Extra ecclesiam nulla salus and Fr Feeney

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(I’m sure this subject has arisen on this forum before, but before I got here…sorry if this is repeating anything discussed previously.)

I was never quite clear as to the situation with Fr Leonard Feeney…I remember that he was excommunicated (or not?) for adhering to a STRICT interpretation of extra ecclesiam nulla salus (outside the Church there is no salvation).

What is the ACTUAL situation with this? Was he truly excommunicated, or not? And am I right to assume he did not believe in the concept of baptism of desire?

Thanks to anyone who can inform me!
 
My understanding is that Fr. Feeney was reconciled to the Church shortly before his death. He was, indeed, excommunicated in 1953 for an INCORRECT (as oppossed to strict) interpretation of “Outside the Church there is no salvation”

Apparently one of the splinter groups of his followers is an antisemite group who deny the holocaust.
 
He wasn’t excommuncated for a heresy, or false teaching. He was excommunicated for failing to show up for his trial. He refused to show up for his trial because they would not tell him what he was being tried for, and therefore he wasn’t able to properly prepare a defense.

He was reconciled to the Church without having to renounce, or even adjust, any teachings.

He wasn’t excommunicated for holding to the strict interpretation of “no salvation outside the Church”. In fact, the Church issued a letter saying that he was permitted to hold to his strict position. If you’d like, I’ll locate and post the letter.
 
This looks like a pretty good article on him (it appears to orginate with in a Traditionalist website):

alcazar.net/Feeney2.html

I think his problematic teachings - that got him into trouble with Rome - were to do with his strict requirement for water baptism. This goes against Church teaching and tradition, which recognizes the Baptism of Desire.
 
Pax_et_Caritas said:
He wasn’t excommuncated for a heresy, or false teaching. He was excommunicated for failing to show up for his trial. He refused to show up for his trial because they would not tell him what he was being tried for, and therefore he wasn’t able to properly prepare a defense.

He was reconciled to the Church without having to renounce, or even adjust, any teachings.

He wasn’t excommunicated for holding to the strict interpretation of “no salvation outside the Church”. In fact, the Church issued a letter saying that he was permitted to hold to his strict position. If you’d like, I’ll locate and post the letter.
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It seems you better post it. There are a lot of people who just don’t know what happened. The modernists just can’t believe that God does not Change and that he has certain requirements for those who wish to adhere to His Church.
 
I think the problem was he said that Catechumens that die before Baptism in the Catholic Church automatically go to Hell even if they’re martyred, which is wrong. I’m not sure if Baptism of Desire is a required belief but I’m pretty sure Baptism of Blood is. His other teachings are fine though not the mainstream view.
 
Pax_et_Caritas said:
He wasn’t excommuncated for a heresy, or false teaching. He was excommunicated for failing to show up for his trial. He refused to show up for his trial because they would not tell him what he was being tried for, and therefore he wasn’t able to properly prepare a defense.

He was reconciled to the Church without having to renounce, or even adjust, any teachings.

He wasn’t excommunicated for holding to the strict interpretation of “no salvation outside the Church”. In fact, the Church issued a letter saying that he was permitted to hold to his strict position. If you’d like, I’ll locate and post the letter.
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I would actually like to see it if you can find it. I don’t doubt you, I’m just interested. Thanks.
 
I was living in New England at the time and later in Massachusetts. I remember that he was excommunicated for refusal to go to Rome when ordered, and that he was reunited with the Church by Cardinal Cushing shortly before his death. I don’t remember any of the details beyond that.

He was an old friend of Cardinal Cushing, and the Cardinal was very supportive of his friends. I did hear that his elevation to Cardinal was delayed several years because of his failure to take stronger action in the matter, which force Rome to get involved.
 
CarolsDaughter said:
(I’m sure this subject has arisen on this forum before, but before I got here…sorry if this is repeating anything discussed previously.)

I was never quite clear as to the situation with Fr Leonard Feeney…I remember that he was excommunicated (or not?) for adhering to a STRICT interpretation of extra ecclesiam nulla salus (outside the Church there is no salvation).

What is the ACTUAL situation with this? Was he truly excommunicated, or not? And am I right to assume he did not believe in the concept of baptism of desire?

Thanks to anyone who can inform me!
Click to expand...
When I noticed that the poster called YERUSALYIM stated that Fr Feeny had a follower connected with antisemitism, I wondered at your motive for bringing up this topic. If you want to find info on Fr Feeny, I wondered why you don’t just research him yourself? It shouldn’t be hard to find all the info you want online.
 
jeanannemarie said:
When I noticed that the poster called YERUSALYIM stated that Fr Feeny had a follower connected with antisemitism, I wondered at your motive for bringing up this topic. If you want to find info on Fr Feeny, I wondered why you don’t just research him yourself? It shouldn’t be hard to find all the info you want online.
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For that matter, anyone with questions about anything Catholic shouldn’t ask here, but research it.

I was hoping there might be some adherents of Fr Feeney 's here, and that they could give their (name removed by moderator)ut.
 
JMBNH said:
I think the problem was he said that Catechumens that die before Baptism in the Catholic Church automatically go to Hell even if they’re martyred, which is wrong. I’m not sure if Baptism of Desire is a required belief but I’m pretty sure Baptism of Blood is. His other teachings are fine though not the mainstream view.
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His book “Bread of Life” is available to read online.

catholicism.org/book-bread-of-life.html
 
geocities.com/adam_todm/

Having read several books on the subject, and knowing people who are in contact with original members of the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart, this link is quite accurate. One note here. Someone earlier mentioned a letter from the Holy Office permitting Father Feeney to hold his doctrinal position when the excommunication was lifted. Not quite. The letter was in regard to St. Anne’s House, a group of religious sisters who were allowed to hold their interpretation of EENS. I might add that the Indult Mass is held in their chapel. They were of course, directly associated with Fr. Feeney before he died. By the same token, Fr. Feeney was never asked to recant anything. The last point is that Fr. Feeney was not received back into the Church by Archbishop Cushing. They were not good friends. The reconciliation was initiated by his successor (sorry, can’t remember his name), who in his earlier, seminarian days, would attend Fr. Feeney’s lectures at the St. Benedict Center. I recommend Gary Potter’s, *After The Boston Heresy Case for *an interesting read. More info at the link here:

catholicism.org/

Check out the online books (Bread Of Life) under the Resources heading.
 
Father Most has an interesting article on the TRAGIC ERRORS OF LEONARD FEENEY
First, he was excommunicated for
disobedience, refusing to go to Rome to explain his position. Then
the Holy Office, under Pius XII, sent a letter to the Archbishop of
Boston, condemning Feeney’s error. (It is known that Pius XII
personally checked the English text of that letter). In the very
first paragraph pointed out what is obvious: we must avoid private
interpretation of Scripture – for that is strictly Protestant. But
then the letter said we must also avoid private interpretation of the
official texts of the Church. To insist on our own private
interpretation, especially when the Church contradicts that, is pure
Protestant attitude.
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He goes on to give an extensive selection of Church quotations on the subject of salvation outside the Church and concludes:
Let us add one more thing. In the parable of the talents, the man who
hid his talent told the master he knew the master was a hard man. The
master replied that he would judge him out of his own mouth, and
condemned him. So when a Feenyite comes up for judgment, we pray that
God may not follow the pattern given in the parable and say: You
insisted I was a monster. Very good, I will be a monster to you. Hell
is your place.
Click to expand...
 
Furthermore, it is beyond understanding how a member of a religious institute, namely Father Feeney, presents himself as a “Defender of the faith,” and at the same time does not hesitate to attack the catechetical instruction proposed by lawful authorities, and has not even feared to incur grave sanctions threatened by the sacred canons because of his serious violations of his duties as a religions, a priest and an ordinary member of the Church.
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Feeney was ordered to stop teaching his false interpretation and did not do so, that order was never lifted.
 
Somtimes people say ‘It is better to be a good Protestant than a bad Catholic.’ That is not true. That would mean at bottom one could be saved without the true Faith. No, a bad Catholic remains a child of the family - although a prodigal; and however great a sinner he may be, he still has the right to mercy. Through his faith, a bad Catholic is nearer to God than a Protestant is, for he is a member of the household, whereas the Protestant is not. And how hard it is to make him become one!"
ST. PETER JULIAN EYMARD

“This would be the right place for a study of the Mystical Body of Christ, which is the Church. Do not all the baptized belong to the Church? And is not the Church one only? Yes, the Council answers, but, membership in the Church requires other conditions besides baptism, such as identical faith and unity of communion. The Catholic Church alone is the Body of Christ, of which He is Head and Savior. Outside this body, the Holy Spirit does not give life to anyone. Those who are hostile to unity do not participate in divine charity. Those outside the Church do not possess the Holy Spirit. And those who wish to possess the Holy Spirit take good care not to remain outside the Church. A Christian must fear nothing so much as to be separated from the Body of Christ. If, in fact, he is separated from the Body of Christ,
he is not one of His members: and, not being one of His members, he is not fed by His Spirit.”
POPE PAUL VI

“That we can have at least good hope for the salvation of all those who have never been in the true Church of Christ is hereby condemned as error.”
VEN. POPE PIUS IX

It was to the Apostolic College alone, of which Peter is the head, that Our Lord entrusted the one Body of Christ into which all those who belong in any way must be fully incorporated."
II VATICAN COUNCIL

“The Church is visible because she is a Body, therefore, they are straying from divine truth who imagine the Church to be something merely “Spiritual” as they say, a Church in which many Christian communities, although separated by faith, could be joined by some kind of bond invisible to the sense.”
POPE PIUS XII

“All true Christians are members of the Church.”
ST JOHN EUDES

“A manifest heretic is not a Christian, as is clearly taught by St. Cyprian, St. Athanasius, St. Augustine, St. Jerome, and others.”
ST ROBERT BELLARMINE

“The Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, Roman Church is the only true Church of Jesus Christ. It is error to believe that men can find the path of eternal salvation and attain eternal salvation in the practice of any religion whatsoever. It is error to believe that Protestantism is nothing other than a different form of the same true Christian religion, in which it is permitted to please God equally as in the Catholic Church.”
VEN POPE PIUS IX

Father Feeney sounded rather tame compared with these, no?
 
Where does one go to find the status of the group Slaves Of The Immaculate Heart Of Mary? I know they were associated with Fr Feeney, and in a recent conversation, the question was asked if they were ever excommunicated from the Church, or if they had been reconciled. Their website gives quite a bit of information, all from their view of course, but none of us in the discussion have been able to come up with the status of the group. Are they in commuion with the Church, or outside of communion with the Church?
 
Andy_Corder said:
Where does one go to find the status of the group Slaves Of The Immaculate Heart Of Mary? I know they were associated with Fr Feeney, and in a recent conversation, the question was asked if they were ever excommunicated from the Church, or if they had been reconciled. Their website gives quite a bit of information, all from their view of course, but none of us in the discussion have been able to come up with the status of the group. Are they in commuion with the Church, or outside of communion with the Church?
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They are in good standing, and contrary to what you will often hear, Fr. Feeney was not excummunicated for his rigid interpretation of “outside the Church there is no salvation”. On the contrary, he was reconciled to the Church without having to amend it in the least. He was excommunicated for not showing up for his trial, but the excommunication was later lifted.

The following website should provide all the documentation you need.

brotherandre.stblogs.com/2007/11/19/the-status-of-father-feeneys-doctrinal-position/#MsgrDeeryLtrs
 
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