A senior Vatican official charged with overseeing efforts to reconcile the Society of St. Pius X with the Church has offered detailed instructions on how reconciliation with Rome could take place in a letter to the society’s leadership and priests.
However, subsequent statements from the SSPX’s general superior appear to show that the advice has gone unheeded.
In a letter sent during Advent, Archbishop J. Augustine Di Noia pinpointed areas of concern, offered detailed advice and said hope for reconciliation after three years of talks will remain strong if Vatican instruction is heeded.
In his eight-page letter, sent in a personal rather than official capacity, the vice president of the "Ecclesia Dei" Commission delegated to oversee the discussion with the traditionalist society began by criticizing the language used in three recent public statements by the society’s heads.
One included a sermon given on the feast of All Saints last year in which the SSPX’s general superior, Bishop Bernard Fellay, criticized the Vatican for allegedly sending the society mixed signals about Pope Benedict XVI’s wishes.
Archbishop Di Noia took issue with the "tone and content" of these interventions and criticized the leaders for using language which appeared to reject key provisions that were still under study. Despite the talks offering a "fruitful" airing of views, the American Dominican said he had come to the "sobering realization" that the terms of disagreement with the SSPX concerning some contentious elements of the Second Vatican Council had remained "in effect, unchanged."
He noted that the Holy See has "consistently maintained" that the documents of the Council must be interpreted in the light of Tradition and the magisterium, while the traditionalist society had insisted that "certain teachings of the Council are erroneous and are thus not susceptible to an interpretation in line with the Tradition and the magisterium."
The society, founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, is particularly opposed to the Council’s declarations on religious freedom, ecumenism and interreligious dialogue. The SSPX, which includes more than 500 priests, while technically not in schism, holds no canonical status in the Church.
Archbishop Di Noia then discussed the importance of preserving Church unity, quoting the teachings of Sts. Paul, Augustine and Thomas Aquinas on the issue. Pride, anger, impatience and inordinate zeal are major obstacles to unity leading to bitterness, he said, but these can be overcome through humility, gentleness, patience and "bearing with one another through love."
Quoting St. Augustine, he said one who is an enemy of unity "becomes an enemy of God, for he rejects the gift that God has bestowed on us," and he highlighted Augustine’s exhortation that charity be present to avoid severing unity. He stressed the importance of loving enemies, rejecting "the harsh and counterproductive rhetoric that has emerged over the past years," and not focusing solely on Council passages "that seem difficult to reconcile." Making every difficult theological interpretation of Vatican II a matter of public controversy "has been a mistake," he said.
He warned against using the media to pressure public opinion and having a "parallel magisterium" of theologians, stressing that, within the Church, room exists "for a truly theological and non-polemical engagement with the magisterium."
By only concentrating on the most difficult and most controversial questions, he added, it’s possible to lose a sense of the "analogy of faith" and begin to see theology mainly as a sort of intellectual exercise rather than engagement with the living God.
Archbishop Di Noia concluded by noting that all parties must be "cleansed of the bitterness and resentment" over the past 30 years, ask for God’s grace to continue talks, and pray so the Lord could heal imperfections caused by the difficulties.
"This is a moment of tremendous grace: Let us embrace it with our whole heart and mind," he said. "The only imaginable future for the Priestly Fraternity lies along the path of full communion with the Holy See, with the acceptance of an unqualified profession of the faith in its fullness, and thus with a properly ordered ecclesial, sacramental and pastoral life."
However, Archbishop Di Noia’s concerns and instruction appeared to go unheeded. In early January, reports emerged of a Dec. 28 talk in New Hamburg, Ontario, in which Bishop Fellay had implied that Jews and other groups outside the Church "were enemies of the Church" and therefore opposed to reconciliation.
Elsewhere in his 40-minute talk, he reiterated that the society had received mixed signals from Rome and that portions of the Second Vatican Council "opposed to what the Church has always taught" must be rejected. He also said Pope Benedict’s "hermeneutic of continuity" was untenable because some of the Council teachings run "contrary" or are "opposed to Tradition."
After Bishop Fellay’s comments became public in January, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said the comments on the Jews were "absolutely unacceptable."
In a Jan. 15 statement to the Italian Religious Information Service (SIR), Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Vatican Commission for Religious Relations With Jews, stressed the Church will not go back on the Vatican II declaration Nostra Aetate (On the Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions) because it cannot call the Council into question.
Ecumenical dialogue, relations with Jews and religious freedom "are central to the Holy Father’s teaching," he said, "and if a group does not accept the Council and does not accept a magisterium, they need to ask themselves how they see themselves as Catholic. This is the fundamental problem."
He also reinforced Father Lombardi’s initial response, saying that "any form of anti-Semitism is contrary to Christianity, and the Catholic Church must do all that is in its power to stop this."
Bishop Fellay could not be reached by the Register, but speaking on behalf of the SSPX, James Vogel said the comments had been misinterpreted.
The statements were taken out of context, said Vogel, an American SSPX spokesman, "insofar as the media has interpreted Bishop Fellay’s use of the term ‘Jews’ in a racial or political sense, whereas His Excellency meant it exclusively in a religious sense."
"In this religious sense, there is no difference between Jews and Muslims or Protestants, all of whom are ‘enemies of the Church’ insofar as they oppose the spread of the Catholic faith," Vogel continued. "The faith is what we are concerned with, not racial animosity or hatred of persons, as they are opposed to the charity which the Gospel commands of us."
"If I can emphasize anything, it is that the SSPX wants and intends to keep peaceful relations with non-Catholic religions, while maintaining the Catholic doctrine that teaches that Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Messiah to whom every man must convert," Vogel said. "We have made it clear many times we have no sympathy for anti-Semitism or hatred of persons."
Last year, the SSPX could not agree to a proposed "doctrinal preamble" that the Vatican insisted should form the basis for reconciliation between the traditionalist group and the Holy See. Although the contents of the document have not been made public, the Vatican was asking for an acknowledgment from the SSPX that the teachings of Vatican II are valid.
Despite these controversies and the breakdown in talks, the Vatican is intent on keeping the door open for possible reconciliation, but, according to one senior official, current Vatican-SSPX relations remain in an "extremely delicate phase."
Edward Pentin
writes from Rome.
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saw your article re: flocknote.com for daily reflections. Sounds good to me.
The question does not turn on the obedience of the SSPX to the Pope; but rather the obedience of the Pope (and the Church) to dogma! The entire Council is suspect.
(See the articles by Birsotti and Radaello and Iota Unum by Romano Amerio)
I believe Saint Frances had it right. I don’t think he believed in enemies only brothers. He certainly believed in obedience to the Pope when God demanded it.
Those who are interested in the Extraordinary Form of the Mass (Latin/sometimes refered to as traditional) should be in contact with the FSSP - the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter.
This is the Order that also teaches other Priests this Form of the Mass and was approved by Pope John Paul II.
LEX ORANDI How we pray…, LEX CREDENDI inspires what we believe…, LEX VIVENDI and motivates how we live.
” 14. It is the task of the Diocesan Bishop to undertake all necessary measures to ensure respect for the forma extraordinaria of the Roman Rite, according to the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum. ” - http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_commissions/ecclsdei/documents/rc_com_ecclsdei_doc_20110430_istr-universae-ecclesiae_en.html
There are fundamental issues here. Some of the ‘teachings’ of Vatican II are in plain and simple contradictory conflict with what the Church has always taught. To subscribe to those erroneous ‘teachings’ is to declare that what went before was wrong. The hermeneutic of continuity advocated by the present Pope is an intellectual sleight of hand intended to justify the proposition that two plus one can be said to be four if we only interpret the calculation in the light of ‘tradition’, the hermeneutic of continuity - the product of two plus one becomes four when we truly want it to be so. Those of who stubbornly say that two plus one equal three, not four, are wrong. When presented with a proposed declration to the effect that the ‘teachings’ of Vatican II are valid - in conformity with what the Church taught for 1900 years before - not even Bishop Fellay believes he can bully ‘his’ Priests to go along with that. I would be a formal and public lie to do so, as Bishop Fellay knows, he having understood at least something of the Catholic theology that people like Bishop Williamson taught him at Econe. Does anyone really want the FSSPX to lie? Do we want the Truth or the Hermeneutic of Continuity?
Trying to slap the SSPX in the face with accusations of pride, anger, and impatience along with other hateful words will not help. That is no way to conduct any kind of meeting - let alone a reconciliation process. When you point a finger at someone and call them names, there are 4 fingers pointing back at you.
The failure in negotiations cannot be corrected by implementing Vatican II documents (is the name-calling what they teach??) such as “Dignitatis Humanae”, for example These outdated documents simply have continuously failed to find answers to moral questions in today’s world, and it is time to stop wasting time on them. The Church needs to get back to thoughtful analysis and traditional prayer instead. You cannot rely on others to respond to Catholic teachings with a sense of duty and with responsible acts that are judgments enhancing the Vatican II definition of human dignity (that is what this document teaches).
This smacks for a do-it-my-way-or-the-highway attitude on the part of Rome. If they really had Charity themselves (instead of telling others to have charity) they would discuss these problems with Vatican II and come to agreement on what had really happen and how to correct it. Using “the Jews” comment to slander SSPX reduces Rome to the level of the New York Times in distorting news events.
I was far too young to have any understanding of the changes wrought by Vatican II and their impact. Fortunately, I was Catechized, for the most part, pre-Vatican II because it has been my experience that the catechesis after Vatican II has been almost none existent! In my opinion, what little there is, is much too Protestant in its approach! I am a traditionalist who follows all of the current teachings of the Catholic church. Having a progressive pastor has been difficult for me. Pray for our priests and especially the errant ones! We need all the priests we can get. Without the priests there is no Eucharist! And GOD knows we need the Eucharist!!!
Hi Dear Folks,
I’m a young 74 year old. The vision of Vatican II still lives on…in particular, the record that ecumenism has such a dedicated role to play in our lives…all of us.
We live in the NE of the City of Toronto. Our Prince of Peace Catholic Parish is a Member of the Ministerial Association of North East Toronto (consisting of some 30+ Christian Churches from different traditions). For the years of 2011 and 2012, specifically in January, we were the host Parish for the Praise and Worship Celebration of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The atmosphere just blew me away. You could tell, the Holy Spirit was with us.
Wake up Dear Catholics.
Peace.
Murray
I pray for unity because Jesus wants us to be one, like he and the Father are one. I love his Church and the Sacraments, above all the Eucharist. Let us all pray to be united in the Lord’s gospel, his will, his Church, and the love for one another. +
There are those in the Church making a big deal about the SSPX not accepting parts of Vatican ll, While those very same ones in the Church themselves reject all of Vatican Council ll. They have invented their own Council, causing mass confusion among Catholics. They have revived the heresy of modernism, nullifying its condemnation by St. Pius X. What they claim the Council called for, the Council did not. We have to face reality, the Church is in a terrible state. Lets admit the truth, after V2 everything in the Church went bad. Ironicaly the first ones to blame are those condemning the SSPX for not accepting V2. Pope Benedict XVl has reformed the Church and continues to do so, only problem is that those who have the responsibility to put those reforms into effect, will not do it! There are those just waiting to find reason to attack the SSPX. When Bishop Fellay said that the Jews, Masons and modernists are enemies of the Church. Many were quick to deliberatly misinterpret what he was saying. This is the age of the “Great Apostacy”, heresy has dominated the Church since after V2. This age can also very well be called the age of the Great Hypocrasy. Bl. John Paul ll and Pope Benedict XVl have said there is no new Church, this is the same Church before, during and after Vatican Council ll. But in reality a new Church has been invented and it is a total break from the past. The leaders of the Church have lost their way and they have no desire to find the right path again. Why are they so intent on destroying the SSPX? I believe the SSPX gnaws their muddled error laden consciences. The gates of hell will not prevail against the Church, but right now the gates of hell have the upper hand. God! Save your Church.
There are many people who will infiltrate and try to unto what Christ has established. Christ said that no-one and no thing will prevail against the Church, the one He established, through the apostleship of Peter, the rock on which His church is built and which continues to present. The SSPX is another schism lead by someone who thought they knew better than the Chair of Peter. Examples of schism with the Church can be seen throughout history and they have not prevailed against the One True Holy Apostolic Church. Fortunately, many who build a true relationship with Christ come back to the true Apostolic Church. I continue to pray that all followers of Christ will accept their discipleship, admit faults and repent of the sins based in anger, pride, envy, sloth, , covetousness, gluttony, and lust for these are not grounded in the Love of Christ.
How can Cardinal Kurt Koch claim correctness to Ecumenical dialogue, and religious liberty/freedom when these have been condemned by Pontiffs? Why isn’t he truthful in stating that a naturalized new religion began out of the 16 documents of Vatican II Council? To claim Vatican II has continuity when it clearly states in Lumen Gentium that the ‘church’ (new church religion) now subsists outside the boundaries of the Catholic Church and non - Catholics are a source of salvation. Only the UNcatechized will accept heretics to be a source for any good. So what is the agenda?
“One of the primary obligations assigned by Christ to the office divinely committed to Us of feeding the Lord’s flock is that of guarding with the greatest vigilance the Deposit of the Faith delivered to the saints, rejecting profane novelties…” taken from: Pascendi Dominici Gregis, 1 promulgated by Pope St. Pius X. Why was the “Oath Against the Errors of Modernism” abolished?
Who cares about these people.let them meet God when they die and find out
how well he thinks about what they are doing.Leave them alone,we don’t need them.
john pollard, what about the conciliarists who oppose the Magisterial Teachings of Holy Mother Church handed on since the time Christ personally taught the first bishops?
I wonder if Archbishop DiNoia has even read papal documents written before Vatican II—and if he interprets them in the light of the latter. Painting the SSPX as anti-Semitic “enemies of unity” (what exactly does that mean in the modernist lexicon?) with tunnel vision with regards to problematic passages in the Vatican II documents doesn’t really make him sound like the ideal guy to engage in “dialogue” with the SSPX.
Sarah L. He’s the guy to bring an end to the ‘dialoguing’ in order to make the SSPX the modernist he is. The SSPX was wrong to enter into these ‘dialogues’ and they are wrong to ‘recognie and resist’ which is not a Catholic principle.
The SSPX is allowing prebyters to say some of their Masses. These are men ordained under the newRite of Ordination which makes them suspect as legitimate priests.
correction: “recognize and resist”
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Why has the “ordinary” Holy Sacrifice of the Mass become now extraordinary and subordinate to what was contrived by 6 protestants?
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