From Ukraine, a Shocker (FORTY Year Old Bishop Elected to be Head of Ukrainian Catholic Church)

And, in a word, now we know why the Ukrainian Synod took so long....

The buzz of a shocker from Lviv began circulating last night, and this morning it was confirmed: the bishops of the largest Eastern fold in communion with Rome have elected the youngest of their number -- 40 year-old Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the apostolic administrator of the UGCC's eparchy in Argentina -- as head of the church.

A former private secretary to his now-predecessor, Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, and head of the UGCC's central curia, the new de facto patriarch of the 6 million-member global fold was named an auxiliary of the Argentine diocese in 2009, and temporarily given its helm last April. A moral theologian and graduate of Rome's Angelicum, Shevchuk has spent practically all his 16-year priesthood in priestly formation, serving as a vice-dean of theology, vice-rector and rector at the UGCC's seminary in Lviv, now the church's former seat.

Six weeks shy of his 41st birthday, the Synod's choice is the third-youngest of the Catholic world's 5,000-odd bishops, now launched into a post long held by a cardinal. Historically speaking, though, it's worth recalling that Ukraine's considerable Greek-Catholic branch has a significant history of youthful leaders: the global fold's most consequential chiefs of the 20th century -- Metropolitan Andrei Sheptytsky, who served from 1900-1944, and his successor, the future Cardinal Josepf Slipyj, who headed the global UGCC for another four decades until his 1984 death -- both took office in their late thirties.

Going into this week's Synod of the 40 Ukrainian bishops at home and in the church's diaspora, the front-runner for the post was widely tipped to be the church's #2 figure under Husar, the metropolitan of Lviv Ihor Vozniak, 58. A Redemptorist, Vozniak served as temporary administrator of the global fold following the cardinal's retirement last month.

The decision confirmed by Pope Benedict this morning, the church's hierarchy will enthrone the junior eparch as major-archbishop of Kiev on Sunday at the new patriarchal seat, still under construction, in the historic birthplace of Russian Christianity.

re: It is hard to imagine Pope Benedict approving a KGB lap dog.

"Double Standard" Update - Vatican Coddles Schismatic Chinese "Bishops"

It took the Vatican about 72 hours to declare excommunicated Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and the four bishops he consecrated without a papal mandate on June 30, 1988. Whether one agrees with his decision or not, Lefebvre acted for what he thought was the best interest of the faithful, consecrating four bishops to preserve the traditional Mass and sacraments in a time of "diabolical disorientation" in the Church, to recall Sister Lucy’s memorable phrase.

Indeed, the Church’s Code of Canon Law exempts from penalties such as excommunication one who acts out of what he believes is necessity, even if his good faith belief might be mistaken. (Can. 1323 (4), (7)). And, moreover, Lefebvre and the four bishops declared sincerely that they accept the legitimate authority of Pope John Paul II.

Compare the Vatican’s treatment of the schismatic bishops of the so-called "Patriotic Catholic Association" (PCA) of Red China, created by Mao Tse-Tung in 1957 to replace the true Catholic Church, which that monster had driven underground. Since 1957 the PCA has consecrated not four, but one hundred bishops without a papal mandate, many of these during the reign of John Paul II. These schismatic prelates are required by the regime in Beijing explicitly to renounce any allegiance to Rome and to promote the Red Chinese population control policy of compulsory contraception and, when that fails, forced abortion. These illicit bishops thus promote mortal sins and gross deviations from the infallible teaching of the Church on faith and morals.

What do we find but that, far from declaring these "bishops" excommunicated, the Vatican apparatus has recognized about two-thirds of them as legitimate. This according to an article in the journal Civilta Cattolica, which is vetted by the Vatican Secretary of State — "Pope" Sodano I — before publication. According to CWNews.com (March 5, 2004) "of the 79 bishops [still] serving the ‘official’ [PCA] Church, 49 have at least de facto recognition from the Vatican."

CWNews further reports that "Informed Vatican officials have indicated that many bishops of the ‘official’ Church have quietly established contacts with the Holy See. The Civilta Cattolica report now indicates that the clear majority have been recognized by Rome." At the same time, however, the loyal Catholic bishops of the underground Church "reproach the Patriotic Catholic Association for its dependence on the government, and its failure to maintain ties with the universal Church."

So, the Vatican recognizes the same schismatic (not to mention heretical) pro-abortion "bishops" which the loyal Catholic bishops driven underground in China refuse to join because these schismatic prelates have sworn their allegiance to a government-controlled, communist pseudo-Church.

Marcel Lefebvre and four traditional Catholic bishops were pronounced excommunicated within 72 hours, while at least 49 pro-abortion schismatic bishops, hand-picked and totally controlled by a communist regime, are recognized by the same Vatican apparatus that declared Lefebvre excommunicated. Such is the state of the Catholic Church today.

By the way, only five days after the reports of Vatican recognition of the schismatic PCA bishops surfaced, Bishop Wei Jingyi, of the "underground" Diocese of Qiqihar — that is, the true Catholic diocese of that region — was arrested by communist thugs. In response, "the Holy See expressed its ‘concern and sadness’ … and requested explanations from the authorities." (Zenit, March 10, 2004)

Concern and sadness, you say! Explanations, you say? And what possible "explanation" could the Vatican be expecting from "the authorities" in China? The Red Chinese have arrested another loyal Catholic prelate as part of their continuing persecution of the true Catholic Church in China. That is the explanation.

The Vatican Press Office added this ringing defense of the arrested bishop: "Whatever accusations there might be against the arrested bishop, they should be made public, as happens in every State of law …"

Good grief. A loyal bishop is arrested by communist goons and the Vatican demands, not his immediate release, but only publication of the charges? What sort of limp-wristed nonsense is this? And since when is Red China a "State of law" as opposed to a brutal, utterly lawless dictatorship?

What an utterly nonsensical — no, utterly obscene — situation this is. The Vatican recognizes 49 communist-controlled schismatic bishops, even as the loyal Catholic bishops of the underground Church in China are being persecuted. The Vatican thus makes a mockery of the martyrdom of these loyal prelates. For what reason have they suffered, if the false prelates of the false church they refuse to join are granted Vatican recognition? They have suffered, of course, because they would rather die than join the schismatic communist-controlled bishops of the CPA—even if certain Vatican bureaucrats no longer seem to know what real schism and heresy consist of. The same bureaucrats declare excommunicated Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and the four staunchly traditional bishops he consecrated, even as they recognize the legitimacy of bishops illicitly consecrated for a "church" created by the devil himself through Mao Tse Tung.

If what we are seeing today is not the great apostasy foretold in Sacred Scripture, then what would be? Now we can see why Cardinal Mario Luigi Ciappi said that "In the Third Secret (of Fatima) it is foretold, among other things, that the great apostasy in the Church will begin at the top." What we see around us, dear reader, must be precisely what the Third Secret of Fatima foretold. And that, we can be sure, is why the Vatican apparatus of "Pope" Sodano I has yet to reveal the words of Our Lady which follow Her fateful phrase: "In Portugal the dogma of the faith will always be preserved, etc."

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