Arguing Awry Kyrie Eleison Number CDXV (415)-Bishop Williamson

Arguing Awry Should Menzingen ask Rome for recognition? No! How can apostates grant such a petition? In the latest issue of the Society of St Pius X’s internal publication (mainly for Society priests), “Cor Unum,” the Superior General publishes arguments to defend and justify his relentless pursuit of the SSPX’s incorporation into the mainstream Church. He argues that the Society is right to be talking to today’s Roman officials. He presents basically two arguments. These need to be examined if they are not to continue creating confusion. The first of the two arguments runs as follows: The Catholic Church, as the Immaculate Bride of Christ, is much more than just its corrupt officials, because it is a whole of which these officials are merely a part. But the Catholic Society of St Pius X must remain in contact with the Catholic Church. Therefore it must maintain contact, and continue to negotiate, with the corrupt officials. The argument is easy to refute, as soon as one brings into view the Faith. Indeed Catholics must draw from the Immaculate Bride of Christ whatever they need to get to Heaven, but it is never from the corruption of the corrupt Church officials that they will be able to draw their spiritual life. And if these officials are so corrupt in the Faith that contact with them positively endangers that faith of Catholics which is the very basis of Catholics’ spiritual life, then Catholics must positively avoid such officials. Now the neo-modernism of today’s Roman officials is highly corrupt and corrupting, all the more objectively dangerous for its being more or less, on their part, subjectively innocent. Therefore Catholics wishing to keep the faith must stay well away from these Romans. “Cor Unum” argues as though neo-modernists present no danger to the Faith! Archbishop Lefebvre drew the correct conclusion. When in the spring of 1988 he did everything he could have done (even, one may say, more than he should have done) to get the Roman officials to do their duty to look after Catholic Tradition, and even after over 10 years of the Archbishop’s efforts, they still refused, showing that, far from wanting to look after Tradition, they merely wanted to absorb it into their Newchurch, then the Archbishop concluded thay they were so corrupt in the Faith that he would have nothing more to do with them until they professed once more the Faith of the great anti-liberal papal documents, such as the Syllabus, Pascendi, and Quas Primas. For indeed the Faith does not exist for the appointed Church officials, but they exist for the Faith. So if their fruits demonstrate beyond any doubt that they are destroying the Faith, then, to defend the Faith, not only should the Society not be talking to the Conciliar officials, it should, while observing all charity and respect, be fleeing them like the plague, for fear of itself being infected by their dangerously infectious Conciliar errors, unless and until, exactly as Archbishop Lefebvre sa id, they show that they are quitting their Conciliarism and coming back to true Catholic doctrine. The second argument is that Rome’s granting of bishops to visit the Society’s seminaries (including Écône) is proof of Rome’s “benevolence” towards the Society, because Rome is “at a loss how to deal with the Society.” And once more a swallow here and there is taken to be signifying the summer of Rome’s conversion. The naivete is breathtaking. Rome knows exactly how to deal with the Society: send Conciliar bishops into Society seminaries to show its future priests how nice the Conciliar churchmen are. Then eventually the Society will just flow into the Newchurch. The SSPX has no business to be asking for anything whatsoever from these Roman officials, appointees perhaps, apostates certainly. And if it gives them to think that, objectively and collectively, they are anything other than apostates, it will be “like to them, a liar” (cf. Jn. VIII, 55). Kyrie eleison. Español Argumentos Falsos ¿Debería Menzingen pedir a Roma el reconocimiento? ¡No! ¿Cómo pueden apóstatas brindar tal otorgamiento? En el último número de la publicación interna de la Fraternidad San Pío X (principalmente para los sacerdotes de la Fraternidad) “Cor Unum”, el Superior General publica argumentos para defender y justificar su implacable prosecución de la incorporación de la FSPX a la Iglesia de la corriente principal. Él argumenta que la Fraternidad está en lo correcto en hablar con los oficiales Romanos de hoy en día. Él presenta básicamente dos argumentos. Éstos necesitan ser examinados, sino van a continuar creando confusión. El primero de los dos argumentos apeligra como sigue: La Iglesia católica, siendo la Esposa Inmaculada de Cristo, es mucho más que simplemente sus corruptos oficiales, porque es un todo del cual estos oficiales son meramente una parte. Pero la Católica Fraternidad San Pío X necesita permanecer en contacto con la Iglesia católica, fuente de su vida espiritual. Por consiguiente debe mantener contacto y continuar negociando con los corruptos oficiales. Ciertamente los Católicos deben procurarse de la Esposa Inmaculada de Cristo todolo que precisan para llegar al Cielo, pero nunca de la corrupción de los corruptos oficiales de Iglesia podrán ellos procurarse su vida espiritual. Y si estos oficiales son tan corruptos en la Fe que el contacto con ellos pone categóricamente en peligro esa fe de los Católicos la cual es la base misma de la vida espiritual de los Católicos, entonces los Católicos deben categóricamente evitar tales oficiales. Ahora bien, el neo-modernismo de los oficiales Romanos de hoy en día es altamente corrupto y corruptor, con tanta más razón objetivamente peligroso por ser, más o menos, de parte de ellos, subjetivamente inocente. Por consiguiente, los Católicos que desean mantener la fe deben permanecer bien alejados de estos Romanos. ¡“Cor Unum” argumenta como si los neo-modernistas no presentan problema a la Fe! Monseñor Lefeb vre sac ó la conclusión correcta. Cuando en la primavera de 1988 él hizo todo lo que él pudo haber hecho (y aún, uno puede decir, más de lo que él debiera haber hecho) para conseguir que los oficiales Romanos cumplieran con su deber de cuidar a la Tradición católica y, que aún luego de más de 10 años de duración de los esfuerzos de Monseñor, ellos todavía se negaban, demostrando con eso que lejos de querer cuidar a la Tradición querían meramente absorberla en su Neo-Iglesia, entonces Monseñor concluyó que ellos estaban tan corrompidos en la Fe que él no quería saber más nada de ellos hasta que ellos profesaran una vez más la Fe de los grandes documentos papales anti-liberales tales como Syllabus, Pascendi y Quas Primas. Pues ciertamente la Fe no existe para los oficiales designados en la Iglesia, sino que ellos existen para la Fe. Así que si sus frutos demuestran más allá de toda duda que ellos están destruyendo la Fe, entonces, para defender la Fe no solamente debería la Fraternidad no estar hablando con los oficiales Conciliares sino que debería, con todo respeto y caridad, estar huyendo de ellos como de la plaga, por miedo a ser infectada ella misma con los peligrosísimos errores infecciosos Conciliares, a menos que, y hasta que, exactamente como Monseñor Lefebvre dijo, ellos demuestren que han terminado con su Conciliarismo y están retornando a la verdadera doctrina Católica. El segundo argumento es que la concesión por parte de Roma de obispos que visitan los seminarios de la Fraternidad (incluyendo Écône) es prueba de la “benevolencia” de Roma hacia la Fraternidad, porque Roma hasta ahora “no sabe como tiene que tratar con la Fraternidad”. Y, una vez más, una golondrina aquí y otra allá se toman como significando el verano de la conversión de Roma. La candidez es pasmosa. Roma conoce exactamente como tratar con la Fraternidad: enviar obispos Conciliares dentro de sus seminarios de ella para mostrar a sus futuros sacerdotes cuan agradables son los hombres de la Neo-Iglesia Conciliar. Entonces, sin problema, la Fraternidad fluirá eventualmente dentro de la Neo-Iglesia. La FSPX no tiene ningún derecho a pedir nada de lo que sea a estos oficiales Romanos, que tienen la autoridad tal vez, pero son apóstatas ciertamente. Y si les permite pensar que, objetivamente y colectivamente, ellos son cualquier otra cosa que no sea apóstatas, será como ellos “mentirosa” (cf. Jn.VIII,55). Kyrie eleison.

Eleison Comments CXII: Russia's Conversion

Eleison Comments CXII: Russia's Conversion

NOSSA SENHORA DE FÁTIMA, ROGAI POR NOS!

A remarkable yet possible plan of Heaven for today's world can be guessed at, if Orthodox Christianity is reviving within Russia in the manner described to me a few days ago in London by a Russian. His description corresponds to the impression brought away from Russia by an American friend visiting St Petersburg a few years ago - the average Russian has distinctly more spiritual substance in him then has the average spiritually wasted Westerner. Does this connect with Our Lady of Fatima...?

The Russian in London told me that the Orthodox Church in Russia is following rather than leading a revival of Orthodoxy amongst the people. Attendance at the Orthodox liturgy has increased by half over the last two years, and now 80% of Russians are at least calling themselves "Orthodox", i.e. believers. New parishes are springing up everywhere. Bibles are snatched up as soon as they come on sale. Religious literature is flourishing, whilst atheistic propaganda is dying. "Holy Russia" is rising from the grave in which Communism from 1917 to 1989 strove to bury it.

For when the Communist structures of the Soviet "empire of evil" (Pres. Reagan) collapsed in 1989, the Russians turned for an ideology to replace Communism not to Western Liberalism but to their national and religious roots in Russian Orthodoxy. What indeed had the decadent West had to offer to Russia's new needs in the 1990's ? In economics, the plundering of their wealth by capitalist vultures; in politics, the still on-going encirclement of their frontiers to ensure the United States' permanent global hegemony by the construction of a ring of military bases which are one, if not the real, reason for the disastrous occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan never to come to an end; in religion, the attempted push eastwards of Conciliar ecumenism, with which apparently the Russian churchmen want nothing to do - on the contrary, they are aware of the Traditional Catholic movement, and support it.

However, let us be under no illusion: Russian Orthodoxy welds together religion and patriotism in a not wholly godly mixture, and Orthodoxy is still schismatic by refusing the Papal Supremacy, and heretical by refusing a number of dogmas, so Russians do need to be converted to the truly Universal or Catholic Church. But if Our Lady of Fatima has singled out their country for the Consecration to her Heart, may it not be, not because the Russians are still wicked Communists but because the Russian people's huge sufferings from their 70 Babylonian years of Communist captivity are calling forth from the always religious depths of "Holy Russia" an upsurge of spiritual vitality which could save the true Church, presently wilting in the West, where Church Authority may still have large numbers but it has little Faith, whilst the Traditional remnant has the true Faith but little by way of numbers and less by way of Authority ?  God knows how the Western Church also needs conversion !

May it then be Russia's smashing of the encirclement in a Third World War leading to its occupation of Europe, which will at last drive the Latin Pope to consecrate Russia to Our Lady's Heart, as she has so long been asking for in vain?  Will at that moment the Russians' renewed religious vigor save our languishing Catholic Authority and Tradition, whose Truth will in turn cleanse their errors ?  If so, then God will once again have "concluded all in unbelief, that He may have mercy on all...How incomprehensible are His judgments, and how unsearchable His ways... To Him be glory for ever" (Rom. XI, 32...36). 

Catholics, mainstream and of Tradition, pray your hearts out for the Consecration of Russia to the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of the Mother of God, or "Theotokos" as she is known in the Eastern Church.

                             
Kyrie eleison.