divorced Catholics remarry, "be inclusive -- approved by the required two-thirds majority last year, will succeed this year.

Why do I say that? To begin with, at least one major issue -- the status of Catholics who have divorced and remarried -- has been defused by the Pope's relaxation of the rules and process for annulment -- the so-called "Catholic divorce".

A petition for a decree of nullity can now be approved by the local bishop, and the grounds can be just about anything from infidelity to separation to lack of proper intent right down to "etc". I'm not kidding about "etc". That little abbreviation has actually been added to the list! So a divorced Catholic wishing to get back into communion with the Church need only get the OK from the local bishop, et voilà!

When it comes to more contentious issues -- the acceptance of gay "marriage", for example -- the pro-queer modernists in the Vatican are nailing the puck to their sticks [croziers? Ed.] by changing the rules! New rules for the Synod will include elimination of both an interim report and a final message from the bishops, according to an article by Edward Pentin in the National Catholic Register.

In "Critics Sound Alarm Over Possible Changes to Synod Process", Mr. Pentin reports that the new rules -- which are being unveiled by the Vatican even as I write -- will leave Pope Francis to deliver the final message on the Synod’s discussions. Citing "informed sources", he writes that the Pontiff Francis wants "nothing in writing" from the Synod fathers, leaving it to His Holiness to take from the deliberations exactly what he and his modernist cronies want.

Another rumored change is that the rule on propositions having to pass by a two-thirds majority might be eliminated and a simple majority take its place. This would favour controversial proposals, such as those put forward by Cardinal Walter "the Friendly Ghost" Kasper, because his thesis only received a simple majority at the last synod. It should have therefore been rejected under the rules in place, but the Holy Father insisted that it, and the paragraph on a new approach to same-sex relationships that also failed to achieve a two-thirds majority, remain in the lineamenta (guidelines), for this October’s synod.

As the Synod on the Family nears, Catholics need to be aware of what is at stake. If the indissolubility of marriage can be rejected, along with the Church’s teaching that homosexual acts are intrinsically evil, then no doctrine is safe, no moral teaching beyond questioning. This is a moment of unprecedented crisis. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit, Who Our Lord told us would protect His Church from error, will move the bishops to stand up to the pressure being exerted by the modernists, and hold fast to the Traditional Catholic Faith.

Further reading:
"'Unacceptable.' The Base Document of the Synod 'Compromises the Truth'" On the verge of the Synod, three theologians critique and reject the "Instrumentum Laboris". Complete text of their charges, reported by Sandro Magister, in Chiesa, 29/9/15.
"2014 Vatican Synod's 'Welcome gays!' moment was rigged!" (WWW 2/9/15)
"'Church must include, not exclude' says chief Synod rigger" (WWW 18/9/15)

Pope Francis more concerned with sucking up to Russia than with fate of Ukrainian Catholics

To understand the strife besetting Ukraine, one must understand that the state whose existence is now threatened by Vladimir Putin's Russia has never been truly united in matters of language, culture and even religion. The country is into western and eastern halves, more or less along the Dnieper River, which runs through Kiev, the capital.

The eastern part of Ukraine has over the centuries become more and more "Russified". That was official policy during the Soviet times, when the use of the Ukrainian language was suppressed in favour of Russian, and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church was subsumed into the Russian Orthodox Church.

The geographical division of Ukraine is reflected in the country's division by religion. The people of eastern Ukraine are predominantly Orthodox, members of one of the several autocephalous schismatic Orthodox churches of eastern Europe and the Middle East. Most Western Ukrainians, however, are Catholic. That doesn't mean they are all Roman Catholics. Most belong to the Ukrainian Catholic Church, of the Byzantine rite.

The Ukrainian Catholic Church, like the many other Eastern Churches, is in union with Rome -- thus part of the Catholic (i.e. Universal) Church -- and acknowledges the Pope as head of the Church. So you would expect the Pope to be more than a little concerned about the Russian invasion of the Ukraine, which targets the Ukrainian Church as the great protector of Ukrainian culture and independence. You would be wrong.

On February 20th, Pope Francis held separate audiences for the Ukrainian bishops of the Roman rite and those of the Byzantine rite, at the end of which all of the bishops received a written statement expressing the Pope's solidarity with the people affected by continued violence in Ukraine. Francis lamented the conflict that "continues to claim many innocent victims and to cause great suffering to the entire population." However, breaking from his prepared text, he said that he is pained by calls for the defeat of rebels or a victory for Ukrainian independence!

You might wonder, when the Pope deliberately stops short of condemning Russian-backed separatists, whose side he's on! Is he, too, so scared of Putin that he is afraid even to say a few words against the Russian tyrant? Walt is reminded of Josef Stalin's sarcastic remark to French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval, in May 1935, quoted in Winston Churchill's The Gathering Storm. In reply to Laval's suggestion that the Soviet Union should encourage Catholicism in order to propitiate the Pope and get the Church onside against the Nazis, Stalin is supposed to have said "The Pope? How many divisions has he got?"

Indeed the Pope has no army, and these days he does not even have the force of suasion, since no-one other than the kumbaya liberals and secular humanists pays any attention to the ramblings of an old man whose cheese is obviously slipping off his cracker. But still, could he not at least say a few words in support of the good Catholics of the Ukraine who look to him for leadership, but in vain.

The same thought was expressed [better! Ed.] on the day of the Pope's meeting with the Ukrainian bishops by noted Vaticanista Sandro Magister, in "Assaulted by Moscow and Abandoned by Rome". Here is the first part of Sig. Magister's article. The emphasis is mine.

He had a lot to be sorry about, Pope Francis, with the bishops of Ukraine who recently arrived in Rome for their periodic ad limina visit.

To these bishops and to their priests and faithful, when two weeks ago Jorge Mario Bergoglio had denounced to the world the war that is devastating their country, the words he had used had sounded terrible. "Fratricidal violence", the pope had called it, putting everyone on a par, aggressors and victims.

And it had been even worse when Francis had looked up from the text and added on his own, "When I hear the words ‘victory’ or ‘defeat’ I feel a great pain, a great sadness in my heart. Those are not the right word; the only right word is ‘peace.’ Think about it, this is a war among Christians! All of you have the same baptism. You are fighting among Christians. Think about this scandal."

The fact that Bergoglio has a soft spot for Russia had already been seen with the outbreak of war in Syria, when he called for a day of prayer and fasting to oppose the armed intervention of the United States and France against the regime of Damascus, and Vladimir Putin publicly praised him.

Then there is the influence of the ecumenical factor. Of the 200 million Orthodox Christians in the world, 150 million belong to the patriarchate of Moscow and "of all Rus’", and it is therefore with Moscow above all that the pope wants to cultivate good relations.

But the fact that the aggression of Russia against Ukraine, the armed occupation of its eastern border, the annexation of Crimea should have left the pope indifferent to "victory" or "defeat", was intolerable for the sentiments of Ukrainian Catholics. All the more so in that these words of Pope Francis promptly brought the applause of Moscow, this time not from Putin but from Orthodox patriarch Kirill, who also has jurisdiction over the Orthodox of Ukraine.

Pope Francis refuses to acknowledge Middle East "War of Religion"

On Monday, in "Under Pope Francis, Christianity matters less", Walt gave you the key points from a lengthy interview with leading Vaticanista Sandro Magister, on the 40th anniversary of the beginning of his career as an analyst and commentator on the state of the Church and religion in general.

Sig. Magister noted several trends in the Papacy of Pope Francis that disturb not just Traditionalists but many mainstream churchmen, including leading bishops and Cardinals. One of these was the inexplicable silence of the Vatican on Islam and the Muslim world in general. He called the Vatican's political correctness "caution pushed to extremes.... I don’t see any advantage to it. It seems to me that it hasn’t resulted in any help, even minimal or partial, for the Christians in those regions. Caution is understandable, if it’s measured in proportion to the effect. It’s valid if it produces lesser damage.

"We have a power like ISIS and we are too fast in saying that Islam has nothing to do with it; that they are instead nurtured by radical Islam, which doesn’t resolve the question of rationality and the relationship between faith and violence. That is exactly what Pope Ratzinger had addressed in Regensburg. In fact the only true dialogue between Christianity and Islam came about after that lecture...."

Today, in his Chiesa blog, Sig. Magister takes up the question again. In the face of the offensive of radical Islam, he writes, Francis’s big idea is that "we must soothe the conflict." Forget Regensburg! And forget about the 1000s of Christians among the many victims of puritanical Islam.

Sig. Magister finds it "impossible not to see in this the features of a 'war of Islam' pushed to the extreme, fought in the name of Allah. It is illusory to deny the Islamic origin of this unbridled theological violence. This has been published even by the officially supervised La Civiltà Cattolica, only to be contradicted afterward by its fearsome director, Antonio Spadaro, the Jesuit who plays the role of Francis's interpreter.

"On Islam the Catholic Church stammers, the more so the higher up the ladder one goes.

"The bishops of the dioceses of the Middle East are calling upon the world for effective armed protection, which never comes. In Rome, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran publishes the most detailed denunciation of the atrocities of the caliphate, and declares an end to all possibility of dialogue with those among the Muslims who do not stamp out violence at its roots.

"But when the secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, speaks in New York from the tribunal of the UN, as he did on September 29, he carefully avoids the taboo words 'Islam' and 'Muslims', and pays the obligatory tribute to the mantra that denies the existence of that conflict of civilization which is plain for all to see....

"In 2006 Benedict XVI, first in Regensburg and then in Istanbul, said what no pope had ever dared to say: that violence associated with faith is the inevitable product of the fragile bond between faith and reason in Muslim doctrine and in its very understanding of God."

But Benedict XVI isn't the Head of the Church any more, or so we're told. Instead we have Francis, who believes in "peaceful coexistence" with the Muslims. Perhaps next month he'll tell us he believes in Santa Claus too.

Under Pope Francis, Christianity matters less - key points from interview with Sandro Magister

From time to time Walt has referred to -- and sometimes quoted at length -- the noted Vaticanista, Sandro Magister. I am a follower of his Settimo Cielo blog in l'Espresso. His first article appeared in the Italian daily l'Espresso in 1974.

On the occasion of his 40th anniversary, Maestro Magister was interviewed at length by Goffredo Pistelli, who writes for Italia Oggi. The interview was published, in translation, on the Rorate Caeli website. Here are the key points. Quotes from Signore Magister are shown in purple. The emphasis is mine.

Pope Francis, Sig. Magister conceded, has been basking in worldwide success. But, he said, there are contradictions inherent in the Pope's character, which can be seen  by analyzing  his statements and actions since his elevation. "Throughout his life, he has been a person who has acted on different fronts at the same time. He does the same thing now as Pontiff; he leaves passages open, and on first reading, there are many contradictions."

For example, Francis "is a very talkative Pope. He has telephoned and approached all different kinds of people both near and far. But he has been silent about [the plight of] Asia Bibi", the Pakistani Christian woman who has been imprisoned for years, condemned to death for apostasy. See "Martyr in waiting needs your prayers", posted on WWW in March 2011.

So also, the Pope has said not a word about the kidnapped Nigerian girls and "that unbelievable act of a few days ago in Pakistan when a Christian married couple were burnt to death in a furnace."

Indeed, the Pontiff has been silent about Islam and the Muslim world in general. And his hand-picked Secretary of State, Cardinal Parolin was very prudent when speaking at the United Nations recently. They seem determined not to upset the Muslims, in contrast with Benedict XVI’s lecture at Regensburg, which incited strong reactions and even deaths.

Sig. Magister calls the Vatican's political correctness "caution pushed to extremes.... I don’t see any advantage to it. It seems to me that it hasn’t resulted in any help, even minimal or partial, for the Christians in those regions. Caution is understandable, if it’s measured in proportion to the effect. It’s valid if it produces lesser damage."

The point, the analyst says, is that "We have a power like ISIS and we are too fast in saying that Islam has nothing to do with it; that they are instead nurtured by radical Islam, which doesn’t resolve the question of rationality and the relationship between faith and violence. That is exactly what Pope Ratzinger had addressed in Regensburg. In fact the only true dialogue between Christianity and Islam came about after that lecture...."

Pope Francis has said repeatedly that he doesn't want to make compromises with doctrine, that he respects the Tradition of the Church. But then he opened discussions on "modernizing" or "reforming" the Tradition, like the ones at the recent Bishops Synod on the Family, about Communion for the divorced and remarried, which effectively touch the very foundations of the Church.

Why, the interviewer asked, does he do so? Sig. Magister responded, "It was all inevitable considering the Pope’s decision to assign the opening of the discussions to Cardinal Walter Kasper. This basically was the start of the hostilities...."

What Cardinal Kasper is proposing are the same theses defeated in 1993 by Pope John Paul II and Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, the Prefect of the Holy Office who later became Benedict XVI. Sig. Magister's opinion is that "it is inevitable that Communion for the divorced and remarried will result in the acceptance of second marriages, and so to the dissolution of the sacramental bond of matrimony."

Is that what Francis wants? As Cardinals Burke and George have remarked recently, it's hard to know. The Pope works both sides of the street! According to Sig. Magister, "It’s another recurring practice of this Pontificate -- reprimands to one side and the other. However...the scoldings aimed at the traditionalists, the legalists and the rigid defenders of doctrine appear to be much more numerous. On the other hand, whenever he has something to say to the progressives you never understand who he is really referring to."

That confusion to the point of bewilderment is growing is undeniable, Sig. Magister says. "We have leaders in prominent positions...who are making this clear, even if they don’t express it in drastic and antagonistic terms.... There isn’t a prejudicially hostile tendency against the Pontiff [but] certainly there are evident manifestations of uneasiness.

"Take for example the Episcopate in the United States, that is, the bishops of one of the most numerous Catholic populations in the world. In recent years, that Episcopal Conference expressed a coherent and combative line in the public arena, even regarding certain decisions by Barack Obama on ethical issues. A line shared by many prominent prelates."

Now, he continues, the American cardinals and archbishops "like Timothy Dolan from New York, Patrick O'Malley from Boston, José Gomez from Los Angeles or Charles Chaput from Philadelphia, are all uneasy. This is the episcopate that [Cardinal] Burke himself comes from and is certainly not restricted to the marginal traditional circuits, but continues to be part of one of the most solid national Churches."

The interviewer next refers to a new book by Antonio Socci, Non è Francesco, ("It's Not Francis", Mondadori, 2014.) Sig. Socci's thesis (as Walt understands it) is that since the Pope cannot lead the Church into error, if Francis is leading the Church into error, he must not be truly the Pope. QED.

Sig. Socci adduces evidence -- a missing ballot -- to suggest that Pope Francis was not validly elected. But even if he's wrong on that, could his reconstruction of the Pope's contradictions be taken to prove his thesis? Sig. Magister was asked if he'd read the book. Here's what he said.

"Yes, I read it all in one evening. It’s a real page-turner.... And not for the theory of the invalid election: the result of the cancellation of a ballot in the conclave because there was an extra blank ballot-card. In my view it’s an inconsistent theory.

"[I found it interesting] because of what’s creating the book’s success, so much so that it has reached the top of the best-sellers list, exceeding the books of and about Bergoglio. That’s because it reconstructs, in incontestable facts and words, the contradictions we have been talking about."

One of the contradictions of this papacy, the interviewer pointed out, is that despite Francis' enormous personal popularity,  religious practice has not increased. On the contrary, the aversion to Catholicism is increasing. Sig. Magister contrasted the popularity of Pope Francis with that of his two predecessors.

"The popularity of his predecessors was very strong. John Paul II experienced world-wide success and not only during the years of his illness. Also Benedict XVI between 2007 and 2008, reached the highest levels in the polls, even if this has been forgotten. His trip to the United States was the peak, where he received a great welcome even from secular public opinion.

"[The difference is] that the predecessors were mostly popular inside the Church, even if they were harshly criticized from strongholds of non-Catholic public opinion. Whereas Francis' popularity is more conspicuous outside the Church, even if it isn’t eliciting waves of conversions. Actually, with him there seems to be a certain pleasure in outside culture...in seeing the Head of the Church shifting towards their positions, which he seems to understand and even accept.

"The Christianity from the mouth of Bergoglio is no longer provocative, does not create problems as in the past, it can be treated with courtesy, superiority and detachment. Christianity matters less." 

Further reading from Sandro Magister's blog Chiesa (24/11/14): The Lenses of the Cardinal, the Sociologist, the Journalists - "All focused on Francis. To understand who he is and where he wants to go. In the Church, at all levels, criticisms of the pope are no longer being silenced. They are voiced openly. Among the cardinals, the most explicit is Francis George."

Further reading on WWW:
"The 'liquid' message of Pope Francis; will he be the last supreme pontiff?"
"Is the Catholic Church about to disintegrate?"

The truth is out! The new mass was created by a "contemptible" Freemason

Regular readers of WWW will know that Walt is a traditional Catholic, one who rejects the "new, improved Catholic Church" which emerged from Vatican II. The most poisonous of all the "fruits" of that Council was the Novus Ordo Missae, the "New Mass" which the priest who writes the Traditio blog always calls the "New Mess". For so it is. Aesthetically, liturgically and (above all) theologically, the new mass is an abomination.

In its misguided effort to "keep up with the times", the Roman Catholic Church changed the Mass of All Time, beginning with the Missal of John XXIII in 1962 and culminating the New Order Liturgy imposed on the Church in October 1967 in spite of the objections of the Episcopal Synod. What's wrong with the New Mass? Click here to read "The Ottaviani Intervention", an open letter dated 25 September 1969 from Cardinals Ottaviani and Bacci to Pope Paul VI.

The leader of the movement for "reform" of the liturgy was then-Father Annibale Bugnini, who later become an archbishop and was made Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship. Only too late did we learn that Bugnini's goal was not simply to "reform" the Mass of St. Pius V, which had been the norm in the Roman Catholic Church for four centuries, but to make the Mass acceptable to Protestants, Jews and other non-believers. In so doing, he made it virtually un-Catholic!

Less than a month after publication of The Ottaviani Intervention, Abp. Bugnini was suddenly transferred out of the Vatican. After Paul VI learned that he (Bugnini) was actually a Freemason, he was made apostolic nuncio to Iran! Perhaps Bugnini was one of those Paul VI had in mind when he said, shortly before his death, that "the smoke of Satan has entered the Church."

One of those who served with then-Father Bugnini on the Consilium -- the group charged with reforming the Latin liturgy -- was Father Louis Bouyer, an eminent theologian who believed in the Faith of our father with the strength and conviction of the convert he was. Father Bouyer died in 2004, and now his memoirs have been published in France.

Noted Vaticanista Sandro Magister talks about Father Bouyer and his memoirs in "Le fiammeggianti memorie del convertito che Paolo VI voleva far cardinale" He writes, "Being called to serve on one of the preparatory commissions for Vatican II, Bouyer immediately realized from his own experience its greatness and its wretchedness, and soon pulled back from it."

The memoirs show how this Bugnini manipulated the process of liturgical reform during and after Vatican II. Father Bouyer had high praise for Joseph Ratzinger, Magister notes, and was himself highly regarded by Archbishop Giovanni Battista Montini, who in 1963 became Pope Paul VI.

"Montini wanted Bouyer on the committee for the reform of the liturgy," Magister says, "presided over 'in theory' by Cardinal Giacomo Lercaro, 'a generous man' but 'incapable of resisting the maneuvers of the criminal and unctuous' Annibale Bugnini, secretary and factotum of that same body, [described by the theologian] as 'as devoid of learning as he was of honesty'."

Father Bouyer records that Father Bugnini, whom he called “contemptible”, would dismiss other committee members' concerns about certain changes in the liturgy, saying, "The Pope wants it so." But, he recalls, when he spoke directly with Paul VI about the proposed changes, the Pontiff told him that Father Bugnini had claimed the working committee was unanimous in seeking the changes! Thus Father Bouyer concludes that Pope Paul was maneuvered into "approving without being in any way more than content with it than I was."

Contemptible indeed. Yet even now Francis, the most liberal pope since [Ed., can you fill in a name here? I can't think of any. Walt] is quietly suppressing the old "extraordinary" rite permitted by Pope Benedict XVI in his motu proprio "Summum Pontificum". The "reform" continues, and the Catholic Faith will be preserved only outside the Church, in the minds and hearts of true believers like Father Bouyer, RIP.

For further commentary on the disaster that is the "New Mass" click on the link in "What's wrong with the canonization of John Paul II" for a few choice words from Michael Matt, editor of The Remnant.

Recommended reading: The Suicide of Altering the Faith in the Liturgy, by Father Paul Kramer. Compares the New Mass and the traditional Roman Rite and presents surprising yet theologically sound answers to the questions which bother all sincere Catholics. Clarifies confusion about schism, tradition, liturgy, the Magisterium and authority in the Church. A convincing argument why we should stand fast and hold to tradition. 204 pages, paperback. Available from The Fatima Shoppe, $9.95.

Sandro Magister on the Pope's two super-embarrassing appointments

Further to our article of Saturday on the Vatican's new PR girl -- fragrant and fruity Francesca Chaouqui -- and July's outing of Msgr Battista Ricca, "the prelate of the gay lobby", Len is pleased to recommend "Ricca and Chaouqui, Two Enemies in the House", today's blog by eminent Vaticanista Sandra Magister. Here's a short excerpt from the beginning of the article.

"He the prelate of the IOR, she a commissioner for the reorganization of the Vatican administration. Two appointments desired and decided by Pope Francis, which however are the living negation of his program of housecleaning and reform.

"Both of these appointments were made by Pope Francis, the first through his own highly personal decision. And for both of them, immediately afterward, there came to light grave counter-indications about which the pope was initially in the dark.

"And yet, in late August, no correction of course appears to be in sight."

Why has the Pope done nothing to correct these two obvious and huge mistakes? Are Cardinal Bertone -- the man who would be pope -- and the other disgraced members of the Curia leaving the Holy Father to twist in the wind, his papacy dead in the water because of his disorganization, inexperience and naïveté? Len thinks we won't have to wait long for an answer.

Francis, the Party Pope: all style, no substance

Len and Walt are both traditional Catholics, appalled by the changes to the liturgy and indeed the Faith of the Church made in the wake of Vatican II -- "the best council the Protestants ever had".

We are more than a little disappointed in the pontificate of Pope Francis. It seemed to start with such promise. For instance, we were encouraged when, in April, the Holy Father asked the bishops of Portugal to consecrate his papacy to Our Lady of Fatima. See "Pope Francis to move on the Third Secret of Fatima?"

Even then, we were turning our eyes away from the "humbler-than-thou" nonsense, such as giving up the papal apartment in the Vatican, refusing the three-tiered crown, and generally proclaiming his humility and unworthiness (or unfitness?) to be the Vicar of Christ. See Walt's little April Fool "'I am not worthy...': Pope Francis resigns".

But we can no longer ignore the accomplisments of the Holy Father since his election. They amount to... wait for it... Nothing! Nada! Rien.

An article in last week's Economist said that his papacy is more about style than substance, but the fact is, there is no substance. Yes, the emperor does have new clothes -- as we see in this picture -- but underneath, he is all talk and no action.

Let's examine what Pope Francis has done... or not done... about the serious problems besetting the mainstream Roman Catholic Church today.

The most serious problem is the scandal and shame of paedophile and homosexual priests. Benedict XVI at least acknowledged the problem. But what does Pope Francis say? "Who am I to judge?" Click here to read Walt's answer!

Then there's the Vatican Bank. For years now, it had been turned into a money-laudering operation for the benefit of certain prelates and, yes, the Mafia. The Bank of Italy, frustrated with Benedict's failure to clean it up, went so far as to refuse to process bank-card transactions at Vatican ATM machines.

So what has Pope Francis done? He told the international press in July that he has turned over the bank to "trusted" advisors, Monsignori the Church. One of them, Monsignor Nunzio Scarano, was promptly arrested for financial fraud. Another, Monsignor Battista Ricca, was outed by Sandro Magister and L'Espresso, as a flaming homosexual, who regularly used the services of underage boy prostitutes and went so far as to bring his favourite rent-boy with him to the Apostolic Nunciature in Uruguay.

Now it is reported that the Holy Father's vaunted reform of the Curia, mandated by the College of Cardinals, has turned out to be too difficult for him. Francis himself said he was "too disorganized" and was being thwarted by "lobbies", including the notorious gay lobby within the Vatican. He tried to foist the problem onto a council of eight cardinals, but they won't even meet until this coming October.

Many of the other cardinals are getting restless. Cardinal Dolan (doubtless still miffed that he wasn't seriously considered for the position) has been grumbling publicly about the Pope's slowness to deal with the likes of Cardinal Bertone (still the Secretary of State), and Gerhard Muller, Benedict's Prefect of Doctrine, largely responsible for the rupture in negotiations with the Society of St. Pius X.

In the latest post on his Chiesa blog, Sandro Magister says Pope Francis is carefully avoiding reliance on old veterans of the Roman Curia, as he weighs his options for reforms at the Vatican. The Secretariat of State, traditionally the major power at the Vatican, has lost some influence to the small circle of the Pope's trusted staff -- most importantly his secretary, Father Fabian Pedacchio Leaniz. But Francis makes all important decisions himself.

The papacy of Pope Francis is not off to a good start. Good Catholics, please pray every day for the Holy Father, and that the True Faith will be preserved in spite of the failings of the leaders of Holy Mother Church.

Why the butler did it: "for the good of the Church"

The butler did it! Or so the Vatican alleges. Paolo Gabriele, a reserved family man and devout Roman Catholic, who worked in Pope Benedict XVI’s apartments in the Apostolic palace, serving the pontiff meals and helping him dress, was indicted on Monday, along with another employee.

The two are accused of pilfering documents from the Holy Father's private apartment, in an embarrassing scandal that has exposed at least a small part of the corruption and struggle for power at the highest levels of the Vatican. Devotees of Our Lady of Fatima have been saying for decades that this "rot at the top" of the Church is at the heart of the Third Secret of Fatima -- the Great Secret that the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Bertone, told us was disclosed in full in 2000.

Sr Gabriele has been charged with grand theft. If convicted, he could be sentenced to six years in prison. During the investigation, the Vatican insisted that the butler acted alone. Many Vatican-watchers chose to take that story cum grano salis, as should be the case with every utterance from Father Lombardi and other Vatican spokesthingies.

And sure enough, Monday's indictment also orders the trial of Claudio Sciarpelletti, a computer expert in the Secretariat of State, the department run by, errr, Cardinal Bertone. office charged with aiding and abetting the butler. If Sr Sciarpelletti did what he is charged with doing, one must ask, would he have done so on his own, or would someone -- someone higher up -- have put him up to it.

And what about the butler? During the investigation, Sr Gabriele admitted he had been meeting with a journalist for some time, slipping him sensitive papers, including letters to the Pope. Why would he do that? For money? Or for some other reason...

He told the inquiry he never received payment for the documents, but felt he was acting for the good of the Church and as an agent of the Holy Spirit. In his testimony, Sr Gabriele said, "I saw evil and corruption everywhere in the Church." He went on to say that he felt the Pope was not sufficiently informed of such matters, and "I was sure that a shock, perhaps by using the media, could be a healthy thing to bring the Church back on the right track."

But Sr Gabriele talked to others besides the journalist. He confided in a man he called his "Spiritual Father," referred to in the indictment only as "B" -- "B" as in "Bertone"? -- and gave him copies of the incriminating papers. But "B" told investigators he destroyed the documents. Sure. Wouldn't want those to fall into the wrong hands, like the hands of enemies of... hmm... whom?

Sr Gabriele was described by friends and acquaintances as a pious man and good father, a discreet man held in high esteem. Notwithstanding his prior good character, he was was held in a tiny "safe room" ["cell", surely! Ed.] in the Vatican police station for two months during the investigation. He was finally let out in July, but remains under house arrest in his Vatican apartment. There he will stay until the commencement of the trial. Unless, God forbid, some unfortunate accident should befall him. There are precedents...

For a longer and deeper analysis, read "The Pope's Butler on Trial. But the Investigation Is Proceeding 'In Various Directions'" by noted Vaticanista Sandro Magister. Sr Magister points out that one of the leaked documents bears the placet of none other than our old friend (but no friend of Our Lady of Fatima) Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone.

Will the next pope be a Canadian? Vatican insider thinks so

Surprising speculation from the panting heart of Rome! Noted Vaticanista Sandro Magister has just published a "classroom exercise" in which he predicts the next pope will be a cardinal from the New World. In yesterday's Chiesa, he wrote:

The metamorphosis underway in Catholicism worldwide is such that, if one wished to do a classroom exercise, the candidate for pope who most corresponds to it today is without a doubt Canadian cardinal Marc Ouellet, 68, multilingual, the former archbishop of Québec, which is one of the most secularized regions of the planet, a talented theologian of the Ratzingerian school, now the prefect of the Vatican congregation that selects new bishops, and above all for many years a missionary in Latin America.

Sr Magister's argument, concluded by that paragraph, is that the Church in Europe is moribund -- no argument there -- but "coming back strong" in the United States and growing by leaps and bounds in Asia and Latin America.

Walt confesses to being surprised by Sr Magister's rose-tinted view of the state of the Church in the USA. Some of the most poisoned fruits of Vatican II have been harvested in the USA. I refer to "clown masses" and other liturgical abuses, the plague of perverted priests and bishops and the ensuing cover-ups, the ferocious feminism and the general prevalence of "cafeteria Catholicism" amongst those -- espeically poewr-hungry politicians -- who have the nerve to call themselves "practising Catholics".

It's enough to make you think that the mainstream Church in the USA -- the majority of Catholics who accept Vatican II and all its errors -- has surrendered completely to the philosophies and forces of secular humanism.

But then, just when a traditionalist might be on the brink of despair, along comes a true leader like Francis Cardinal George, the Archbishop of Chicago, who has the courage to stick his head above the parapet and stand up for the freedom of the Catholic Church to preach and practise Her Faith as guaranteed by the Constitution.

Just last month, Thomas Cardinal Collins, Archbishop of Toronto, did the same thing, in the face of the Ontario government's forcing Catholics to make room in their schools for "gay-straight alliances", so called. The "anti-bullying" bill -- truly a bullying bill in disguise -- is now law, but the Cardinal made his stand and made his point. Catholic voters won't forget.

So, perhaps Sr Magister is right. Even in the namby-pamby mainstream Church, which tries so hard to be politically correct and not offend apostates, heretics and infidels, there are some who are beginning to say we have gone too far down the road to a secular, humanist, post-Christian society. If one of them is chosen to fill the shoes of St. Peter, so much the better for the Church and for the world.

Nos lecteurs d'expression française sont priés de lire "Exercice d'école sur l'identité du prochain pape".

Leading Vaticanista details Bertone's role in Vatican scandal

Within the last week, Walt has written two posts concerning the problems... OK, scandals... swirling around the Vatican in general, and the deceitful, corrupt and possibly heretical Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone in particular. See "What the Vatican butler saw" (27/5) and "Bertone... it's Bertone!" (28/5).

Today, Sandro Magister, one of the most knowledgeable and respected Vaticanisti, weighs in with "The Hunt for Thieves in the Vatican". (See below for links to Italian, French and Spanish versions.) Here are a couple of paragraphs to give you an idea of what Signor Magister thinks of the unholy mess, and the part played by "the exuberant cardinal".

"With justice eliminated, what are kingdoms if not a great band of thieves?" The phrase is from Saint Augustine, but it was Benedict XVI who cited it in his first encyclical, "Deus Caritas Est" of 2005. He didn't know that seven years later it would become the public image of the Vatican. A citadel devastated by thievery, with no corner left inviolate, not even that "sancta sanctorum" which the private desk of the pope should be.

The pope theologian of the great homilies, of the book on Jesus, is the same one who reigns over a curia adrift, a den of "egoism, violence, enmity, discord, jealousy," all of the vices he stigmatized in last Sunday's homily for Pentecost and in so much more of his fruitless prior preaching.

It is the same pope who wanted as his secretary of state Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, and continues to keep him at his post, in spite of the fact that he sees more and more evidence of his inadequacy every day.

In 2010, the irrepressible secretary of state, claiming a presumed mandate from Benedict XVI, even intimated to Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi in writing that he should leave the presidency of the Toniolo. The archbishop of Milan flew off the handle. And Benedict XVI agreed with the latter, after calling both contenders before him.

Speaking to the cardinals [on May 21st], the pope cited Saint Augustine: "All of history is a battle between two loves: love of self even to disregard of God; love of God even to disregard of self." And he added: "We are in this battle, and in it it is very important to have friends. As concerns me, I am surrounded by my friends of the college of cardinals, I feel safe in their company."

Father Federico Lombardi [said], on May 29: "There are no cardinals among the persons of interest or suspects." Not to inconvenience the police, but not all of the cardinal "friends" are playing on the team as the pope expects.

Signor Magister does not refer to Bertone's machinations in the suppression of the Third Secret of Fatima, mentioned here before. As the layers of the conspiracy are peeled away like so much onion skin, the truth of the Fatima Message will be revealed, as will the diabolical deception of Cardinal Bertone and the other "fallen stars" still in high positions in the Church.

The full text of Sandro Magister's article, in other languages, may be found here:
Italian - Caccia al ladro in Vaticano
French - Chasse aux voleurs au Vatican
Spanish - Caza al ladrón en el Vaticano

How Beijing keeps Catholic "bishops" in line

It's been a while since we looked at the state of the Church in China. Walt is sorry (but not surprised) to report that despite the efforts of Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone, the Vatican Secretary of State, to make nice with the the Communists, bishops and priests who remain loyal to Rome continue to be persecuted, imprisoned, tortured, and even executed.

The least that can be expected by a bishop who doesn't toe the party line is to be discriminated against when it comes to things like travel outside (or even inside) China, and the freedom (or lack thereof) to speak out on matters of faith and the governance of the Church.

On the other hand, Catholic bishops who accept the leadership of the schismatic Chinese Patriotical Catholic Association -- the puppet "church" established by Beijing following the Communist revolution -- are richly rewarded for their objectively sinful allegiance.

In "Reward or Punishment. How Beijing Sanctions the Bishops", Sandro Magister, a Vatican insider, describes the very favourable treatment accorded by Beijing to "Bishop" John Baptist Li Suguang, who was ordained in October 2010 without the approval of the Holy See. The "bishop", by accepting this invalid ordination, is subject to automatic excommunication. However, he now claims to be acting as a force for reconciliation between the puppet "church" and the millions of Chinese Catholics who practise their Faith in the "underground Church".

Joseph Cardinal Zen of Hong Kong, an outspoken critic of Beijing, recently scolded the Sant’Egidio community for inviting Bishop Suguang to participate in an international conference. Cardinal Zen argued that all Catholics should accept the directive of Pope Benedict XVI to refrain from giving any recognition to the CPCA and its Communist-appointed leaders.

The fact that Bishop Suguang was allowed to travel to the meeting in Germany is itself evidence of the government's favour. Bishops loyal to the Holy See have been routinely denied permission to travel to Rome on Church business.

But that's how it is in the People's Republic of China, where freedom of religion is guaranteed in the constitution... as long as the Communists approve. There's one law for Communist Catholics, and another for real Catholics.

Mind you... there are many traditional Catholics who would say it's the same way in the Church of Rome itself: one law for the modernist, liberal Catholics who go along with the Vatican II "reforms", and another for the traditional Catholics who still cling to the Faith of our fathers.

Traditional Catholics betrayed by Benedict XVI

Sandro Magister is a leading "Vaticanista" -- Vatican-watcher -- and editor/publisher of the highly-respected Chiesa newsletter. He generally tries to maintain an objective, albeit conservative, stance in his articles. In other words, he's not an ultra-traditionalist who believes that everything decided and done by the Church since 1962 is wrong.

So, for Signore Magister to criticize the Pope, or even to echo the criticisms of others, is to express the profound malaise that infects today's Church. Yet that is what he does, in "High Up, Let Down by Pope Benedict", Chiesa's leading article this week.

Voices of disapproval have been raised over the Holy See's confirmation that on October 27th, Benedict XVI will preside over a day of "reflection, dialogue and prayer" together with "Christians of other confessions", representatives of other religions and "men of good will."

The encounter will come in the same place -- Assisi -- and twenty-five years after the infamous one convened by John Paul II. Cardinal Ratzinger, as he then was, did not take part in it. Now that he's pope, he says, the next encounter will be reviewed and corrected, scrubbed clean of the slightest hint of the assimilation of the Catholic Church to other faiths.

But, the traditionalists say, the problem is that such "encounters" should not be held at all! Some of them have signed a critical appeal, of which Chiesa gives details. The "spirit of Assisi," in their view, is part of a more general confusion, originating in Vatican II, that is disrupting Catholic doctrine -- a confusion to which Benedict XVI is not reacting as he should.

Most recently, Sig. Magister continues, the criticisms of Pope Benedict by traditional Catholics have grown in intensity. And they reflect a growing disappointment with respect to the expectations initially invested in the restorative action of the current pontificate.

The criticisms of some traditionalists are focused in particular on how Benedict XVI interprets Vatican Council II and the postconciliar period.

The pope errs, in their view, when he limits his criticism to the deterioration of the Church's beliefs and practices in the aftermath of Vatican II. In fact, they say, Vatican II was not only poorly interpreted and applied: it was itself a source of grave errors.

The first of those was the renunciation of the Church's authority to exercise, when necessary, a magisterium of definition and condemnation, i.e. the renunciation of the anathema.

In exchange for "dialogue" with "other expression of Christianity" and other religions, the Church gave up Her God-given power to declare what is right and what is wrong. And for the sake of dialogue and political correctness, She stopped proclaiming the dogma extra Ecclesiam nulla sanctus -- outside the Church there is no salvation.

The dogma has not been "repealed". Dogma cannot be changed or "taken back". But by refusing to talk about religious rights and wrongs, by treating other confessions and other religions as more or less equal "seekers of truth", Pope Benedict does the True Faith a lamentable and grave disservice. He is, in fact, leading us in the wrong direction.