The Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi, S.J., has dismissed
the recent ordination of 20 priests by the Society of Saint Pius X as
illegitimate.
“As long as the Society does not have a canonical
status in the Church - Benedict XVI underlines - its ministers do not
exercise legitimate ministries in the Church,” said Father Lombardi in
response to a question from CNA at a July 5 media conference.
Fr. Lombardi said that the Society’s canonical status will not be resolved “until the doctrinal questions are clarified.”
The
Society of Saint Pius X is a traditionalist group founded in 1970 by
the Frenchman Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre.
Their relationship with the
Vatican soured in 1988 when Archbishop Lefebvre consecrated four bishops
against the orders of Pope John Paul II.
It was an act deemed to be
schismatic by the Vatican.
While the excommunication of the four
bishops was lifted by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009, the Society still has
not fully resolved doctrinal disagreements with the Catholic Church,
which are mainly tied to the Second Vatican Council.
Over the past two weeks, the Society has ordained priests in ceremonies in Switzerland, Germany and the United States.
Over the past two weeks, the Society has ordained priests in ceremonies in Switzerland, Germany and the United States.
The latter ordinations took
place on June 17 at the group’s seminary in Winona, Minn. and were
conducted by the St. Pius X’s Superior General, Bishop Bernard Fellay.
He used his homily to accuse the Vatican of lacking unity and
consistency in negotiations with the Society.
“When I speak of
contradiction, my dear brethren, I mean that certain people in Rome
consider us as being outside the Church, excommunicated, and even as
having lost the Faith and being heretics. But there are others who very
clearly accept us as Catholics,” he told the congregation gathered for
the ordination of five priests.
“When Bishop de Galarreta (a Pius
X bishop) and our priests go to Rome for the doctrinal discussions,
they say Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. How can you have both attitudes
at the same time? Do you see how strong this contradiction is?”
Pope
Benedict has been eager to heal the rift between the Pius X Society and
the Church.
In 2007 he made it easier to celebrate Mass according to
the older Tridentine rite, saying he hoped it would lead to “an interior
reconciliation in the heart of the Church.”
But today’s developments
won’t make that reconciliation any easier to achieve.
Monday, April 2, 2012
ReplyDeleteIF THE SSPX SAYS THEY ACCEPT VATICAN COUNCIL II IN ACCORD WITH THE DOGMA EXTRA ECCLESIAM NULLA SALUS THERE WILL BE A STORM
The Secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith could have to deny Vatican Council II and the Jewish Left could call the Council anti - Semitic.
One of the District Superiors of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) could issue a statement observing that it is reported on blogs that the literal interpretation of the dogma extra ecclesiam nulla salus is in accord with Vatican Council II (AG 7).
All need Catholic Faith and the baptism of water for salvation (AG 7) and there are no exceptions. There are no known exceptions since those saved in invincible ignorance or with a good conscience (LG 16) etc are known only to God. So they do not contradict the centuries-old literal interpretation of the thrice defined dogma.
So in this sense Vatican Council II is saying outside the church there is no salvation and Jews, Muslims and other non Catholics (Protestants and Orthodox Christians) need to convert into the Catholic Church for salvation ( to avoid Hell).
So the SSPX could welcome Vatican Council II’s position on ecumenism and inter religious dialogue.
All non Catholics are oriented to Hell (AG 7). We do not compel them; we do not force them to enter the Church. We do not have the power to do so. However we do have the religious liberty to tell them that Vatican Council II says they need to convert into the Church, all of them with no known exceptions, to avoid Hell (for salvation).
Imagine the world wide storm this would cause. The SSPX affirming Vatican Council II in this case in accord with the salvation dogma!
But what about Fr. Leonard Feeney?!So what? Whatever be your position on Fr. Leonard Feeney, Vatican Council II still affirms the literal interpretation of the dogma extra ecclesiam nulla salus.
He was excommunicated for holding the literal interpretation? No Magisterial text, including the Letter of the Holy Office 1949 states that he was excommunicated for heresy. And assuming he was - Vatican Council II is still in agreement with the traditional literal interpretation of the dogma.
And if he was excommunicated for heresy, for saying there was no baptism of desire or exception to the dogma, then the cardinals who wrote the Letter of the Holy Office 1949 or Pope Pius XII, made an objective, common sense mistake: the baptism of desire is not known so it cannot be an explicit, exception to the dogma which says everyone needs to convert into the Church. We do not know any one saved with the baptism of desire.
How can the ordinary magisterium of the pope, Pope Pius XII, negate Vatican Council II or the dogma which Pope Pius XII himself called an ‘infallible statement’(Letter of the Holy Office 1949).
All the same Vatican Council II affirms the literal interpretation of the dogma, the infallible statement.
According to the Vatican statement,(March 16) there is the possibility of the SSPX being excommunicated unless they affirm Vatican Council II. The statement has not mentioned the interpretation of Vatican Council II expected. The Vatican kept the doctrinal talks secret.So the SSPX could ‘try the waters out’ affirm the dogma (as they are doing so already) and welcome Vatican Council II as being in agreement with the dogma. Then wait for the Vatican’s response.
This will create a political storm and shake the Establishment which tells the pope what he should believe as a Catholic and what is acceptable to them.-Lionel Andrades