Vatican Confirms SSPX Response
The Vatican confirmed in a short statement this morning that yesterday it received a response to the doctrinal preamble from the Society of St. Pius X, and it is now being examined by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said the response is substantially different from the previous one, therefore "encouraging" and marks a "step forward" according to Catholic News Service. He also said it will be examined "quickly", and given to the Pope, probably within a "few weeks." Father Lombardi added: "we cannot consider the matter concluded yet."
"On April 17, 2012 was received, as requested at the meeting of March 16, 2012, held at the headquarters of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the text of the response of H.E. Bishop Bernard Fellay, Superior General of the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X. The above mentioned text will be examined by the Congregation and then submitted to the judgment of the Holy Father."
UPDATE: The SSPX this afternoon issued its own statement, pouring cold water on media reports that the Society had given a positive response to the doctrinal preamble:
The media are announcing that Bishop Bernard Fellay has sent a “positive response” to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and that consequently the doctrinal question between the Holy See and the Society of Saint Pius X is now resolved.
The reality is different.
In a letter dated April 17, 2012, the Superior General of the Society of Saint Pius X responded to the request for clarification that had been made to him on March 16 by Cardinal William Levada concerning the Doctrinal Preamble delivered on September 14, 2011. As the press release dated today from the Ecclesia Dei Commission indicates, the text of this response “will be examined by the dicastery (Congregation for the Doctine of the Faith) then submitted to the Holy Father for his judgement”.
This is therefore a stage and not a conclusion.
Menzingen, April 18, 2012
Edward Pentin Edward Pentin is the Register’s Senior Contributor and EWTN News Vatican Analyst. He began reporting on the Pope and the Vatican with Vatican Radio before moving on to become the Rome correspondent for EWTN's National Catholic Register. He has also reported on the Holy See and the Catholic Church for a number of other publications including Newsweek, Newsmax, Zenit, The Catholic Herald, and The Holy Land Review, a Franciscan publication specializing in the Church and the Middle East. Edward is the author of The Next Pope: The Leading Cardinal Candidates (Sophia Institute Press, 2020) and The Rigging of a Vatican Synod? An Investigation into Alleged Manipulation at the Extraordinary Synod on the Family (Ignatius Press, 2015). Follow him on Twitter at @edwardpentin.
