• The brutal excommunication of the Society of Saint Pius X

    From Julian@julianlzb87@gmail.com to alt.buddha.short.fat.guy on Thu Jul 2 16:27:40 2026
    From Newsgroup: alt.buddha.short.fat.guy

    On Wednesday, the largest traditional Catholic order of priests in the
    world, the Society of Saint Pius X, consecrated four bishops without a
    papal mandate.

    The VaticanrCOs response was swift and brutal. Today, it announced that
    not only have the four new bishops and the two consecrators been excommunicated but, shockingly, so will all the priests and faithful who continue to adhere to the SocietyrCOs work rCo an edict that will likely affect more than a million Catholics worldwide.

    This comes across as startlingly harsh, especially as the penalty of excommunication for consecrating bishops without a mandate has only
    existed since 1951. Pius XII established it to prevent the Chinese
    Communist party from appointing bishops loyal to Beijing. Ironically,
    today the CCP appoints bishops without a mandate for the explicit
    purpose of guaranteeing loyalty to communism and receives the VaticanrCOs automatic blessing. By contrast, over a million traditional Catholics
    have now been cut off from the Church for the crime of wanting to
    practise the faith as it was before the Second Vatican Council.

    The morning sun was shining when the consecration began at the seminary
    of Econe, Switzerland, in the presence of 16,600 adult faithful and too
    many children to count. But a burst of heavy rain struck just before
    Communion was to be distributed. Outside the ceremonial tent, the
    drenched crowds sang rCyAve MariasrCO and prayed the rosary in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, until the downpour lightened enough to continue (by
    the end all was sunshine, organ and pealing bells).

    It was a symbolic moment for the Society. It has particularly championed
    the Blessed Virgin since November, when the Vatican issued a document downplaying her role in salvation. The Society cited this document as influential in their decision to proceed with the consecrations.

    Excommunication is the most severe punishment the Catholic Church can
    carry out. But the Society insists that canon law makes provision for
    the extraordinary consecration of bishops at times of crisis.

    They uphold the PoperCOs authority as Vicar of Christ and pray for him at Mass. But they say that even the Pope (who, as the old adage has it, is
    the vicar of Christ, not His successor) has no right to cut off the
    faithful from the traditional Catholic liturgy, doctrine and sacraments.

    The traditional Mass is, with severe restrictions, available within the mainstream Church. But the Society of Saint Pius X and its affiliates
    are the only formal groups who offer exclusively traditional Catholic
    doctrine and liturgy as they were before the Second Vatican Council.
    Without bishops, their work will eventually end, and the faithful who
    want to practise Catholicism in its pre-conciliar form will have nowhere
    to turn.

    This would undoubtedly be the VaticanrCOs preferred outcome. What makes
    things awkward for Rome is that the Church has always claimed to be the guardian of an unchangeable truth. More can be learned about the truth,
    but what was already known can never be contradicted. For this reason
    Rome cannot condemn the SocietyrCOs members as heretics for practising the pre-conciliar Catholic faith (though, as Pope Leo admitted to
    journalists a couple of weeks ago, the changes of Vatican II are the fundamental issues at stake).

    This isnrCOt the first time the Society has been sanctioned by the Church.
    In 1988, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the Society of Saint
    Pius X, after engaging in endless, fruitless negotiations to obtain a
    bishop, realised he would soon die, and decided that the preservation of
    the pre-conciliar faith justified an extraordinary action. He
    consecrated four bishops, without jurisdiction, whose sole purpose was
    to provide for the sacramental life of the faithful.

    Excommunication followed and the Society was called schismatic, though
    it steadfastly denied the charge. Although the Society did not recant,
    Pope Benedict lifted the excommunication in 2008 and Pope Francis, who respected the Society for its work with the poor in Buenos Aires,
    allowed it to hear confessions and perform marriages.

    An odd kind of schism, if it even was one. And now, without having
    changed its position one iota since 1988, the Society has been
    excommunicated and declared schismatic again. In a move that is
    particularly cruel for the faithful, the Vatican has explicitly removed
    the faculties for marriages and confessions granted by Pope Francis.

    Those who have watched the SocietyrCOs recent documentary Traditio about
    its apostolate, have in many cases been profoundly moved by the
    matter-of-fact way in which the SocietyrCOs priests go about the world, working themselves to the bone, doing what the Catholic Church has
    always done: teaching, baptising, absolving, marrying, burying, and
    praying for the souls of others.

    They acknowledge the authority of the Pope in all that is not sin. But
    they think that to wash their hands like Pilate, to stand back and let
    the ChurchrCOs pre-conciliar faith die out, would be a sin.

    Their sincerity is clear rCo and the harshness of Pope Leo unconscionable.
    He has excommunicated an entire loyal branch of the Church after
    steadfastly refusing to let them come to him to explain their position.
    Since his election they have tried to approach him for an audience; in
    vain. Instead, they were offered dialogue that explicitly excluded the consecration of bishops and the points of disagreement with the Second
    Vatican Council. But these were the only things that needed to be discussed.

    The Catholic faithful have been forced to uphold Vatican II for too
    long. It is time for the Church to allow Catholics to practise the old
    faith.

    The Pope meets with soccer players and pop stars; he speaks up for
    migrants and blesses a block of ice to show his love for the earth. But
    the children of his house are excommunicated, attacked as schismatic,
    starved of the traditional sacraments and punished for wanting what the
    Church has always given. The injustice of it cries out to heaven.



    Jane Stannus
    --- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From dart200@user7160@newsgrouper.org.invalid to alt.buddha.short.fat.guy,alt.messianic on Thu Jul 2 10:06:10 2026
    From Newsgroup: alt.buddha.short.fat.guy

    On 7/2/26 8:27 AM, Julian wrote:
    On Wednesday, the largest traditional Catholic order of priests in the world, the Society of Saint Pius X, consecrated four bishops without a
    papal mandate.

    The VaticanrCOs response was swift and brutal. Today, it announced that
    not only have the four new bishops and the two consecrators been excommunicated but, shockingly, so will all the priests and faithful who continue to adhere to the SocietyrCOs work rCo an edict that will likely affect more than a million Catholics worldwide.

    This comes across as startlingly harsh, especially as the penalty of excommunication for consecrating bishops without a mandate has only
    existed since 1951. Pius XII established it to prevent the Chinese
    Communist party from appointing bishops loyal to Beijing. Ironically,
    today the CCP appoints bishops without a mandate for the explicit
    purpose of guaranteeing loyalty to communism and receives the VaticanrCOs automatic blessing. By contrast, over a million traditional Catholics
    have now been cut off from the Church for the crime of wanting to
    practise the faith as it was before the Second Vatican Council.

    The morning sun was shining when the consecration began at the seminary
    of Econe, Switzerland, in the presence of 16,600 adult faithful and too
    many children to count. But a burst of heavy rain struck just before Communion was to be distributed. Outside the ceremonial tent, the
    drenched crowds sang rCyAve MariasrCO and prayed the rosary in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, until the downpour lightened enough to continue (by
    the end all was sunshine, organ and pealing bells).

    It was a symbolic moment for the Society. It has particularly championed
    the Blessed Virgin since November, when the Vatican issued a document downplaying her role in salvation. The Society cited this document as influential in their decision to proceed with the consecrations.

    Excommunication is the most severe punishment the Catholic Church can
    carry out. But the Society insists that canon law makes provision for
    the extraordinary consecration of bishops at times of crisis.

    They uphold the PoperCOs authority as Vicar of Christ and pray for him at Mass. But they say that even the Pope (who, as the old adage has it, is
    the vicar of Christ, not His successor) has no right to cut off the
    faithful from the traditional Catholic liturgy, doctrine and sacraments.

    The traditional Mass is, with severe restrictions, available within the mainstream Church. But the Society of Saint Pius X and its affiliates
    are the only formal groups who offer exclusively traditional Catholic doctrine and liturgy as they were before the Second Vatican Council.
    Without bishops, their work will eventually end, and the faithful who
    want to practise Catholicism in its pre-conciliar form will have nowhere
    to turn.

    This would undoubtedly be the VaticanrCOs preferred outcome. What makes things awkward for Rome is that the Church has always claimed to be the guardian of an unchangeable truth. More can be learned about the truth,
    but what was already known can never be contradicted. For this reason
    Rome cannot condemn the SocietyrCOs members as heretics for practising the pre-conciliar Catholic faith (though, as Pope Leo admitted to
    journalists a couple of weeks ago, the changes of Vatican II are the fundamental issues at stake).

    This isnrCOt the first time the Society has been sanctioned by the Church. In 1988, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the Society of Saint
    Pius X, after engaging in endless, fruitless negotiations to obtain a bishop, realised he would soon die, and decided that the preservation of
    the pre-conciliar faith justified an extraordinary action. He
    consecrated four bishops, without jurisdiction, whose sole purpose was
    to provide for the sacramental life of the faithful.

    Excommunication followed and the Society was called schismatic, though
    it steadfastly denied the charge. Although the Society did not recant,
    Pope Benedict lifted the excommunication in 2008 and Pope Francis, who respected the Society for its work with the poor in Buenos Aires,
    allowed it to hear confessions and perform marriages.

    An odd kind of schism, if it even was one. And now, without having
    changed its position one iota since 1988, the Society has been excommunicated and declared schismatic again. In a move that is
    particularly cruel for the faithful, the Vatican has explicitly removed
    the faculties for marriages and confessions granted by Pope Francis.

    Those who have watched the SocietyrCOs recent documentary Traditio about
    its apostolate, have in many cases been profoundly moved by the matter- of-fact way in which the SocietyrCOs priests go about the world, working themselves to the bone, doing what the Catholic Church has always done: teaching, baptising, absolving, marrying, burying, and praying for the
    souls of others.

    They acknowledge the authority of the Pope in all that is not sin. But
    they think that to wash their hands like Pilate, to stand back and let
    the ChurchrCOs pre-conciliar faith die out, would be a sin.

    Their sincerity is clear rCo and the harshness of Pope Leo unconscionable. He has excommunicated an entire loyal branch of the Church after
    steadfastly refusing to let them come to him to explain their position. Since his election they have tried to approach him for an audience; in
    vain. Instead, they were offered dialogue that explicitly excluded the consecration of bishops and the points of disagreement with the Second Vatican Council. But these were the only things that needed to be
    discussed.

    The Catholic faithful have been forced to uphold Vatican II for too
    long. It is time for the Church to allow Catholics to practise the old faith.

    The Pope meets with soccer players and pop stars; he speaks up for
    migrants and blesses a block of ice to show his love for the earth. But
    the children of his house are excommunicated, attacked as schismatic, starved of the traditional sacraments and punished for wanting what the Church has always given. The injustice of it cries out to heaven.



    Jane Stannus

    one ought to ask the pope:

    > is this really what jesus would do???
    >
    > #god
    --
    why are we god?
    let's end war EfOa

    --- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Julian@julianlzb87@gmail.com to alt.buddha.short.fat.guy on Thu Jul 2 18:59:08 2026
    From Newsgroup: alt.buddha.short.fat.guy

    On 02/07/2026 18:06, dart200 wrote:
    On 7/2/26 8:27 AM, Julian wrote:
    On Wednesday, the largest traditional Catholic order of priests in the
    world, the Society of Saint Pius X, consecrated four bishops without a
    papal mandate.

    The VaticanrCOs response was swift and brutal. Today, it announced that
    not only have the four new bishops and the two consecrators been
    excommunicated but, shockingly, so will all the priests and faithful
    who continue to adhere to the SocietyrCOs work rCo an edict that will
    likely affect more than a million Catholics worldwide.

    This comes across as startlingly harsh, especially as the penalty of
    excommunication for consecrating bishops without a mandate has only
    existed since 1951. Pius XII established it to prevent the Chinese
    Communist party from appointing bishops loyal to Beijing. Ironically,
    today the CCP appoints bishops without a mandate for the explicit
    purpose of guaranteeing loyalty to communism and receives the
    VaticanrCOs automatic blessing. By contrast, over a million traditional
    Catholics have now been cut off from the Church for the crime of
    wanting to practise the faith as it was before the Second Vatican
    Council.

    The morning sun was shining when the consecration began at the
    seminary of Econe, Switzerland, in the presence of 16,600 adult
    faithful and too many children to count. But a burst of heavy rain
    struck just before Communion was to be distributed. Outside the
    ceremonial tent, the drenched crowds sang rCyAve MariasrCO and prayed the >> rosary in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, until the downpour
    lightened enough to continue (by the end all was sunshine, organ and
    pealing bells).

    It was a symbolic moment for the Society. It has particularly
    championed the Blessed Virgin since November, when the Vatican issued
    a document downplaying her role in salvation. The Society cited this
    document as influential in their decision to proceed with the
    consecrations.

    Excommunication is the most severe punishment the Catholic Church can
    carry out. But the Society insists that canon law makes provision for
    the extraordinary consecration of bishops at times of crisis.

    They uphold the PoperCOs authority as Vicar of Christ and pray for him
    at Mass. But they say that even the Pope (who, as the old adage has
    it, is the vicar of Christ, not His successor) has no right to cut off
    the faithful from the traditional Catholic liturgy, doctrine and
    sacraments.

    The traditional Mass is, with severe restrictions, available within
    the mainstream Church. But the Society of Saint Pius X and its
    affiliates are the only formal groups who offer exclusively
    traditional Catholic doctrine and liturgy as they were before the
    Second Vatican Council. Without bishops, their work will eventually
    end, and the faithful who want to practise Catholicism in its pre-
    conciliar form will have nowhere to turn.

    This would undoubtedly be the VaticanrCOs preferred outcome. What makes
    things awkward for Rome is that the Church has always claimed to be
    the guardian of an unchangeable truth. More can be learned about the
    truth, but what was already known can never be contradicted. For this
    reason Rome cannot condemn the SocietyrCOs members as heretics for
    practising the pre-conciliar Catholic faith (though, as Pope Leo
    admitted to journalists a couple of weeks ago, the changes of Vatican
    II are the fundamental issues at stake).

    This isnrCOt the first time the Society has been sanctioned by the
    Church. In 1988, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the Society of
    Saint Pius X, after engaging in endless, fruitless negotiations to
    obtain a bishop, realised he would soon die, and decided that the
    preservation of the pre-conciliar faith justified an extraordinary
    action. He consecrated four bishops, without jurisdiction, whose sole
    purpose was to provide for the sacramental life of the faithful.

    Excommunication followed and the Society was called schismatic, though
    it steadfastly denied the charge. Although the Society did not recant,
    Pope Benedict lifted the excommunication in 2008 and Pope Francis, who
    respected the Society for its work with the poor in Buenos Aires,
    allowed it to hear confessions and perform marriages.

    An odd kind of schism, if it even was one. And now, without having
    changed its position one iota since 1988, the Society has been
    excommunicated and declared schismatic again. In a move that is
    particularly cruel for the faithful, the Vatican has explicitly
    removed the faculties for marriages and confessions granted by Pope
    Francis.

    Those who have watched the SocietyrCOs recent documentary Traditio about
    its apostolate, have in many cases been profoundly moved by the
    matter- of-fact way in which the SocietyrCOs priests go about the world,
    working themselves to the bone, doing what the Catholic Church has
    always done: teaching, baptising, absolving, marrying, burying, and
    praying for the souls of others.

    They acknowledge the authority of the Pope in all that is not sin. But
    they think that to wash their hands like Pilate, to stand back and let
    the ChurchrCOs pre-conciliar faith die out, would be a sin.

    Their sincerity is clear rCo and the harshness of Pope Leo
    unconscionable. He has excommunicated an entire loyal branch of the
    Church after steadfastly refusing to let them come to him to explain
    their position. Since his election they have tried to approach him for
    an audience; in vain. Instead, they were offered dialogue that
    explicitly excluded the consecration of bishops and the points of
    disagreement with the Second Vatican Council. But these were the only
    things that needed to be discussed.

    The Catholic faithful have been forced to uphold Vatican II for too
    long. It is time for the Church to allow Catholics to practise the old
    faith.

    The Pope meets with soccer players and pop stars; he speaks up for
    migrants and blesses a block of ice to show his love for the earth.
    But the children of his house are excommunicated, attacked as
    schismatic, starved of the traditional sacraments and punished for
    wanting what the Church has always given. The injustice of it cries
    out to heaven.



    Jane Stannus

    o...

    Messianic content harvesting noted.
    --- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From Dude@punditster@gmail.com to alt.buddha.short.fat.guy,alt.messianic on Thu Jul 2 14:51:41 2026
    From Newsgroup: alt.buddha.short.fat.guy

    On 7/2/2026 10:06 AM, dart200 wrote:
    On 7/2/26 8:27 AM, Julian wrote:
    On Wednesday, the largest traditional Catholic order of priests in the
    world, the Society of Saint Pius X, consecrated four bishops without a
    papal mandate.

    The VaticanrCOs response was swift and brutal. Today, it announced that
    not only have the four new bishops and the two consecrators been
    excommunicated but, shockingly, so will all the priests and faithful
    who continue to adhere to the SocietyrCOs work rCo an edict that will
    likely affect more than a million Catholics worldwide.

    This comes across as startlingly harsh, especially as the penalty of
    excommunication for consecrating bishops without a mandate has only
    existed since 1951. Pius XII established it to prevent the Chinese
    Communist party from appointing bishops loyal to Beijing. Ironically,
    today the CCP appoints bishops without a mandate for the explicit
    purpose of guaranteeing loyalty to communism and receives the
    VaticanrCOs automatic blessing. By contrast, over a million traditional
    Catholics have now been cut off from the Church for the crime of
    wanting to practise the faith as it was before the Second Vatican
    Council.

    The morning sun was shining when the consecration began at the
    seminary of Econe, Switzerland, in the presence of 16,600 adult
    faithful and too many children to count. But a burst of heavy rain
    struck just before Communion was to be distributed. Outside the
    ceremonial tent, the drenched crowds sang rCyAve MariasrCO and prayed the >> rosary in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, until the downpour
    lightened enough to continue (by the end all was sunshine, organ and
    pealing bells).

    It was a symbolic moment for the Society. It has particularly
    championed the Blessed Virgin since November, when the Vatican issued
    a document downplaying her role in salvation. The Society cited this
    document as influential in their decision to proceed with the
    consecrations.

    Excommunication is the most severe punishment the Catholic Church can
    carry out. But the Society insists that canon law makes provision for
    the extraordinary consecration of bishops at times of crisis.

    They uphold the PoperCOs authority as Vicar of Christ and pray for him
    at Mass. But they say that even the Pope (who, as the old adage has
    it, is the vicar of Christ, not His successor) has no right to cut off
    the faithful from the traditional Catholic liturgy, doctrine and
    sacraments.

    The traditional Mass is, with severe restrictions, available within
    the mainstream Church. But the Society of Saint Pius X and its
    affiliates are the only formal groups who offer exclusively
    traditional Catholic doctrine and liturgy as they were before the
    Second Vatican Council. Without bishops, their work will eventually
    end, and the faithful who want to practise Catholicism in its pre-
    conciliar form will have nowhere to turn.

    This would undoubtedly be the VaticanrCOs preferred outcome. What makes
    things awkward for Rome is that the Church has always claimed to be
    the guardian of an unchangeable truth. More can be learned about the
    truth, but what was already known can never be contradicted. For this
    reason Rome cannot condemn the SocietyrCOs members as heretics for
    practising the pre-conciliar Catholic faith (though, as Pope Leo
    admitted to journalists a couple of weeks ago, the changes of Vatican
    II are the fundamental issues at stake).

    This isnrCOt the first time the Society has been sanctioned by the
    Church. In 1988, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the Society of
    Saint Pius X, after engaging in endless, fruitless negotiations to
    obtain a bishop, realised he would soon die, and decided that the
    preservation of the pre-conciliar faith justified an extraordinary
    action. He consecrated four bishops, without jurisdiction, whose sole
    purpose was to provide for the sacramental life of the faithful.

    Excommunication followed and the Society was called schismatic, though
    it steadfastly denied the charge. Although the Society did not recant,
    Pope Benedict lifted the excommunication in 2008 and Pope Francis, who
    respected the Society for its work with the poor in Buenos Aires,
    allowed it to hear confessions and perform marriages.

    An odd kind of schism, if it even was one. And now, without having
    changed its position one iota since 1988, the Society has been
    excommunicated and declared schismatic again. In a move that is
    particularly cruel for the faithful, the Vatican has explicitly
    removed the faculties for marriages and confessions granted by Pope
    Francis.

    Those who have watched the SocietyrCOs recent documentary Traditio about
    its apostolate, have in many cases been profoundly moved by the
    matter- of-fact way in which the SocietyrCOs priests go about the world,
    working themselves to the bone, doing what the Catholic Church has
    always done: teaching, baptising, absolving, marrying, burying, and
    praying for the souls of others.

    They acknowledge the authority of the Pope in all that is not sin. But
    they think that to wash their hands like Pilate, to stand back and let
    the ChurchrCOs pre-conciliar faith die out, would be a sin.

    Their sincerity is clear rCo and the harshness of Pope Leo
    unconscionable. He has excommunicated an entire loyal branch of the
    Church after steadfastly refusing to let them come to him to explain
    their position. Since his election they have tried to approach him for
    an audience; in vain. Instead, they were offered dialogue that
    explicitly excluded the consecration of bishops and the points of
    disagreement with the Second Vatican Council. But these were the only
    things that needed to be discussed.

    The Catholic faithful have been forced to uphold Vatican II for too
    long. It is time for the Church to allow Catholics to practise the old
    faith.

    The Pope meets with soccer players and pop stars; he speaks up for
    migrants and blesses a block of ice to show his love for the earth.
    But the children of his house are excommunicated, attacked as
    schismatic, starved of the traditional sacraments and punished for
    wanting what the Church has always given. The injustice of it cries
    out to heaven.



    Jane Stannus

    one ought to ask the pope:

    is this really what jesus would do???

    Ask yourself, what Jesus would do?>

    --- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2
  • From dart200@user7160@newsgrouper.org.invalid to alt.buddha.short.fat.guy,alt.messianic on Thu Jul 2 16:02:43 2026
    From Newsgroup: alt.buddha.short.fat.guy

    On 7/2/26 10:59 AM, Julian wrote:
    On 02/07/2026 18:06, dart200 wrote:
    On 7/2/26 8:27 AM, Julian wrote:
    On Wednesday, the largest traditional Catholic order of priests in
    the world, the Society of Saint Pius X, consecrated four bishops
    without a papal mandate.

    The VaticanrCOs response was swift and brutal. Today, it announced that >>> not only have the four new bishops and the two consecrators been
    excommunicated but, shockingly, so will all the priests and faithful
    who continue to adhere to the SocietyrCOs work rCo an edict that will
    likely affect more than a million Catholics worldwide.

    This comes across as startlingly harsh, especially as the penalty of
    excommunication for consecrating bishops without a mandate has only
    existed since 1951. Pius XII established it to prevent the Chinese
    Communist party from appointing bishops loyal to Beijing. Ironically,
    today the CCP appoints bishops without a mandate for the explicit
    purpose of guaranteeing loyalty to communism and receives the
    VaticanrCOs automatic blessing. By contrast, over a million traditional >>> Catholics have now been cut off from the Church for the crime of
    wanting to practise the faith as it was before the Second Vatican
    Council.

    The morning sun was shining when the consecration began at the
    seminary of Econe, Switzerland, in the presence of 16,600 adult
    faithful and too many children to count. But a burst of heavy rain
    struck just before Communion was to be distributed. Outside the
    ceremonial tent, the drenched crowds sang rCyAve MariasrCO and prayed the >>> rosary in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, until the downpour
    lightened enough to continue (by the end all was sunshine, organ and
    pealing bells).

    It was a symbolic moment for the Society. It has particularly
    championed the Blessed Virgin since November, when the Vatican issued
    a document downplaying her role in salvation. The Society cited this
    document as influential in their decision to proceed with the
    consecrations.

    Excommunication is the most severe punishment the Catholic Church can
    carry out. But the Society insists that canon law makes provision for
    the extraordinary consecration of bishops at times of crisis.

    They uphold the PoperCOs authority as Vicar of Christ and pray for him
    at Mass. But they say that even the Pope (who, as the old adage has
    it, is the vicar of Christ, not His successor) has no right to cut
    off the faithful from the traditional Catholic liturgy, doctrine and
    sacraments.

    The traditional Mass is, with severe restrictions, available within
    the mainstream Church. But the Society of Saint Pius X and its
    affiliates are the only formal groups who offer exclusively
    traditional Catholic doctrine and liturgy as they were before the
    Second Vatican Council. Without bishops, their work will eventually
    end, and the faithful who want to practise Catholicism in its pre-
    conciliar form will have nowhere to turn.

    This would undoubtedly be the VaticanrCOs preferred outcome. What makes >>> things awkward for Rome is that the Church has always claimed to be
    the guardian of an unchangeable truth. More can be learned about the
    truth, but what was already known can never be contradicted. For this
    reason Rome cannot condemn the SocietyrCOs members as heretics for
    practising the pre-conciliar Catholic faith (though, as Pope Leo
    admitted to journalists a couple of weeks ago, the changes of Vatican
    II are the fundamental issues at stake).

    This isnrCOt the first time the Society has been sanctioned by the
    Church. In 1988, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the Society
    of Saint Pius X, after engaging in endless, fruitless negotiations to
    obtain a bishop, realised he would soon die, and decided that the
    preservation of the pre-conciliar faith justified an extraordinary
    action. He consecrated four bishops, without jurisdiction, whose sole
    purpose was to provide for the sacramental life of the faithful.

    Excommunication followed and the Society was called schismatic,
    though it steadfastly denied the charge. Although the Society did not
    recant, Pope Benedict lifted the excommunication in 2008 and Pope
    Francis, who respected the Society for its work with the poor in
    Buenos Aires, allowed it to hear confessions and perform marriages.

    An odd kind of schism, if it even was one. And now, without having
    changed its position one iota since 1988, the Society has been
    excommunicated and declared schismatic again. In a move that is
    particularly cruel for the faithful, the Vatican has explicitly
    removed the faculties for marriages and confessions granted by Pope
    Francis.

    Those who have watched the SocietyrCOs recent documentary Traditio
    about its apostolate, have in many cases been profoundly moved by the
    matter- of-fact way in which the SocietyrCOs priests go about the
    world, working themselves to the bone, doing what the Catholic Church
    has always done: teaching, baptising, absolving, marrying, burying,
    and praying for the souls of others.

    They acknowledge the authority of the Pope in all that is not sin.
    But they think that to wash their hands like Pilate, to stand back
    and let the ChurchrCOs pre-conciliar faith die out, would be a sin.

    Their sincerity is clear rCo and the harshness of Pope Leo
    unconscionable. He has excommunicated an entire loyal branch of the
    Church after steadfastly refusing to let them come to him to explain
    their position. Since his election they have tried to approach him
    for an audience; in vain. Instead, they were offered dialogue that
    explicitly excluded the consecration of bishops and the points of
    disagreement with the Second Vatican Council. But these were the only
    things that needed to be discussed.

    The Catholic faithful have been forced to uphold Vatican II for too
    long. It is time for the Church to allow Catholics to practise the
    old faith.

    The Pope meets with soccer players and pop stars; he speaks up for
    migrants and blesses a block of ice to show his love for the earth.
    But the children of his house are excommunicated, attacked as
    schismatic, starved of the traditional sacraments and punished for
    wanting what the Church has always given. The injustice of it cries
    out to heaven.



    Jane Stannus

    o...

    M...
    butthurt content snipping noted
    --
    why are we god?
    let's end war EfOa

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