THE FRATERNITY EXPLAINS TO THE POPE THE MEANING OF EPISCOPAL CONSECRATIONS: "WE WANT TO SEW THE ROBE OF CHRIST, NOT TEAR IT."

Just hours after the episcopal consecrations held on July 1st in Écône, Fr. Davide Pagliarani, Superior General of the Society of Saint Pius X, responded with a highly respectful letter to Pope Leo XIV explaining their meaning.

Fr. Pagliarani expressed his "deepest" gratitude for the Pope's paternal gesture in the letter and explained the Fraternity's sincere desire to serve the Church: "It seems to us that it is precisely our duty to do everything possible to sew the robe of Christ, torn by forces and pressures incompatible with an authentically Catholic spirit." The Fraternity does not see itself as one who tears, but as one who tries to repair.

The superior of the SSPX also invoked the case of thousands of souls who, he affirms, have recovered their faith and religious practice thanks to the apostolate of the Society, and asked the Pope to let his pastoral heart be "sensitive to this very particular situation." He closed the letter with a note of almost intimate hope: "For some time now I have been praying to Saint Rita for the present situation. I have seen in the election of an Augustinian Pope a sign of hope. I am certain that the saint will intercede. It is never too late."

Father Pagliarani noted that "One day, all the difficulties between the Holy See and the Society will be resolved. A gesture of understanding on the part of Your Holiness, far from harming unity, can only demonstrate to the world and to all Christians your concern for unity and your paternal kindness."

Below is the full text of the letter to the Pope, in which the SSPX emphasizes that the consecrations are not intended as a rupture but are an act that it believes will benefit and was necessary for the Catholic Church:

The Superior General

To His Holiness

Pope Leo XIV

Ecône, June 30, 2026

Most Holy Father:

I sincerely thank you for the letter you kindly sent me.

I was deeply moved by your paternal concern.

For a long time, I have long desired the opportunity to meet with Your Holiness to express to you personally our sincere desire to serve the Church. Unfortunately, that opportunity has not arisen.

I only ask that you consider the authenticity of this intention, which is in no way fictitious. Paradoxically, in the current circumstances, it seems to us a necessary duty to do everything possible to mend the garment of Christ, torn by forces and pressures incompatible with a truly Catholic spirit.  I simply ask that you consider the authenticity of this intention before making a decision regarding the Society of Saint Pius X. It is not too late.

Far be it from us to separate ourselves from the Roman Church; on the contrary, we wish to serve her through extraordinary means, as one helps a mother going through a serious difficulty who needs particular assistance that not everyone understands. But I am certain that the Holy Father could understand.

The Holy See has already demonstrated its ability to understand very complex situations and to grant the necessary time.

I humbly ask you to take the necessary time for this discernment.

If my words are not enough, I would ask you to reflect on two very simple facts. First, the Society was already declared schismatic in 1988, for reasons and under circumstances entirely analogous to the present ones; and yet, after so many years, we are speaking like a father to his son.  His Holiness paternally exhorts me to avoid a schism that, theoretically, has already occurred. Does Your Holiness not believe that this very attitude of yours, for which I am so grateful, constitutes proof that the Fraternity is neither schismatic nor hostile to the Church?

Secondly, some years ago, the Holy See entrusted two bishops of the Church with the mission of dialoguing with the Priestly Fraternity St. Pius X: Mons.  Vitus Huonder, then Bishop of Coira, today deceased, and Mons.  Athanasius Schneider, Auxiliary Bishop of Astana.  Both, after taking the necessary time to discern, recognized the deeply Catholic spirit of the Fraternity and testified to it publicly.

But, above all, allow me to address Your Holiness on behalf of the thousands of souls who have rediscovered the Catholic faith and religious practice through the apostolate of the Fraternity.  It is a fact that his predecessors took note of.  These souls have no greater desire than to attain salvation by this instrument which Providence has placed at their disposal.  They have suffered and they are sincere.  I am sure that his fatherly heart as a universal Shepherd will be sensitive to this particular situation.  One day, all difficulties between the Holy See and the Brotherhood will be resolved.  A gesture of understanding on the part of Your Holiness, far from harming unity, will only be able to manifest before the world and before all Christians his concern for unity and his fatherly kindness.

I leave all this to your consideration.  I renew my prayer for Your Holiness.

For a long time, even before his election, I have been entrusting the current situation to Santa Rita.  I saw in the election of an Augustinian Pope a sign of hope.  I am sure the Saint will intercede.  It's never too late.

I beseech Him to grant us His blessing.

I gladly take this opportunity to reiterate Your Holiness, very devout in the Lord.

Don Davide Pagliarani

THE POPE DIED

 At 7:35 a.m.

Pope Francis died this Monday at the age of 88, according to Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, Vatican Camerlengo.

April 21, 2025 10:03 AM

(InfoCatólica) Pope Francis died this Monday at the age of 88, according to Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, Vatican Camerlengo. The Holy See made the announcement at 9:52 a.m. with a statement:

"A short time ago, His Eminence Cardinal Farrell sadly announced the death of Pope Francis, with these words: 'Dear brothers and sisters, with profound sorrow I must announce the passing of our Holy Father Francis. At 7:35 a.m. this morning, the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the Father's house. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and his Church.' He taught us to live the values ​​of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially for the poorest and most marginalized. With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we entrust the soul of Pope Francis to the infinitely merciful love of the Triune God.

Francis, who left the hospital on March 28 after a long 37-day stay due to pneumonia, appeared in public for the last time yesterday, Sunday, in St. Peter's Square to give the traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing.

Sede vacante

From this moment on, the See is vacant, and will remain so until his successor is elected in the next conclave.

The procedure for confirming his death began with the traditional rite performed by the Camerlengo, who pronounced the Pope's baptismal name three times. In the absence of a response, his death was officially declared. As tradition the Fisherman's Ring, a symbol of papal authority, was destroyed in the presence of witnesses to prevent any misuse. Furthermore, the papal apartment has been sealed in accordance with current canonical regulations, and the formal process of organizing the funeral has begun.

The funeral ceremonies will follow the provisions revised in the second edition of the Ordo Exsequiarum Romani Pontificis, reforms initiated by Pope Francis himself during his pontificate. The body will lie in state in St. Peter's Basilica for three days so the faithful can pay their respects, abandoning the traditional raised coffin used in previous papal funerals.

Pope Francis will be buried in a single wooden coffin, breaking with the custom of three successive coffins of cypress, lead, and walnut used for the deaths of Popes. His wish, expressed during his lifetime, is to be buried in the Basilica of St. Mary Major, a place he visited every time he made an apostolic journey.

The requiem Mass will be presided over by the Dean of the College of Cardinals and is expected to be attended by political leaders, international dignitaries, and representatives of various religious denominations.

After the funeral, Novemdiales will be celebrated, nine consecutive days of Masses in St. Peter's Basilica. These celebrations, presided over by various cardinals, are intended to pray for the soul of the pontiff and spiritually prepare the Church for the upcoming conclave.

Role of the Camerlengo and Temporal Government of the Church

During the period of sede vacante, the College of Cardinals assumes responsibility for the temporal government of the Church, albeit with limited powers. The Camerlengo will be responsible for the temporal government of the Church, albeit with limited powers. The Camerlengo will be responsible for administering the ordinary affairs of the Vatican, managing day-to-day functions without making decisions that could compromise the authority of the next pontiff. No doctrinal decisions will be made or major appointments made until the new Pope is elected.

The prefects of the Vatican dicasteries automatically cease their functions upon the death of the pontiff, except for the Major Penitentiary, who will continue to serve to address matters related to the absolution of grave sins until the election of the new leader of the Catholic Church.

This concludes the note.

__________________________

Let us pray for the Pope.

______________________

ROME: FIVE CARDINALS ADDRESS "DUBIA" TO THE POPE

Cardinals Brandmüller, Burke, Zen, Sandoval, and Sarah submitted five questions, called dubia, on August 21, asking for clarification on questions linked to doctrinal development, the blessing of same-sex unions, the authority of the Synod on Synodality, the ordination of women, and sacramental absolution.

These dubia were signed by Cardinals Walter Brandmüller (94), President of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences; Raymond Burke (75), Prefect Emeritus of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura; Joseph Zen Ze-Kiun (90), Bishop Emeritus of Hong Kong; Juan Sandoval Íñiguez (90), Archbishop Emeritus of Guadalajara; and Robert Sarah (78), Prefect Emeritus of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

The Facts

In a “Notification to Christ’s Faithful (can.212 §3) Regarding Dubia Submitted to Pope Francis,” the cardinals explain that they had written a first set of “questions” that they sent to the Supreme Pontiff on July 10, 2023. The response was not late in coming, as it was dated July 11, the very next day.

However, this letter did not follow the typical dubium format. This type of question is posed in order to receive a “yes” or “no” response. But the Pope gave a detailed response that did not satisfy the five writers, as they found it too vague on all points. So they wrote a second version, more precise, expressly asking for a “yes” or a “no” answer to each point: “Having studied his letter which did not follow the practice of responsa ad dubia [responses to questions], we reformulated the dubia to elicit a clear response based on the perennial doctrine and discipline of the Church. By our letter of August 21, 2023, we submitted the reformulated dubia […] to the Roman Pontiff. Up to the present, we have not received a response to the reformulated dubia.”

The Initial Dubia and Their Reformulation

First dubium

The first dubium treated of the development of doctrine and the affirmation of it by bishops, asking if Divine Revelation “should be reinterpreted according to the cultural changes of our time and according to the new anthropological vision that these changes promote.” The cardinals emphasized that these changes could push the Church to teach things contrary to what she has always taught.

The Pope’s response indicated that the Church “matures in the understanding of what she herself has affirmed in her Magisterium.” But this did not satisfy the cardinals, since, as they stated, this “concerns essential, not secondary, questions for our salvation, like the confession of faith, subjective conditions for access to the sacraments, and observance of the moral law.”

So they reformulated their dubium: “is it possible for the Church today to teach doctrines contrary to those she has previously taught in matters of faith and morals, whether by the Pope ex cathedra, or in the definitions of an Ecumenical Council, or in the ordinary universal magisterium of the Bishops dispersed throughout the world (cf. Lumen Gentium 25)?”

Second dubium

The second dubium dealt with the blessing of same-sex unions. The cardinals emphasized the teaching of the Church on the creation of human nature as man and woman and of the order to multiply, (Gen. 1:27-28). The dubium initially asked if the Church could depart from this teaching and accept “as a ‘possible good’ objectively sinful situations, such as same-sex union.”

The response of the Pope said that to liken marriage to the blessing of same-sex couples would lead to confusion and therefore must be avoided. But the cardinals were concerned about the fact “that the blessing of same-sex couples might create confusion in any case […] in that homosexual acts would be presented practically as a good.”

So the dubium was reformulated: “Is it possible that in some circumstances a pastor could bless unions between homosexual persons, thus suggesting that homosexual behavior as such would not be contrary to God’s law and the person’s journey toward God?”

In line with this doubt, the cardinals asked if the teaching of the Church remains valid—namely, that “every sexual act outside of marriage, and in particular homosexual acts, constitutes an objectively grave sin against God’s law, regardless of the circumstances in which it takes place and the intention with which it is carried out.”

Third dubium

Treating of synodality, the third dubium initially asked “whether synodality can be the supreme regulative criterion of the permanent government of the Church without distorting her constitutive order willed by her Founder,” given that “the Synod of Bishops does not represent the College of Bishops but is merely a consultative organ of the Pope.”

The response of Pope Francis insisted that “synodality, as a style and dynamism, is an essential dimension of the life of the Church,” which includes all the lay faithful, but the cardinals then expressed their concern about the fact that “synodality” is presented “as if, in communion with the Pope, it represents the Supreme Authority of the Church.”

The cardinals’ reformulated dubium asks the question in this way: “Will the Synod of Bishops to be held in Rome, and which includes only a chosen representation of pastors and faithful, exercise, in the doctrinal or pastoral matters on which it will be called to express itself, the Supreme Authority of the Church, which belongs exclusively to the Roman Pontiff and, una cum capite suo, to the College of Bishops (cf. can. 336 C.I.C.)?”

Fourth dubium

The fourth dubium concerned the possible ordination of women. It asked “whether the teaching of St. John Paul II’s Apostolic Letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, which teaches as a truth to be definitively held the impossibility of conferring priestly ordination on women, is still valid” and if this teaching “is no longer subject to change nor to the free discussion of pastors or theologians.”

In their reformulated version of the dubium, the cardinals noted that the Pope had affirmed that Ordinatio Sacerdotalis must be definitively maintained and “that it is necessary to understand the priesthood, not in terms of power, but in terms of service.” But they voiced objections to his response, according to which “the question can still be further explored.”

“We are concerned that some may interpret this statement to mean that the matter has not yet been decided in a definitive manner,” they stated. Their reformulated dubium said: “Could the Church in the future have the faculty to confer priestly ordination on women, thus contradicting that the exclusive reservation of this sacrament to baptized males belongs to the very substance of the Sacrament of Orders, which the Church cannot change?”

Fifth dubium

The fifth dubium focused on sacramental absolution. The initial dubium referred to the insistence of Pope Francis on the “duty to absolve everyone and always, so that repentance would not be a necessary condition for sacramental absolution.” It asked if contrition is always necessary for the validity of confession, “so that the priest must postpone absolution when it is clear that this condition is not fulfilled.”

In the reformulated dubium, the cardinals explained that the Pope “confirmed the teaching of the Council of Trent according to which the validity of sacramental absolution requires the sinner’s repentance, which includes the resolve not to sin again.” They added, however: “Some might interpret Your answer as meaning that merely approaching confession is a sufficient condition for receiving absolution, inasmuch as it could implicitly include confession of sins and repentance.”

So they reformulated their dubium as follows: “Can a penitent who, while admitting a sin, refuses to make, in any way, the intention not to commit it again, validly receive sacramental absolution?”

The Vatican Publishes the Pope’s Response 

Likely annoyed by the publication of the “Notification to Christ’s Faithful” by the five cardinals, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith—certainly with the consent or at the request of the Pope—published the Pope’s July 11 letter of response to the five cardinals, which had not been intended to be made public. They had considered it a personal response of Pope Francis and that it was not for them to publish it. These recent incidents, occurring just before the opening of the Synod, are not likely seen with a kind eye at the Vatican. It risks stifling conversation in the hallways and in the Synod chamber. 

Sources: InfoCatolica/vatican.va/cath.ch–Fsspx.Actualités

ROME: A BILLBOARD CAMPAIGN FOR THE TRADITIONAL MASS

From Monday March 27, 2023 to Easter Sunday April 9, a billboard campaign in favor of the Tridentine Mass appears in Rome.

In a press release, those responsible for this campaign declare that they want to publicly demonstrate their “deep attachment to the traditional Mass at the very moment when it seems that its extinction is being programmed: out of love for the Pope, so that he may be paternally open to the understanding of these liturgical “peripheries” which for some months have no longer felt welcome in the Church, because they find in the traditional liturgy the full and complete expression of the Catholic faith in its entirety.”

The period chosen for this poster campaign is not by chance. Indeed, according to the German-language site Summorum Pontificum of January 13, 2023, and reposted by the German site katholisch.de and the Swiss agency cath.ch on January 26, a new Apostolic constitution would further limit the possibility of celebrating the Tridentine Mass.

This constitution might be published during Holy Week, on the occasion of the anniversary of the promulgation of the constitution Missale romanum of Paul VI (April 3, 1969) establishing the Novus Ordo Missæ. 

The organizers of this campaign belong to the Italian blogs Messainlatino and Campari & de Maistre, and to the associations National Coordination of Summorum Pontificum and San Michele Arcangelo.

In their statement, they quote Benedict XVI: “What was sacred for previous generations remains sacred and great for us too, and cannot suddenly be completely forbidden or even deemed harmful.”

And to add: “The growing hostility towards the traditional liturgy finds no justification either on the theological level or on the pastoral level. The communities that celebrate according to the Missal of 1962 are not rebels against the Church.

“On the contrary, blessed by a constant growth of the faithful and of priestly vocations, they constitute an example of unshakable perseverance in Catholic faith and unity, in a world increasingly insensitive to the Gospel, and in an ecclesial fabric increasingly subject to disintegrating thrusts.”

They insist, underlining the contradictory attitude of the Roman authorities: “In the Church today, where listening, welcoming, and inclusion inspire all pastoral action, and where ecclesial communion is to be built ‘with the synodal method,’ these people of ordinary faithful, of young families, of fervent priests, nourish the confident hope that their voices will not be stifled, but welcomed, listened to, and seriously considered.”

“Anyone who goes to the ‘Latin Mass’ is not a second-class believer, nor a deviant to be re-educated, nor a weight to be shed.”

This initiative has the merit of bringing the dispute to Rome, before the Pope and the Curia. But we must remember that the current Roman attitude has its source in the Council and its texts. Thus, on March 19, Cardinal Arthur Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, affirmed: “The theology of the Church has changed.… Previously, the priest represented all the people from a distance, but today it is not only the priest who celebrates the liturgy, but all the people.”

For the cardinal, the followers of the Traditional Mass are opponents of the Second Vatican Council, which is why it must be restricted, even abolished. And it is true that the Traditional Mass is opposed, by nature, to current deviations. This is why the defense of the Mass goes hand in hand with criticism of the Council.

(Source: Comité directeur de la campagne d’affichage – FSSPX.Actualités)

BISHOP SCHNEIDER: IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR A CATHOLIC BISHOP TO REMAIN SILENT BEFORE THIS SCANDAL

By INFOVATICANA | October 28, 2019

Syncretism and paganism are like poisons entering the veins of the Mystical Body of Christ, that’s what Athanasius Schneider, auxiliary Bishop of the diocese of Astana, published in an open letter on Saturday strongly condemning the use of the Pachamama statuettes in the Synod on the Amazon. He has asked all Catholics, bishops, priests and laity to offer acts of reparation, protest and correction for the use of these statuettes, which he has called a "new Golden Calf."

Below is the letter written by Bishop Schneider.

1. “You shall have no other gods before Me,” says the Lord God, as the first of the commandments (Ex 20:3). Delivered originally to Moses and the Hebrew people, this command remains valid for all people and all times, as God tells us: “You shall not carve idols for yourselves in the shape of anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the waters beneath the earth; you shall not bow down before them or worship them” (Ex 20:4-5). Our Lord Jesus Christ kept this commandment perfectly. When offered the kingdoms of the world if only he would bow to the devil, Jesus responded, “Begone, Satan! for it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve’” (Mt 4:10; Dt 6:13-14). The example of Christ therefore is of the utmost importance for all people who desire “the true God and eternal life”; as St. John the Apostle exhorts us: “Little children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 Jn 5:20-21).

In our day, this message has special importance, for syncretism and paganism are like poisons entering the veins of the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church. As a successor to the Apostles, entrusted with care for God’s flock, I cannot remain silent in the face of the blatant violation of God’s holy will and the disastrous consequences it will have upon individual souls, the Church as a whole, and indeed the entire human race. It is therefore with great love for the souls of my brothers and sisters that I write this message.

2. On October 4, 2019, on the eve of the Amazon Synod, a religious ceremony was held in the Vatican Gardens, in the presence of Pope Francis and of several bishops and cardinals, which was led partly by shamans and in which symbolic objects were used; namely, a wooden sculpture of an unclothed pregnant woman. These representations are known and belong to indigenous rituals of Amazonian tribes, and specifically to the worship of the so-called Mother Earth, the Pachamama.In the following days the wooden naked female figures were also venerated in St. Peter’s Basilica in front of the Tomb of St. Peter. Pope Francis also greeted two bishops carrying the Pachamama object on their shoulders processing it into the Synod Hall where it was set in a place of honor. Pachamama statues were also put on display in the church of Santa Maria in Traspontina.

In response to outcries from the Catholic faithful regarding these rites and the use of these statues, Vatican spokesmen and members of committees of the Amazon Synod downplayed or denied the evident religious syncretistic character of the statues.Their answers, however, were evasive and contradictory; they were acts of intellectual acrobatics and denials of obvious evidence.

The American visual media company “Getty Images” made an official press photograph of this ritual with this description: “Pope Francis and Cardinal Cardinal Cláudio Hummes, Archbishop Emeritus of São Paulo, President of the Pan-Amazonian Ecclesial Network (REPAM), stand in front of a statue representing Pachamama (Mother Earth).” Rev. Paulo Suess, a participant in the Amazon Synod, left no doubt as to the pagan character of the ceremonies with the wooden images in the Vatican Gardens and dared even to welcome pagan rites, saying: “Even if this was a pagan rite, it is nevertheless a pagan worship of God. One cannot dismiss paganism as nothing” (October 17, Vatican News interview). In an official statement, on October 21, the Pan-Amazonian Ecclesial Network (REPAM) condemned the heroic act of the gentlemen who had thrown the wooden images into the Tiber as an act of “religious intolerance.” They thereby unmasked the lies and tricks with which they denied the religious character of the venerated wooden images. Volunteers of the Carmelite Church Santa Maria in Traspontina, where the wooden statues were displayed, corroborated this statement, saying: “The [carved] mother that I brought from Brazil … that was in the procession, well, we brought it from Brazil. It was done by an indigenous artist, and we asked him for a piece of art that would symbolize all of that connection of Mother Earth, of women, the feminine aspect of God, that God is the one who protects and nourishes life,” she said, calling it both a symbol of “Mother Earth” and the “Pachamama.”

Objective sources note that the Pachamama is an object of veneration, a goddess to which some Bolivians sacrifice llamas, an earth deity worshipped by some Peruvians, rooted in pagan Incan beliefs and practices.

3. Catholics cannot accept any pagan worship, nor any syncretism between pagan beliefs and practices and those of the Catholic Church. The acts of worship of kindling a light, of bowing, of prostrating or profoundly bowing to the ground and dancing before an unclothed female statue, which represents neither Our Lady nor a canonized saint of the Church, violates the first Commandment of God: “You shall have no other gods before Me” and the explicit prohibition of God, who commands: “Beware lest you lift up your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and worship them and serve them, things which the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven” (Dt 4:19), and: “You shall make for yourselves no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall you set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the Lord your God” (Lev 26:1).

The Apostles prohibited even the slightest allusions or ambiguity in regard to acts of venerating idols: “And what agreement has the temple of God with idols?” (2 Cor, 6:15-16), and “Flee from idolatry.  The things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that you should have fellowship with devils. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: you cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils. Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?” (1 Cor 10:16, 21-22).

St. Paul, without doubt, would say to all who actively participated in the acts of veneration of Pachamama statues, which symbolize material or creatural things, these words: “But now, after that you have known God, or rather are known by God: how turn you again to the weak and needy elements, which you desire to serve again?” (Gal 4:9). The pagans, indeed, worshipped the elements as though they were living things. And observing the syncretistic or at least highly ambiguous religious acts in the Vatican’s Gardens, in St. Peter’s Basilica and in the church of Santa Maria in Traspontina, St. Paul would say: “They worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever” (Rom 1:25).

4. The uninterrupted tradition of the Church avoided the slightest ambiguities or collaborations with idolatrous acts. The explanations which were given by Vatican spokesmen and by persons connected with the Amazon Synod, in order to justify the religious veneration of the wooden figure of a pregnant naked woman, were very similar to the arguments given by the pagans in the time of the Fathers of the Church, as reported by St. Athanasius. St. Athanasius refuted the pseudo-arguments of the pagans, and his refutations apply fully to the justifications given by Vatican authorities. St. Athanasius said: “They will boast that they worship and serve, not mere stocks and stones and forms of men and irrational birds and creeping things and beasts, but the sun and moon and all the heavenly universe, and the earth, deifying thereby the creation” (Contra Gentiles, 21, 1-3) and: “They will combine all together, as constituting a single body, and will say that the whole is God” (Contra Gentiles, 28, 2). “Instead of the real and true God they deified things that were not, serving the creature rather than the Creator (see Rom. 1:25), thus involving themselves in foolishness and impiety” (Contra Gentiles, 47, 2).

The second-century apologist Athenagoras said about the veneration of material elements by pagans: “They deify the elements and their several parts, applying different names to them at different times. They say that Kronos is time, and Rhea the earth, and that she becomes pregnant by Kronos, and brings forth, whence she is regarded as the mother of all. Missing to discover the greatness of God, and not being able to rise on high with their reason (for they have no affinity for the heavenly place), they pine away among the forms of matter, and rooted to the earth, deify the changes of the elements” (Apol. 22).

The following words of the Second Council of Nicaea are fully applicable to all churchmen, who supported the above mentioned syncretistic religious acts in Rome: “Many pastors have destroyed my vine, they have defiled my portion. For they followed unholy men and trusting to their own frenzies they calumniated the holy Church, which Christ our God has espoused to himself, and they failed to distinguish the holy from the profane, asserting that the icons of our Lord and of his saints were no different from the wooden images of satanic idols.”

As established by the Second Council of Nicaea, the Church permits the veneration with exterior gestures of worship such as bowing, kissing and blessing, no other symbols, pictures, or statues but “the icons of our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ, that of our Lady the Theotokos, those of the venerable angels and those of all saintly people. Whenever these representations are contemplated, they will cause those who look at them to commemorate and love their prototype.”

5. Believers in the One True God have always worked to eliminate worship of false gods, and to remove their images from the midst of God’s holy people. When Hebrews bowed before the statue of the Golden Calf—encouraged and abetted by the high clergy—God condemned such acts. His servant Moses also condemned these acts of “welcoming and tolerance” towards the local indigenous divinities of those times and ground the statue to powder and scattered it on the water (see Ex. 32:20). Similarly, the Levites were commended for stopping all who worshipped the golden calf (Ex 32:20,29). Throughout the ages, true Catholics also have worked to overthrow the “powers of this present darkness” (Eph 6:12), and the veneration of images that represent them.

Amid the consternation and shock over the abomination perpetrated by the syncretistic religious acts in the Vatican, the entire Church and the world has witnessed a highly meritorious, courageous and praiseworthy act of some brave Christian gentlemen, who on October 21 expelled the wooden idolatrous statues from the Church of Santa Maria in Traspontina in Rome, and threw them into the Tiber. Like a new “Maccabees” they acted in the spirit of the holy wrath of Our Lord, who expelled the merchants from the temple of Jerusalem with a whip. The gestures of these Christian men will be recorded in the annals of Church history as a heroic act which brought glory to the Christian name, while the acts of high-ranking churchmen, on the contrary, who defiled the Christian name in Rome, will go down in history as cowardly and treacherous acts of ambiguity and syncretism. 

Pope St. Gregory the Great, in a letter to St. Aethelbert, the first Christian king of England, exhorts him to destroy idolatrous images: “Suppress the worship of idols; overthrow their buildings and shrines” (Bede, Ecclesiastical History, Book I).

St. Boniface, the Apostle of Germany, felled by his own hand an oak dedicated to the idol Thor or Donar, which was not only a religious, but also a symbol of the protection of soldiers, of vegetation and even of fertility of the indigenous culture of the Germanic tribes.

St. Vladimir, the first Christian prince in Kiev, went on to have the wooden idols he had erected, torn down and hacked to pieces. The wooden statue of the chief pagan God, Perun, he cast into the River Dnieper. This act of St. Vladimir is very reminiscent of the heroic act of those Christian gentlemen, who on October 21, 2019, threw the wooden statues of the pagan indigenous culture of Amazonian tribes into the Tiber River.

If the actions of Moses, of Our Lord Jesus Christ in violently expelling the merchants from the Temple, of St. Boniface and of St. Vladimir had taken place in our times, the Vatican spokesmen would surely have condemned them as acts of religious and cultural intolerance and theft.

6. The sentence of the Abu Dhabi document, which reads: “The pluralism and the diversity of religions, color, sex, race and language are willed by God in His wisdom” found its practical realization in the Vatican ceremonies of the veneration of wooden statues, which represent pagan divinities or indigenous cultural symbols of fertility. It was the logical practical consequence of the Abu Dhabi statement.

7. In view of the requirements of the authentic worship and adoration of the One True God, the Most Blessed Trinity, and Christ Our Savior, in virtue of my ordination as a Catholic bishop and successor to the Apostles, and in true fidelity and love for the Roman Pontiff, the Successor of Peter, and for his task to preside over the “Cathedra of the truth” (cathedra veritatis), I condemn the veneration of the pagan symbol of Pachamama in the Vatican Gardens, in St. Peter’s basilica, and in the Roman church of Santa Maria in Traspontina.

It would be good for all true Catholics, first and foremost bishops and then also priests and lay faithful, to form a worldwide chain of prayers and acts of reparation for the abomination of the veneration of wooden idols perpetrated in Rome during the Amazon Synod. Faced with such an evident scandal, it is impossible that a Catholic bishop would remain silent, it would be unworthy of a successor of the Apostles. The first in the Church who should condemn such acts and do reparation is Pope Francis.

The honest and Christian reaction to the dance around the Pachamama, the new Golden Calf, in the Vatican should consist in a dignified protest, a correction of this error, and above all in acts of reparation.

With tears in one’s eyes and with sincere sorrow in the heart, one should offer to God prayers of intercession and reparation for the eternal salvation of the soul of Pope Francis, the Vicar of Christ on earth, and the salvation of those Catholic priests and faithful who perpetrated such acts of worship, which are forbidden by Divine Revelation.

One could propose for this aim the following prayer:

“Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, receive through the hands of the Immaculate Mother of God and Ever Virgin Mary from our contrite heart a sincere act of reparation for the acts of worship of wooden idols and symbols, which occurred in Rome, the Eternal City and the heart of the Catholic world, during the Synod for the Amazon. Pour out in the heart of Our Holy Father Pope Francis, of the Cardinals, of the Bishops, of the priests and lay faithful, your Spirit, who will expel the darkness of the minds, so that they might recognize the impiety of such acts, which offended your Divine majesty and offer to you public and private acts of reparation.

Pour out in all members of the Church the light of the fulness and beauty of the Catholic Faith. Enkindle in them the burning zeal of bringing the salvation of Jesus Christ, true God and true man, to all men, especially to the people in the Amazon region, who still are enslaved in the service of feeble material and perishable things, as they are the deaf and mute symbols and idols of “mother earth”, to all people and especially to the people of the Amazonian tribes, who do not have the liberty of the children of God, and who do not have the unspeakable happiness to know Jesus Christ and to have in Him part in the life of your Divine nature.

Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you the one true God, besides Whom there is no other god and no salvation, have mercy on your Church. Look especially upon the tears and the contrite and humble sighs of the little ones in the Church, look upon the tears and prayers of the little children, of the adolescents, of young men and young women, of the fathers and mothers of family and also of the true Christian heroes, who in their zeal for your glory and in their love for Mother Church threw in the water the symbols of abomination which defiled her. Have mercy on us: spare us, O Lord, parce Domine, parce Domine! Have mercy on us: Kyrie eleison!”

____________________________

Pope Francis Grants Jurisdiction to Celebrate Marriages to the Priests of the Society of Saint Pius X

Thus allaying any concerns on the part of the faithful.

April 4, 2017. Cardinal Müller, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, together with the secretary Bishop Guido Pozzo, issued a letter today addressed to the bishops and cardinals, in which it is informed the decision of Pope Francis to grant to the Society of Saint Pius X, founded by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the necessary faculties to celebrate marriages with canonical regularity, which until now were celebrated under the right of necessity.

The document begins by recalling that the priests of the SSPX already have ordinary jurisdiction, granted by Pope Francis, to listen to confessions, and it continues to make known the new disposition of the Roman Pontiff that "following a proposal by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, has decided to authorize Local Ordinaries the possibility to grant faculties for the celebration of marriages of faithful who follow the pastoral activity of the Society, according to the following provisions." These establish that "insofar as possible, the Local Ordinary is to grant the delegation to assist at the marriage to a priest of the Diocese (or in any event, to a fully regular priest), such that the priest may receive the consent of the parties during the marriage rite, followed, in keeping with the liturgy of the Vetus ordo, by the celebration of Mass, which may be celebrated by a priest of the Society." Adding that "Where the above is not possible, or if there are no priests in the Diocese able to receive the consent of the parties, the Ordinary may grant the necessary faculties to the priest of the Society who is also to celebrate the Holy Mass, reminding him of the duty to forward the relevant documents to the Diocesan Curia as soon as possible.”

Next, the document is addressed to the Prelates of the Episcopal Conferences, stating that “This Dicastery relies on your cooperation so that any uneasiness of conscience on the part of the faithful who adhere to the Society of St. Pius X as well as any uncertainty regarding the validity of the sacrament of marriage may be alleviated, and at the same time that the process towards full institutional regularization may be facilitated.”

The document ends by declaring that "The Sovereign Pontiff Francis, at the Audience granted to the undersigned Cardinal President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei on 24 March 2017, confirmed his approval of the present letter and ordered its publication.

It is important to consider that the Catholic Church only grants ordinary jurisdiction (to give Confession or celebrate marriages) to those who belong to the body of the Church. If this ordinary jurisdiction is granted, it is necessarily recognized that these priests are Catholic and are not in schism. An excommunicated or schismatic priest could acquit a sinner only in case someone was in danger of death. It would be a case in which the Church, by the state of necessity of the faithful, grants a jurisdiction that would not be ordinary, but this would not be the case of the priests of the Society of Saint Pius X who can already perform these sacraments with an ordinary jurisdiction without having to recourse to the right of necessity.

The official document was published today on the Vatican website: http://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/es/bollettino/pubblico/2017/04/04/ecc.html

Sources: Vatican.va and Adelante la Fe

Believe It or Not!

(Voto Católico). Last Monday was the fourth year anniversary of the election of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as Pope, and on this date Cardinal Angelo Comastri, archpriest of the Basilica of St. Peter, gave permission to the Anglican Protestant community of Rome to celebrate their vespers in the Basilica (See: http://www.catholicityblog.com/2017/03/the-vatican-has-been-desecrated-with.html).

As an act of reparation, a group of young people from the Associazone Madonna di Fatima made a procession with the image of Our Lady of Fatima in St. Peter's Square. Although on the way to the square, the demonstrators were carrying banners with messages like "outside the Church there is no salvation", and handing out leaflets in which it was remembered that the Doctrine of the Church condemns the participation in the cult of the heretics, everyone left the things they were carrying before entering the Vatican. Nevertheless, while they were walking into St. Peter’s Square, they were approached by the police, and they were asked to leave the place.

At the Anglican Vespers was present Bishop Arthur Roche, recently appointed by Pope Francis as head of a commission to review the document of John Paul II, Liturgiam Authenticam, on the translations of the liturgical texts. His presence generated suspicions among the Vaticanists, since it is rumored that the real purpose of this commission, is in fact a new reform of the mass to be able to “concelebrate” it with Protestant ministers, and to achieve the "intercommunion" that has been hinted at in several speeches of Pope Francis.

Video:

The Vatican Has Been Desecrated with the Anglican Liturgy

PREPARING A FUTURE SYNCRETISTIC AND COMMON LITURGY?

Just as CATOLICIDAD announced it on February 10 (2017), the desecration of the Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican was carried out with the Anglican liturgy. Here are some pictures of the event, including the poster announcing this act – not sufficiently advertised - that has been perpetrated according to the 17th Century Book of Common Prayer of the Church of England. Although there had already been acts of false ecumenism in Anglican temples (see links below), something like this had never been done in the most representative temple of catholicity.

[Secretum Meum Mihi] Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments, and now head of a commission created by Francis with the aim of "relaxing the rules of translation of liturgical texts", but which in reality would have the mission of "reforming the Mass in such a way that it can be celebrated with Christians of other confessions", preaches about St. Gregory in the first Anglican Vespers celebrated on March, 13, 2017 in the Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican (Image provided by Sally Axworthy via Twitter).

A GROUP OF FAITHFUL CARRY OUT AN ACT OF REPARATION IN SAINT PETER’S SQUARE AT THE SAME TIME OF THE DESECRATION

As Catholicvs website points out: It is worth remembering the condemnation of the Catholic Church of false ecumenism, of Communicatio in sacris and of Anglicans, who don’t have the apostolic succession. In this regard, there have been numerous documents of the Magisterium, of which I have listed a number - in total there are almost 50 magisterial documents - since the Pontificate of Blessed Pius IX:

Blessed Pius IX: Letter to the English Bishops on the Unity of Christians (1864)

Blessed Pius IX: Instruction to the Anglican tractarians (puseyites) on the true religious unity (1865)

Blessed Pius IX: Apostolic Letter Iam Vos Omnes (1868)

Pope Leo XIII: Encyclical Satis Cognitum (1896)

Pope Leo XIII: Bula Apostolicae curae (1896)

Pope Pius XI: Encyclical Mortalium animos (1928)

Venerable Pius XII: Monitum Cum Compertum of the Holy Office (1948)

Venerable Pius XII: Instruction De motione oecumenica (1949)

Sources: Catholicvs, Secretum Meum Mihi y otras. Usuarios de Twitter @ctrlamb / @robmerchant / @AnglicanCentre / @UKinHolySee  

BACKGROUND: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RNfBedkJr8 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYmwvLOoQRU

THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION IN ROME

A SACRILEGIOUS ACT IN THE VATICAN

The Council of Florence decrees that the Church: “Firmly believes, professes, and proclaims that those not living within the Catholic Church, not only pagans, but also Jews and heretics and schismatics cannot become participants in eternal life, but will depart “into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels” [Matt. 25:41], unless before the end of life the same have been added to the flock*; and that the unity of the ecclesiastical body is so strong that only to those remaining in it are the sacraments of the Church of benefit for salvation, and do fastings, almsgiving, and other functions of piety and exercises of Christian service produce eternal reward, and that no one, whatever almsgiving he has practiced, even if he has shed blood for the name of Christ, can be saved, unless he has remained in the bosom and unity of the Catholic Church.” (Denz 714).

Before discussing this news, we have waited a sufficient period of time, as it is our custom in such cases, waiting for any clarification on the part of the Holy See, or a papal censure of the terrible incidents that took place in the Vatican, which we will mention here. Unfortunately, neither one thing nor the other has happened. Only the director of the Catholic Information Center of the Diocese of Helsinki (Finland) has issued a release in which he reminds that only Catholics who are in a state of grace may receive the Catholic Sacrament of the Eucharist, he also states that “not every person distributing the Holy Eucharist knows every point of teaching and practice of the Church so well that mistakes won’t happen.”, referring to the events.

So, what happened in the Vatican?

Some Catholic priests offered Holy Communion to a group of Finnish Lutherans at a Mass held in the Vatican, following a meeting of the group with Pope Francis. After the personal audience with the Pope, the delegation was present at a celebration of the Catholic Mass. According to the Lutheran “bishop” (let us remember that they are not really bishops, but ordinary people, since they do not have Apostolic Succession), Samuel Salmi, who was present at the time of Communion, the non-Catholics placed their right hands on their left shoulders, a traditional way of indicating that they did not meet the requirements to receive the Eucharist (i.e. being Catholic, having Catholic Faith in the Eucharist, and being in a state of sanctifying grace after having gone to Confession). However, the priest or priests that were celebrating the Mass insisted on giving them Communion, and so the Lutherans agreed.

Lutheran delegation in Rome headed by Samuel Salmi 

This means that the Catholic priests forced the Body of Christ on those who not only do not belong to the Catholic Church, but also deny the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist as well as transubstantiation. Furthermore, they were exempted from a requirement that every Catholic must comply with in order to receive Communion (otherwise, it would be a sacrilege): the state of sanctifying grace maintained since the last good Confession, and Lutherans neither believe in nor practice the Sacrament of Penance.

The Lutheran “bishop” Samuel Salmi told the newspaper Kotimaa 24 that at the insistence of the celebrant or celebrants (he does not specify how many they were): “I myself accepted it [Holy Communion]” and considers the fact, just like Protestants, as an “ecumenical progress”. Salmi was visiting the Vatican as the head of a delegation that included a youth choir that was to perform there (see picture above).

The Catholic Ministers Administer the Sacraments Legally Only to Catholic Faithful

The Catholic Church teaches that only to those remaining in it are the sacraments of the Church of benefit for salvation (Council of Florence. Denz. 714). In addition, it is necessary to have faith in what is being received, and Lutherans do not believe that Christ is truly present with His body, His blood, His soul, and His divinity in the consecrated Host, since they deny transubstantiation. Why are they invited to receive something in which they do not believe and to commit such a sacrilegious act? All of the above added to the fact that they had not received the Sacrament of Penance before, in which they do not believe either. This caused the Abomination of Desolation at the very heart of the Church.

They cannot use, in an attempt to justify what has happened, the crack that unfortunately opened during the pontificate of Pope Paul VI, which was a disposition only to be used in “extraordinary” cases (applicable only to a few non-Catholics, mainly Orthodox, who do believe in the real presence of Jesus Christ, and under very specific and precise conditions), that also contravenes what was established in the Council of Florence and everything done and said by the Church for the past 2,000 years. This disposition was wisely rejected mainly by the very Orthodox (non-Catholics). Every door open enough to allow the entrance of error ends up opening completely, as is now the case. It is the inevitable consequence of error.

Nor can they invoke the principle of one faith, because Lutherans do not believe in the Real Presence to start with, and even if they did it could still be applicable unto them what was stated by the Council of Trent: “lf any one saith, that faith alone is a sufficient preparation for receiving the sacrament of the most holy Eucharist; let him be anathema.”

In that same Council we are reminded that: “No one, conscious to himself of mortal sin, how contrite soever he may seem to himself, ought to approach to the sacred Eucharist without previous Sacramental Confession.” Otherwise they would be receiving Him “unworthily, and so unto death and condemnation.” And “if any one shall presume to teach, preach, or obstinately to assert, or even in public disputation to defend the contrary, he shall be thereupon excommunicated.” In fact, the Sacred Council is only reiterating the doctrine established in the Word of God, which was duly explained by Saint Paul. In the First Letter to the Corinthians we read: “Therefore, whosoever shall eat this bread, or drink the chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and of the blood of the Lord… For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh judgment to himself, not discerning the body of the Lord.” (11: 27-29)

Therefore, if Lutherans do not believe in the Sacrament of Penance, they were exempted from a law that has been imposed upon everyone who wishes to receive Communion. Or are they going to say that a non-Catholic is exempted from what it is demanded of a Catholic? If that were the case, then the condition of non-Catholic would be better, and that is completely absurd. Furthermore, the Council of Trent teaches dogmatically the following: “If any one denieth, either that sacramental confession was instituted, or is necessary to salvation, of divine right… let him be anathema.” (Denz. 916). And that “If any one saith, that, in the sacrament of Penance, it is not necessary, of divine right, for the remission of sins, to confess ALL and SINGULAR the mortal sins, which after due and diligent previous meditation are remembered, even those (mortal sins) which are secret… as also the circumstances which change the species of a sin; let him be anathema.” (Denz. 917).

More than a week has gone by, and the Holy See has remained silent about this most grievous sacrilege committed at the very heart of the Church, and it has not disciplined the person/persons who encouraged it either. Unbelievable! The world ought to have been outraged in the face of such a barbaric desecration of the Body of Christ handed over sacrilegiously, however, other than the statements provided by the Diocese of Helsinki, there was no official comment and no one was reprimanded or severely sanctioned. Why!?

The ingenuous apology from the Diocese of Helsinki claiming that “Not every person distributing the Holy Eucharist knows every point of teaching and practice of the Church so well that mistakes won’t happen”, is ridiculous and it does not excuse anything.

Father Amorth was certainly right in saying that: “The smoke of Satan has entered everywhere. Everywhere! Perhaps we were excluded from the audience with the Pope because they were afraid that such a large number of exorcists might succeed in chasing out the legions.” (Click HERE).

Indeed, there may not be a great substantial difference between this “present” and the one that Judas gave to the Supreme Pontiffs; a gift that dishonored both grantor and receiver. In the case of sacrilegious Communion, the grantors made the receptors eat judgment to themselves, who in turn accepted the gift without believing in it and knowing that they were unworthy of receiving it, as they themselves initially recognized it.

This whole situation serves as a reminder of the important words of Jesus Christ: “But yet the Son of man, when he cometh, shall he find, think you, faith on earth?” (Luke 18:8)

Forgive us for these offenses and sacrilegious acts, and come soon, Lord!

*Note: It should be recalled that there are some extraordinary cases (invincible ignorance) of those who belong to the soul of the Church and could attain salvation through her (for more information on this topic and what the doctrine of the Church teaches about this subject, click HERE)

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Source of information: Blog CATOLICIDAD http://www.catolicidad.com/2016/01/la-abominacion-de-la-desolacion-en-roma.html Translated from Spanish by: Fabiola Lozano.