SSPX update?

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I hope that this statement came after a written response to the Holy See. It would be very disrespectful to tell others before you tell the pope, Archbishop Mueller and Archbisop DiNoia. I can’t believe that Bishop Fellay is tactless. Or the writer got it wrong. :crossing my fingers:

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
It’s straight from the DICI site, Brother.
 
Wow, that is really dissapointing if that is what he told Rome. Prayers, prayers, and more prayers!!!

It’s scary how dangerous pride can be, especially to those who mistake it for humility.
 
I was wondering when someone would post Bishop Fellay’s sermon. I read it a day or two after it hit the SSPX sites, and was curious how long it would take to appear here.

Well, I consider the timing of Bishop Fellay’s remarks. Why at this particular time? Consider- he is faced with an imminent crisis, the separation of Bishop WIlliamson and the possibility that WIlliamson will take more of the SSPX priests and faithful with him. Now how can Bishop Fellay reassure the SSPX faithful that he still stands for the more hard line among them, those who might be leaning towards Bishop Williamson? Hmmm…

Regardless of his words, which I agree seem prima facie to be inflammatory and anti-conciliatory, none of us know what might be going on behind the scenes. The inner workings at the Vatican are anything but transparent…nor should they be transparent.
 
I was wondering when someone would post Bishop Fellay’s sermon. I read it a day or two after it hit the SSPX sites, and was curious how long it would take to appear here.

Well, I consider the timing of Bishop Fellay’s remarks. Why at this particular time? Consider- he is faced with an imminent crisis, the separation of Bishop WIlliamson and the possibility that WIlliamson will take more of the SSPX priests and faithful with him. Now how can Bishop Fellay reassure the SSPX faithful that he still stands for the more hard line among them, those who might be leaning towards Bishop Williamson? Hmmm…

Regardless of his words, which I agree seem prima facie to be inflammatory and anti-conciliatory, none of us know what might be going on behind the scenes. The inner workings at the Vatican are anything but transparent…nor should they be transparent.
The reason it did not appear here faster is that if you read the whole thing it paints a picture of the Church as disorganized, and sending mixed signals.
personally I think this is a thinly veiled plea to the Pope to personally handle this matter. I also think that whatever the motive it is more political than informative. The Bishops story about “unnamed sources” and getting “inside info” that turned out to be bad is hard to believe.

I have to believe that there is more going on here than is being said.
 
Wow, that is really dissapointing if that is what he told Rome. Prayers, prayers, and more prayers!!!

It’s scary how dangerous pride can be, especially to those who mistake it for humility.
It would be very disappointing if he revealed this to the public, before he said it to the pope. Afterall, in his own words he said that he received a memo from the pope saying that it was he (the pope) who inserted the last minute changes into the preamble, even though Cardinal Levada and Bishop Fellay had reached another agreement. There is no reason to believe that he does not have direct access to the pope.
I was wondering when someone would post Bishop Fellay’s sermon. I read it a day or two after it hit the SSPX sites, and was curious how long it would take to appear here.

Well, I consider the timing of Bishop Fellay’s remarks. Why at this particular time? Consider- he is faced with an imminent crisis, the separation of Bishop WIlliamson and the possibility that WIlliamson will take more of the SSPX priests and faithful with him. Now how can Bishop Fellay reassure the SSPX faithful that he still stands for the more hard line among them, those who might be leaning towards Bishop Williamson? Hmmm…

Regardless of his words, which I agree seem prima facie to be inflammatory and anti-conciliatory, none of us know what might be going on behind the scenes. The inner workings at the Vatican are anything but transparent…nor should they be transparent.
There is one thing that I know for certain. This pope does not take well to anyone making such comments about Vatican II or about the liceity of the Ordinary Form of the mass. If there are other talks going on behind the scenes, this is a very imprudent statement to make in public.

Basically, one who makes such a statement is forcing the Pope’s hand. The pope has to agree to what the bishop is saying, slam dunk it, or ignore him. That’s not what you want happening when you’re negotiating. Negotiations require that you give the other side a carrot, not an insult.

Pope Benedict XVI not only wrote to Bishop Fellay that the Council has to be accepted as is, but he also said it in public and wrote about it on the 50th anniversary of the Council. You can’t put the pope in a corner where you expect him to retract.

As to a veiled attempt to get the Pope to take this over himself, ain’t gonna happen. The term “subsidiarity” is very frequent in his vocabulary.

When the issue arose with the Legion of Christ, he did not get involved. He appointed someone else to do it. The issue with the LCWR, he appointed someone else to do it. The sexual abuse scandal, he sent bishops out to deal with it. The Vatican bank, he appointed someone else to do it. There is too much going on in the world for him to spend that much time on any one single thing.

The only groups with whom he deals directly are bishops, religious superiors of men, Muslim and Jewish leaders, heads of state and the Eastern Patriarchs of the Catholic Church. I read an interview of his secretary. He said that one of his major jobs is to go through everything that arrives in the Pope’s office and distribute it before the pope even sees it. He sets aside what he knows the Pope wants to deal with himself. If the people under the Pope need help, they ask for an audience or wait for the monthly meeting of the Holy See.

Imagine if this man had to deal with every issue that comes up. Nothing would ever happen. It’s too much. It is no secret that he also dedicates a great part of his day to study and writing. He rarely works in the evenings. His day begins at 7:00 with Morning Prayer and Mass, breakfast and then to his office. He stops at noon for lunch and a rest until 2:00 and back to work. He stops again at 4:00 for the end of the day. Then it’s Evening Prayer, quiet time, an evening meal, his piano time from 7:00 to 7:30 PM and some recreation with his house staff. Then to his reading and writing until bedtime.

That’s a pretty full day.

Also, I can’t imagine the Holy Father undermining Archbishop Mueller and Archbishop DiNoia by taking over this project. That would be disrespectful to them, since they have not had an opportunity to work on this project. They just came to this office.

Could there be some talking behind the scenes? All things are possible. Will the Pope take over? Very unlikely. Will the Pope just sit back and accept Bishop Fellay’s statements? Very unlikely. The best possible scenario is that he will not respond. The worse scenario is to declare them in schism.

The danger is that Bishop Fellay talks about continuing the struggle into the future. However, he and the other bishops are not going to live forever. Is the plan to ordain successors? If that’s the plan, this is not looking any better or is he speaking about a short-term future?

I don’t know the answer and I don’t think anyone else knows either.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
 
I have to believe that there is more going on here than is being said.
That is exactly what I’m saying. The tone of the Nov. 11th address seems very out of character for Bishop Fellay, compared with other things he has said about reconciliation. That’s why I’m conjecturing that it is more of an attempt to prevent further defection to the Williamson camp as well as- perhaps- some personal frustration coming through.

Again, I wish they could just hug it out. I say let the SSPX have their Personal Prelature, no strings attached other than allegiance to the Holy See and a pledge to discontinue openly divisive talk. Such talk would diminish in time, anyway, once reconciliation were achieved. I rarely hear folks who attend the diocesan EF Mass even hint at anything wrong with those who only attend the OF Mass. I wish the converse were true.
 
Again, I wish they could just hug it out. I say let the SSPX have their Personal Prelature, no strings attached other than allegiance to the Holy See and a pledge to discontinue openly divisive talk. .
The Council of Trent ruled that only religious whose vows are solemn have this privilege granted to them and protected by grace. Even clergy or any religious whose vows are simple do not have this privilege and are not protected by grace. Therefore, they must come under some legal authority in the Church.

The prelature is as close as you can get to being an exempt religious. They can form their own men in their own seminaries. They can open chapels, schools and other institutions and run it their way. All they need is permission from the local bishop to enter his territory. But the local bishop does not oversee their ministry. They have almost every privilege of an exempt religious, except the grace that comes from solemn vows; but they have the freedom to remain secular men; whereas exempt religious are not secular men and don’t have as much freedom. It’s a win win situation for them.

There is one more thing that they may not like. The prelature has a constitution that must be approved by the pope. Here is where the Vatican II and OF issue comes up. If they insert any language that’s antagonistic toward either the constitution will not be approved. In that case the pope reserves the right to write a constitution and impose it on the prelature. Also, the head of the prelature must be a priest approved by the pope, because the prelature belongs to the pope. It’s not another diocese that belongs to the local bishop.

There is much more to a prelature than meets the eye.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
 
As far as I know the personal prelature idea came from Rome. I haven’t heard that it has been taken off the table, either.

As I recall, some were resistant to the creation of the Personal Prelature of Opus Dei as well.
 
As far as I know the personal prelature idea came from Rome. I haven’t heard that it has been taken off the table, either.

As I recall, some were resistant to the creation of the Personal Prelature of Opus Dei as well.
I believe that the prelature offer is still on the table. The SSPX has to accept or decline. But it’s not being offered without parameters.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
 
As far as I know the personal prelature idea came from Rome. I haven’t heard that it has been taken off the table, either.

As I recall, some were resistant to the creation of the Personal Prelature of Opus Dei as well.
The question being, does the SSPX need to be separate from the ICRSS and the FSSP, or should they all be formed into one joint prelature, or perhaps 3 ordinariates of a single overseeing prelature?

I genuinely don’t care much either way, so long as the SSPX don’t continue in the gray area they are in, because it’s to the detriment of Catholics in general for them to remain so.
 
The question being, does the SSPX need to be separate from the ICRSS and the FSSP, or should they all be formed into one joint prelature, or perhaps 3 ordinariates of a single overseeing prelature?

I genuinely don’t care much either way, so long as the SSPX don’t continue in the gray area they are in, because it’s to the detriment of Catholics in general for them to remain so.
It is contrary to Canon Law to combine institutes. ICRSS and FSSP are institutes of pontifical right. Again, their autonomy is protected by the Council of Trent. The Holy Father would have to abrogate the rule in their case. This is a very dangerous move. You don’t abrogate rules that affect institutes that are faithful to the Church in order to give them a lower place in the Church. To make them part of the prelature or make them part of an ordinariate is a demotion. It would be like saying that Franciscans and Dominicans are no longer religious orders. They are now religious congregations. WHOAH!!!

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
 
This is the kind of behavior that gets bishops, religious superiors and other people in positions of authority upset. If the good bishop really did say these things to the public, this is not the usual way of proceeding.

Bishops, religious superiors and other people in authority, involved in a dialogue with the Holy See, as is the SSPX, where the Holy See itself has said that it’s patiently waiting for an official response from the SSPX, usually respond to the Holy See first and then tell the general public. Even the LCSW did this. They simply told the general public that they were going to Rome to meet with the Holy See, they were going to discern, discuss and respond. They went to Rome and did as they said they would. The Holy See was the first to hear what was on their mind, not the laity or even the sisters under the leadership.

I hope that this statement came after a written response to the Holy See. It would be very disrespectful to tell others before you tell the pope, Archbishop Mueller and Archbisop DiNoia. I can’t believe that Bishop Fellay is tactless. Or the writer got it wrong. :crossing my fingers:

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
You cross your fingers in vain Br JR. It is not for nothing that this 40 year separation is still going strong.

Despite excommunications, suspended faculties which render their ‘sacraments’ of Matrimony & Penance invalid, Papal encyclicals (Ecclesia Dei, Pope John Paul), Letter of Pope Paul VI to Archbishop Lefebvre etc etc …these wayward shepherds :confused: continue to be a thorn in the side of yet another Pope during his papacy, while they warp the minds of yet another generation.

Yes, pray pray pray…that is always the base line…but if a person is sick they need medicine to get back to health. In the case of cults (the SSPX are listed by the police as a cult in Italy) a mental illnesses not so easily cured, if at all.

This organization is characterize by bad manners - and are repeat offenders.

We have ‘forgotten’ in our enthusiasm the rudeness that has been handed out by Bishop Fellay and the SSPX - this being so consistent a trait with them that they have had to be cautioned and conditions laid upon them to behave themselves. This extract serves the point.

"Conditions resulting from the 4 june 2008 meeting between Dario Card. Castrillon Hoyos and Bishop Bernard Fellay:


  1. *]A commitment to a proportioned response to the generosity of the Pope.
    *]A commitment to avoid any public speech which does not respect the person of the Holy Father and which can be negative for ecclesial charity.
    *]A commitment to avoid the pretence of a Magisterium superior to the Holy Father and to not put forward the Fraternity [SSPX] in opposition to the Church.
    *]A commitment to demonstrate the will to behave honestly in full ecclesial charity and in respect to the authority of the Vicar of Christ.
    *]**A commitment to respect the date – fixed at the end of the month of June – to respond positively. This will be a required and necessary condition for the immediate preparation for adhesion to have full communion."
    **

    As I have remarked elsewhere previously…who is going to protect us from them, should they ever get let loose inside the Church…best they are segregated until they prove they can conduct themselves decently & charitably within the fold, as well as be cured of some very strange notions they tenaciously hold onto.

    If there is any “double speak” going on it is coming from their side (see condition No 4 above)

    I reluctantly post this link - but it is in English - unlike Justin’s one in French:rolleyes:
    sspx.org/superior_generals_news/bishop_fellay_sermon_extracts_paris_11-11-2012.htm
 
I think it is most charitable to remember that the SSPX faithful are just that- faithful Catholics. If they are ever reconciled, as faithful of a personal prelature or whatever, I just can’t see them running amok and causing damage to the Church. That job is already filled, by the heterodox, fifth column cafeteria Catholics who infest nearly every diocese in this country.

One doesn’t have to like or agree with my posts about SSPX but one thing is certain- I am consistent. Quote: “best they are segregated until they prove they can conduct themselves decently & charitably within the fold, as well as be cured of some very strange notions they tenaciously hold onto.” If this applies to the SSPX, doesn’t it equally apply to the heterodox “modernists?” Is it not “warping minds” to say that it is okay to support same sex “marriage” and pro-abortion candidates, to dress provocatively for Mass, to show up after the second reading and duck out right after the Eucharist, to ignore Holy Scripture as antiquated, etc. etc.? I’ll wager that none of these behaviors are characteristic of the SSPX faithful. Just sayin’

At least the SSPX dissenters had the decency to go off and start their own chapels… unlike the heterodox Catholics who stay on and gnaw away at the moral fabric of the church from within, doing far more damage than the SSPX and all the EF lovers put together could ever possibly do.
 
You cross your fingers in vain Br JR. It is not for nothing that this 40 year separation is still going strong.

Yes, pray pray pray…that is always the base line…but if a person is sick they need medicine to get back to health. In the case of cults (the SSPX are listed by the police as a cult in Italy) a mental illnesses not so easily cured, if at all.
I think that the term “cult” is a little extreme. The SSPX is not a cult. It’s part of a movement to tradition. The movement has validity. I know this from my own life. My own religious family is undergoing a renewal or a recovery of our life as it was in the 13th century. Obviously, we’re not cooking over open flames or sleeping in huts. That was not the essence of our lives. Those were the resources that they had. The essence is one of obedience, detachment, prayer, brotherhood, equality, and penance. There is nothing wrong with recovering. The difference is that we’re doing it from the inside with the blessing of the Holy See and the bishops of the dioceses in which we live and work. Not every bishop likes it. There are consequences for them too. We’re not ordaining as many, because we want to go back to the days when priests were the exception, not the rule in the Franciscan family. We’re giving up parishes in middle class areas. Sometimes, the bishop can’t staff them and has to close them. We’re not accepting new parishes in many areas. We’re creating fraternities of friars who live and work in neighborhood streets rather than Catholic schools, hospitals, parishes, sanctuaries and other institutions. Less and less friars are doing those things as was the case in the 13th century.

Some may think that this is a cult as well, a cult to Francis of Assisi. But in reality, it’s a recovery of the gift that God has given to the Church through him. We have to look more carefully at the Traditionalist movement and recognize its gifts as well.
 
One doesn’t have to like or agree with my posts about SSPX but one thing is certain- I am consistent. Quote: “best they are segregated until they prove they can conduct themselves decently & charitably within the fold, as well as be cured of some very strange notions they tenaciously hold onto.” If this applies to the SSPX, doesn’t it equally apply to the heterodox “modernists?” Is it not “warping minds” to say that it is okay to support same sex “marriage” and pro-abortion candidates, to dress provocatively for Mass, to show up after the second reading and duck out right after the Eucharist, to ignore Holy Scripture as antiquated, etc. etc.? I’ll wager that none of these behaviors are characteristic of the SSPX faithful. Just sayin’
Certainly such people do great harm to the Church and to themselves. Creating a ghetto is not the solution.

The difference between some of these folks and the SSPX is organization. These are individuals who are problem children. The SSPX is an organization with a lot more influence.

Whether one is heterodox or one sets himself up as the arbiter of tradition, both are wrong places to stand. The Church has not asked us to do anything that is sinful. We should stand where we are told to stand, unless it’s a sin.

I am disappointed with the talk given by the bishop. There are some things in it that should not have been said.
  1. When he says that it was the Holy Father who inserted what he had deleted from the preamble, the tone of the transcript makes it sound like the Pope stabbed them in the back. It could have been said with more reverence. “The Holy Father wants this.” Then he could have added that they can’t deliver what the Holy Father wants. Both statements would have been true and neither would be offensive to either side.
  2. To say that one gets conflicting messages from the people who work at the Vatican is not that important. It did not need to be said. In any government where there are layers and layers of bureaucracy, there are going to be many messages. If you shop around, you will eventually get someone to say what you want to hear. This is not unique to the Vatican. To make this statement as it was made, it sounds like the Vatican is a mess. The truth is that the Vatican is like any other government. It’s big. It employs people with many ideas. It has people with personal agendas and others who have the best interest of the Church in mind. It has departments, secretariats and congregations for each area of Church life. If you treat it like a shopping mall, you’re only going to get pieces that don’t go together. You have to decide what you want to wear and go to the store that sells that product.
  3. He was very discreet in discussing the situation concerning Bishop Williamson, giving only the minimum amount of details. But did not give the Holy See the same consideration. I felt as if he threw the Holy See under the bus by making his audience think that it’s full of conniving, self-serving, ambitious, saboteurs. Not once does he express any gratitude to the Holy Father, Cardinal Levada or the other theologians who gave of their time and effort to dialogue with him. Not once did he credit anyone at the Vatican with being helpful or knowing what they’re doing. Not once did he admit that the SSPX has some things for which to apologize to Rome. The way it was delivered, the SSPX is the martyr that is going to save the Church. The rest of us who are inside the Church doing our best count for nothing.
  4. He speaks about the falling numbers of Catholics and the suppression of the Catholic states. He failed to mention that secularism, atheism, materialism, Communism, Capitalism, and the sexual revolution were not invented by the Council or the Vatican. These were in the works right after WW II. They have influenced many Catholics, but not because the Church could stop these movements. They are an evil all their own. The Church can only protect, invite, educate, preach and pray. The portrayal of the world that he gave us when he was first enthusiastic about the return home is not the same today. Unless you’re going to paint the entire picture, you are better off not saying anything, because it misleads people. I do believe that many of the people in the pews at the SSPX chapels are simple Catholics who are just trying to keep the faith. They do not deserve to be misled into believing that the Church does not have their interest at heart.
This is troubling and unfortunate.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
 
I think it is most charitable to remember that the SSPX faithful are just that- faithful Catholics. If they are ever reconciled, as faithful of a personal prelature or whatever, I just can’t see them running amok and causing damage to the Church. That job is already filled, by the heterodox, fifth column cafeteria Catholics who infest nearly every diocese in this country.

One doesn’t have to like or agree with my posts about SSPX but one thing is certain- I am consistent. Quote: “best they are segregated until they prove they can conduct themselves decently & charitably within the fold, as well as be cured of some very strange notions they tenaciously hold onto.” If this applies to the SSPX, doesn’t it equally apply to the heterodox “modernists?” Is it not “warping minds” to say that it is okay to support same sex “marriage” and pro-abortion candidates, to dress provocatively for Mass, to show up after the second reading and duck out right after the Eucharist, to ignore Holy Scripture as antiquated, etc. etc.? I’ll wager that none of these behaviors are characteristic of the SSPX faithful. Just sayin’

At least the SSPX dissenters had the decency to go off and start their own chapels… unlike the heterodox Catholics who stay on and gnaw away at the moral fabric of the church from within, doing far more damage than the SSPX and all the EF lovers put together could ever possibly do.
Yes. Is very frustrating to read things like that. Modernists, heterodox, progressives, etc are very dangerous. There are lots of people like that in the Church. Even in places of authority. For example, where I live (South America), this is a problem in some Dioceses. Even the “Vatican II conservative” position is seen as extreme. :rolleyes: And, not only the Jesuit Priest I wrote about earlier said questionable or bad things. Now a recently created Cardinal said that the decriminalization of abortion in three cases, was “fine” (“está bien”, in Spanish). Link here: secretummeummihi.blogspot.com/2012/11/las-despenalizaciones-y-el-card.html (in Spanish).

Blessings.
 
I think it is most charitable to remember that the SSPX faithful are just that- faithful Catholics. If they are ever reconciled, as faithful of a personal prelature or whatever, I just can’t see them running amok and causing damage to the Church. That job is already filled, by the heterodox, fifth column cafeteria Catholics who infest nearly every diocese in this country.
That it is! :thumbsup:Infest is the right word. It is not the faithful who I am referring to. It is the highly individual priests of the SSPX who would be the menace. As we have noticed recently (in the case of Fr Rostand), they are inclined to be a law unto themselves and while toe-ing the party line, do often have notions and agenda’s of their own (not saying here that we don’t have the same) which within the microcosm that they exist, is certain to, in each case have a unique and disturbing impact. There are some very decent priests among them, but do remember, that they are all cut from the same cloth (excuse the pun, not intended).
One doesn’t have to like or agree with my posts about SSPX but one thing is certain- I am consistent. Quote: “best they are segregated until they prove they can conduct themselves decently & charitably within the fold, as well as be cured of some very strange notions they tenaciously hold onto.” If this applies to the SSPX, doesn’t it equally apply to the heterodox “modernists?” Is it not “warping minds” to say that it is okay to support same sex “marriage” and pro-abortion candidates, to dress provocatively for Mass, to show up after the second reading and duck out right after the Eucharist, to ignore Holy Scripture as antiquated, etc. etc.? I’ll wager that none of these behaviors are characteristic of the SSPX faithful. Just sayin’
Contrary to what you think, I certainly do like your posts, but I can’t agree here, sorry.😃 Although problematic, it is not as difficult for us to dismiss the bizarre behaviours of the heterodox “modernists” for the lunacy they are. Having said this, yes, on the young and uninformed they do wreak their own brand of havoc, but this is, by and large countered by the example of the majority and the visible Magisterium.

Whereas the SSPX starts off with already pious lay folk seeking sanctuary from the stresses of this madness. This ‘captive audience’ is susceptible to the ‘mind warp’ I am referring to. A most dangerous one - that pits these otherwise faithful Catholics against their own Pope and Magisterium - caused by their (SSPX heirarchy’s) almost dogmatic conviction that there is ‘no salvation within the Church’ - into a situation of divided loyalty, which is no way to go about saving one’s soul. It is this contradiction of theirs and their continual condemnation of what they term “the conciliar church” that inculcates a schizophrenic dichotomy in themselves & their followers of believing that they are the remnant that’s sacrifices (and the graces from their masses) which are saving the world.
At least the SSPX dissenters had the decency to go off and start their own chapels… unlike the heterodox Catholics who stay on and gnaw away at the moral fabric of the church from within, doing far more damage than the SSPX and all the EF lovers put together could ever possibly do.
I get what you mean here, but do see it differently. In that I don’t think they have ever had the right, morally or otherwise, to use the beauty of the Tridentine Rite to attract and hold the faithful so legitimately attached to it - to fund and build up what has turned out to be nothing more or less than a permanent and unhealthy resistance to the authority of the Church.
 
Yes. Is very frustrating to read things like that. Modernists, heterodox, progressives, etc are very dangerous. There are lots of people like that in the Church. Even in places of authority. For example, where I live (South America), this is a problem in some Dioceses. Even the “Vatican II conservative” position is seen as extreme. :rolleyes: And, not only the Jesuit Priest I wrote about earlier said questionable or bad things. Now a recently created Cardinal said that the decriminalization of abortion in three cases, was “fine” (“está bien”, in Spanish). Link here: secretummeummihi.blogspot.com/2012/11/las-despenalizaciones-y-el-card.html (in Spanish).

Blessings.
This is a misrepresentation. The cardinal is saying exactly what Bl. John Paul says in Evangelium Vitae. There is a difference between morality and crime. It is always immoral to abort a child. There are no exceptions.

It is always immoral to commit adultery. There are no exceptions.

Same sex intercourse is always immoral. There are no exceptions.

Passing laws the makes any of these and other immoral acts a crime is a very delicate matter. For example. If you were in a Muslim country, you would be executed for all three.

Therefore, in Evangelium Vitae, Bl. John Paul speaks separately between immoral actions that can never be condoned and the right of the state and the limits of the state to criminalize immoral actions. Why? Because nations have abused the law. The punishment often does not fit the crime. For example execution of a mother who has an abortion is a disproportionate response, because it’s not a choice in favor of the greater good, which is to preserve life, even of those who have committed a grave immoral act.

I read the cardinal’s statement and he is well within the parameters that Bl. John Paul sets regarding penalization of certain actions and the limits of the state.

The problem with the interview is that it clips, probably for the sake of space. For anyone who has read and is an expert in Evangelium Vitae, as are the Sisters of Life, Franciscans of Life, and Priests for Life, we can see what part of Evangelium Vitae the cardinal is coming from.

In reading Evangelium Vitae, it is important to read the entire document keeping in mind that the Holy Father wrote about life, not just abortion in that document. Each area is going to be treated separately. Crimes are in one section and immoral acts in another. The cardinal is saying what the Holy Father said about punishing crimes and the abuses that states often commit.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
 
That it is! :thumbsup:Infest is the right word. It is not the faithful who I am referring to. It is the highly individual priests of the SSPX who would be the menace. As we have noticed recently (in the case of Fr Rostand), they are inclined to be a law unto themselves and while toe-ing the party line, do often have notions and agenda’s of their own (not saying here that we don’t have the same) which within the microcosm that they exist, is certain to, in each case have a unique and disturbing impact. There are some very decent priests among them, but do remember, that they are all cut from the same cloth (excuse the pun, not intended).

Contrary to what you think, I certainly do like your posts, but I can’t agree here, sorry.😃 Although problematic, it is not as difficult for us to dismiss the bizarre behaviours of the heterodox “modernists” for the lunacy they are. Having said this, yes, on the young and uninformed they do wreak their own brand of havoc, but this is, by and large countered by the example of the majority and the visible Magisterium.

Whereas the SSPX starts off with already pious lay folk seeking sanctuary from the stresses of this madness. This ‘captive audience’ is susceptible to the ‘mind warp’ I am referring to. A most dangerous one - that pits these otherwise faithful Catholics against their own Pope and Magisterium - caused by their (SSPX heirarchy’s) almost dogmatic conviction that there is ‘no salvation within the Church’ - into a situation of divided loyalty, which is no way to go about saving one’s soul. It is this contradiction of theirs and their continual condemnation of what they term “the conciliar church” that inculcates a schizophrenic dichotomy in themselves & their followers of believing that they are the remnant that’s sacrifices (and the graces from their masses) which are saving the world.

I get what you mean here, but do see it differently. In that I don’t think they have ever had the right, morally or otherwise, to use the beauty of the Tridentine Rite to attract and hold the faithful so legitimately attached to it - to fund and build up what has turned out to be nothing more or less than a permanent and unhealthy resistance to the authority of the Church.
👍

This I can agree with in good conscience. Wittingly or unwittingly, they have created a system that pits individuals against legitimate Church authority. The system also disregards the efforts made by the millions of faithful Catholics within the juridical Church. It fails to admit that there is anything good or anyone good in the Church, thus creating suspicion in their people and even hypervigilance. While people should know about the dangers of hell and sin. it is poor pastoral practice to imply or say that no one in the Church teaches about hell. It is also poor pastoral practice to reduce the Christian life to avoiding hell.

If we read the writings of the great spiritual masters, hell is mentioned a lot less than spiritual union of the soul and the divine, a lot less than charity and justice, a lot less than love and compassion, a lot less than God’s infinite mercy, a lot less than spiritual renewal and corporal works of mercy and a lot less than fidelity to the Church.

Just examine some of these:

Benedict, Augustine, Julian of Norwich, Cloud of Unknowing, Francis of Assisi, Anthony of Padua, Clare of Assisi, Catherine of Siena, Bonaventure, Thomas Aquinas, Francis de Sales, Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, Elizabeth of the Triniity, Faustina, John Henry Newman, John of Avila, and Elizabeth Ann Seton. These men and women represent the cream of Catholic spirituality.

Fraternally,

Br. JR, FFV 🙂
 
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