I don’t disagree with your train of thought but I just wanted to point out that FSSP stands for Fraternitas Sacerdotalis Sancti Petri (Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter).
My guess is definitely not! Too much water under the bridge. The SSPX has been quite harsh in their assessment of the FSSP over the past almost 25 years. If such a reconciliation did occur, I do not think I will see it in my lifetime.
Agree wholeheartedly. I think you set precedent and encourage others to think of excommunication and schism (not saying they ARE in schism) as a means to achieve their goals. Certainly not a healthy message to send.Yet, at the same time, I want nothing more but for the Society to be reconciled.
Given that they Holy Father already approves of multiple organizations (forgive me ecclesiastic terminology isn’t my strong suit) I wouldn’t expect him to desire to merge these two. The precedent is to allow several. I think this is good for everyone, myself.
Are you saying that Cardinal Dolon refuses to allow an FSSP chaplaincy in NYC? Is there some written proof of that?
We’re getting sidetracked here. I am thankful for the opportunities I have to attend the EF, trust me. I’m not discussing what I am lacking or not lacking, nor am I discussing in detail the policies of any bishops/cardinals (Bob).
In both directions?
That is canonically impossible, because of their structures. First, you must remember that neither is an order. The FSSP and the SSPX are secular Catholic priests, not consecrated religious. That’s the first impairment. The Church has no authority to merge secular organizations
The FSSP cannot be a prelature for two reasons.
It is not a restriction. It’s a matter of charisms. If that were the case, then the Franciscans and Salesians should be prelatures. Both are bigger, wealthier and have many more bishops and laity than the SSPX. Between the Salesians and Franciscans they comprise 20% of the religious and laity in the Catholic Church. That’s a big number and they are very different from other institutes.
You can’t have one big prelature, because each ED institute has its own charism. A prelature is a body with one charism, not a merger of several charisms. There is also a juridical problem. There can only be one prelate. Who would that be? From which institute would you pick him or would you bring in a bishop from outside so as not to cause hurt feelings? Some of the ED institutes are religious. They cannot be part of a prelature, because they would lose their autonomy.
Actually, it’s the perfect solution. It achieves two things. It give the Church the needed (name removed by moderator)ut of the SSPX, which is a good thing. Secondly, it gives the Church power to regulate that (name removed by moderator)ut.
No. Priests cannot move from FSSP to SSPX and the other way around without the permission and agreement of the two superiors general. It’s not just a matter of picking up your bag and moving. A priest must be incardinated into a diocese, a society or a religious community. Once incardinated, he needs the permission of his superior to ask to be received elsewhere. He needs the permission of the other superior to be admitted. Finally, the transfer must be approved by the Holy See.
Thank you.That is canonically impossible, because of their structures. First, you must remember that neither is an order. The FSSP and the SSPX are secular Catholic priests, not consecrated religious. That’s the first impairment. The Church has no authority to merge secular organizations
The second obstacle is their different infrastructures. The FSSP is strictly a society of secular priests. The SSPX is a much larger organization. It has a society of secular priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, a third order, oblates and religious communities associated to it. As a structure, it’s really a church, not just a society of apostolic life.
To merge would mean that the FSSP would have to be absorbed into the SSPX, because it’s the smaller of the two.
The FSSP cannot be a prelature for two reasons.
It is not a restriction. It’s a matter of charisms. If that were the case, then the Franciscans and Salesians should be prelatures. Both are bigger, wealthier and have many more bishops and laity than the SSPX. Between the Salesians and Franciscans they comprise 20% of the religious and laity in the Catholic Church. That’s a big number and they are very different from other institutes.
- It is incorporated into the Church as a society for secular clerics. It does not have the infrastructure necessary to be a prelature.
- It does not have bishops and is not allowed to have bishops. A prelature must have its own bishops or accept a bishop imposed by the pope as its prelate.
You can’t have one big prelature, because each ED institute has its own charism. A prelature is a body with one charism, not a merger of several charisms. There is also a juridical problem. There can only be one prelate. Who would that be? From which institute would you pick him or would you bring in a bishop from outside so as not to cause hurt feelings? Some of the ED institutes are religious. They cannot be part of a prelature, because they would lose their autonomy.
Actually, it’s the perfect solution. It achieves two things. It give the Church the needed (name removed by moderator)ut of the SSPX, which is a good thing. Secondly, it gives the Church power to regulate that (name removed by moderator)ut.
No. Priests cannot move from FSSP to SSPX and the other way around without the permission and agreement of the two superiors general. It’s not just a matter of picking up your bag and moving. A priest must be incardinated into a diocese, a society or a religious community. Once incardinated, he needs the permission of his superior to ask to be received elsewhere. He needs the permission of the other superior to be admitted. Finally, the transfer must be approved by the Holy See.
In the past, SSPX clergy were received into Catholic institutes, because the SSPX was not a canonically erected Catholic community. Once it is regularized, it will have a canonical status and that means that it will also have rights. One of those rights is the right of its superior not to allow anyone to leave.
Fraternally,
Br. JR, FFV
That would be the PC response.