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I received this note:(WDTPRSNEWS.COM – Ecône, Switzerland) In a surprise move, the followers of the late Archbishop Marcel Lefevbre in the Society of St. Pius X, have issued a document creating within their ranks an “ordinariate� for Catholics who wish to celebrate the Novus Ordo according to the official rubrics.According to the press release, the SSPX saw the need to provide a refuge for priests and lay faithful alike to preserve the few vestiges of Catholic identity they retained in the midst of their modernist errors.Fr. Sven O’Brien, sub-vice assistant director of the eastern division of the Society’s German province,...

In them, this brilliant and esteemed mystic and spiritual master expressed strong criticisms of Vatican Council II. Fr. Barsotti wrote: "I am perplexed with regard to the Council: the plethora of documents, their length, often their language, these frightened me. They are documents that bear witness to a purely human assurance more than two a simple firmness of faith. But above all I am outraged by the behavior of the theologians.” "The Council is the supreme exercise of the magisterium, and is justified only by a supreme necessity. Could not the fearful gravity of the present situation of the Church...

From a reader: While doing research I came across something that said that one of the faithful who knowingly receives a Sacrament from a priest without faculties commits a sin. I have always attended SSPX chapels and gone to confession there. But after what I read, I haven’t known what to do. I haven’t gone to Confession in months. I’m also afraid of having a disagreement with my parents. My Dad has very strong opinions about anything not connected with the SSPX. The Church’s law says clearly that if a priest lacks the faculties from proper authority to receive sacramental...

The Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei� takes this occasion to announce that, in its most recent official communication (6 September 2012), the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X has indicated that additional time for reflection and study is needed on their part as they prepare their response to the Holy See’s latest initiatives.The current stage in the ongoing discussions between the Holy See and the Priestly Fraternity follows three years of doctrinal and theological dialogues during which a joint commission met eight times to study and discuss, among other matters, some disputed issues in the interpretation of certain documents of...

Menzingen, Switzerland, Oct 24, 2012 / 12:10 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Society of St. Pius X has expelled Bishop Richard Williamson, saying he has distanced himself from the traditionalist Catholic group’s leadership and he has refused “to show due respect and obedience to his lawful superiors.� The Switzerland-based society said Oct. 24 that the “painful� decision was necessary because of “concern for the common good� and for the good government of the society. The society’s Superior General Bishop Bernard Fellay and his council declared the bishop to be excluded on Oct. 4. Bishop Williamson, in response to a final deadline...

Well, it looks like Williamson is now free to become as much of a sedevacante as he has always wanted to be.

Supporters of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of Society of St Pius X, branded the future Pope Benedict XVI and the late Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner "heretics" during the Second Vatican Council, reports The Tablet.A previously undiscovered letter written by Karl Rahner to his brother, Fr Hugo Rahner SJ, during the council in November 1963 has revealed that the French Intégristes - followers of Lefebvre - accused him and Fr Joseph Ratzinger as "heretic[s] who deny the existence of hell and are worse than Teilhardt de Chardin and the Modernists".The letter, part of an exhibition in Munich, states that Rahner consoled...

Wow. This is alarming and sad and just more evidence, as if more were needed, the Bp. Williamson is deranged and a cancer of the SSPX and the Church. In this video, he claims that 9/11 and the 7/7 bombings in London were inside jobs and conspiracies and predicts that the London Olympics will be nuked. I am not making this up. Get him help and get him out. Video: "Yes I am a conspiracy nut."

Archbishop Muller (CNS file/Paul Haring) By Cindy WoodenCatholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Asked about how he would handle the most controversial cases he inherited, the new head of the Vatican's doctrinal office said, "For the future of the church, it's important to overcome ideological conflicts from whatever side they come." German Archbishop Gerhard L. Muller, named prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in early July, told the Vatican newspaper that the congregation's discussions with the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X and with the U.S. Leadership Conference of Women Religious would focus on...

Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Muller, the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, speaks with CNA during a July 20, 2012 interview. Rome, Italy, Jul 24, 2012 / 04:00 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Although the new head of the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is optimistic about reconciliation with the Society of St. Pius X, he says that the teachings of the Church – including the dogmatic content of the Second Vatican Council – will never be up for re-negotiation. “The purpose of dialogue is to overcome difficulties in the interpretation of the Second Vatican...

SATURDAY, JULY 21, 2012 New CDF Prefect Insists on Hermeneutic of Discontinuity The CDF's New Doctrine Gardener! Edit: Isn't defining doctrine the job of an ecumenical Council or a Pope? Kreuz.net has noticed it. Here, the new head of the Congregation for Doctrine and the Faith, stops nearly short at declaring the unprecedented doctrines ancillary to the Second Council as dogmas. http://flickrhivemind.net/Tags/ziegenbock/Interesting The following is an interview which the new Prefect for the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, Archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller in the today's anti-Catholic Suddeutsche Zeitung. With all the problems with Catholic Bishops denying central tenets...

At the SSPX site DICI we read the General Chapter Statement.Bottom line: Not negative, but clarificatory. They left the door open for more discussions under Archbp. Di Noia.You can read the whole thing there, but here is the most interesting part with my emphases and comments: [...] We have recovered our profound unity in its essential mission: to preserve and defend the Catholic Faith, to form good priests, and to strive towards the restoration of Christendom. We have determined and approved the necessary conditions for an eventual canonical normalization. We have decided that, in that case, an extraordinary Chapter with...

The Lefebvrian Superior comments on what was discussed during the general chapter but does not reveal his response to the Vatican. He criticises Müller and the “modernist and liberal” influence in following the Council ANDREA TORNIELLIvatican city “It is not us who will break with Rome, the Eternal Rome, mistress of wisdom and truth. Nevertheless, it would be unrealistic to deny that there is a modernist and liberal influence in the Church since the Second Vatican Council and its subsequent reforms.” Bishop Bernard Fellay said this in an interview published in the bulletin of the Society of St. Pius X...

Announcement due tomorrow. There is no return to Rome. The superior of the Lefebvrists of Spain and Portugal, Juan Maria Montagut, will communicate to the faithful, after the mass of 11, that the hierarchy of the FSSPX, gathered in Ecône, have decided to say "no" to the Vatican. The followers of Lefebvre will not return to the Roman fold. Primarily, because they are not willing to accept the Second Vatican Council in all its extremes.

(RNS) A breakaway traditionalist Catholic group on Monday (June 25) slammed as “clearly unacceptable” a Vatican doctrinal document that was supposed to lay the foundation for the group's reconciliation with Rome. The move comes after three years of complex negotiations between the Vatican and the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), and was revealed just as Pope Benedict XVI appointed a high-profile American archbishop to a key post to oversee relations with traditionalists. A letter by the Rev. Christian Thouvenot, secretary general of the SSPX, to SSPX bishops and regional leaders was leaked on the Internet on Tuesday (June 26)....

The SSPX traditionalist Catholic group on Monday slammed as "clearly unacceptable" a Vatican doctrinal document that was supposed to lay the foundation for the group's reconciliation with Rome, reports NCR Online.The move comes after three years of complex negotiations between the Vatican and the Society of St Pius X and was revealed just as Pope Benedict XVI appointed a high-profile American archbishop to a key post to oversee relations with traditionalists.A letter by Fr Christian Thouvenot, secretary general of the SSPX, to SSPX bishops and regional leaders was leaked on the Internet on Tuesday. Thouvenot later confirmed its authenticity.The letter says...

Over 200 followers of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) have signed a letter publicly castigating Bishop Fellay for dealing with the Pope and the Catholic Church. Below is the public open letter being circulated by the SSPX parishioners. It should be noted that the letter is signed by a founder of the International Third Position and various members and organizers of a pro-Bishop Williamson internet forum that is tolerant of antisemitism. This letter may not be as spontaneous and innocent as it purports to be. An Open Letter to Bishop Fellay from some concerned faithful of the SSPX...

Superior of the Society of St. Pius X Bishop Bernard Fellay. Vatican City, Jun 14, 2012 / 10:26 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The Vatican has confirmed that the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X is being offered the status of a personal prelature as part of a deal to heal the group’s 24-year rift with the Catholic Church. “Clearly the ball is now in the court of the Society,� Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi said on June 14. Yesterday afternoon the Society’s superior general, Bishop Bernard Fellay, spent over two hours in talks with representatives of the Vatican’s Congregation for...

UPDATE from 19.00 clock: a new statement from the SSPX: "The desire for further clarifications could usher in a new series of meeting" - The Vatican plans to offer a personal prelature The Vatican on Wednesday evening consulted with the leadership of the SSPX on the progress of the ecclesiastical unity efforts. The prefect of the Congregation of the Faith, Cardinal William Levada, gave the Superior of the Priestly Society of St. Pius X, Bernard Fellay, in a detailed interview at the headquarters of his curial body, the official response of the Pope. Benedict XVI had informed Levada and the...

Fr. Miche Koller of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) has proclaimed that an agreement between Rome and the SSPX will be announced this week. He then went on to rally against union with Rome. It is impossible to know whether or not Bisop Williamson's followers will prevent the SSPX from joining with the Catholic Church. But if the above prediction turns out to be true, see the entire video below for some of what will be coming to a parish near you. The cultic video is ironically entitled, "Bishop Williamson: The Unchanging Catholic Unifier"

The latest volley in Bishop Richard Williamson's war against Bishop Fellay and the Holy Father has come from Fr. Francois Chazal, a priest of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX)stationed in Asia. At the end of this post you will find a video and written transcript of a sermon give by Fr. Chazal that praises Bishop Williamson, a renowned Holocaust Denier, for thwarting Bishop Fellay's "plot" to sign a deal with Rome. This lengthy sermon is well worth taking time to listen to as it provides a perfect example of the ecclesiology taught within the SSPX. It would be...

<p>See for yourselves the interview, given in English and accessible on YouTube under the title, “Traditionalist leader talks about his movement, Rome”. Can anybody be surprised if “his movement” is currently going through the gravest crisis of its 42 years of existence ?"</p>

They sue a Green Party politician for his statements about Bishop Williamson and their attitude to Islam

Pope should be deposed if he accepts the SSPX back

Bishop Fellay quotes Pope saying it would be easier for him not to grant full recognition to the SSPX

In my last post concerning the SSPX, I discussed the radical antisemitism found there. Although I disagree with the fact that the SSPX has ostensibly done little to curb the radical factions within the organization, it is clear that the radicals hate Bishop Fellay for his attempts to bring normalcy and a truer Catholicism to the SSPX. This passion and disinformation can be readily seen in two examples. The first example can be seen in the article by Stephen Heiner entitled, Quod Vadis SSPX? Part III. One must really read the entire article to see the passion behind those opposed...

The process for the Society of St. Pius X’s return to full communion with Rome is expected to be concluded by the end of MayThe response sent to the Vatican on 17 April by Bishop Bernard Fellay will be examined in the next few days by the cardinal and bishop members in Ordinary Session of the Congregation of the Doctrine for the Faith, commonly known as Feria Quarta; their decision will then be submitted to Benedict XVI. The process which should lead the Society of St. Pius X – founded by Mgr. Lefebvre - to return to full communion with...

Rome-SSPX: "We cannot be 88ers" From the May 2012 issue of Seignadou, the newsletter of the chaplaincy of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) for the schools of the Traditional Dominican Sisters of Fanjeaux (France) - chaplain, Father Michel Simoulin, SSPX: Following our Jubilee [pilgrimage] in the year 2000, Rome took the initiative of establishing new relations. Today, the same Cardinal, having become Pope, has told us that the Tridentine Mass has never been abrogated (July 7, 2007: "It is, therefore, permissible to celebrate the Sacrifice of the Mass following the typical edition of the Roman Missal promulgated by...

A breakaway group of traditionalist Catholics may be on the verge of returning into full communion with Rome, bringing a 24-year rift to an end and fulfilling a key goal of Benedict XVI’s pontificate. Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi told journalists April 18 that the Society of St. Pius X had taken an encouraging “step forward” by clarifying its response to a “doctrinal preamble,” a Vatican document that has become the basis of any reconciliation. The society insisted “a step and not a conclusion” had been reached and stressed its clarifications, submitted by the society’s superior general, Bishop Bernard Fellay,...

Just mentioned by Andrea Tornielli for La Stampa: Lefebvrists: the positive response has arrived 17.09.2012 (1900 GMT - 2100 Rome) The Superior of the Society of Saint Pius X has signed the doctrinal preamble proposed by the Holy See, even if with some slight modifications ANDREA TORNIELLI CITTÀ DEL VATICANO The response of the Society of Saint Pius X has arrived in the Vatican and it is positive: according to the informal information gathered by Vatican Insider, Bishop Bernard Fellay would have signed the doctrinal preamble that the Holy See had proposed last September as a condition to reach full...

Communiqué of the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei" The text of the response of His Excellency Bp. Bernard Fellay, Superior General of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X, requested during the meeting in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of March 16, 2012, was delivered on April 17, 2012. This text will be examined by the Dicastery and submitted afterwards to the judgment of the Holy Father. [Source: original texts in Italian and French]

[...] the fraternity have “preannounced they will arrive at a final clarification, therefore I am hoping that at the beginning of next week we’ll be able to know their position and then take consequent positions.” [...]Msgr. Pozzo said “certain press reports, certain information, have been encouraging but we cannot predict their response until they give it to us.” [...] if the society “does not accept the offer of a pope like Benedict XVI, who has already made possible the gestures to meet them halfway, a historic opportunity would be lost, and, above all, there would be a further injury to...

April 15th is an unpleasant day in the United States and we await its arrival with dread. But in Rome and in Écône, Switzerland and around the world thousands upon thousands look upon the 15th with fear and hope all mixed together. April 15th is the deadline. And if you are smart, you should be paying attention too. By April 15th the Society of Saint Pius X will give their response to a “Doctrinal Preamble� outlining “certain doctrinal principles and criteria for the interpretation of Catholic doctrine … (while also) leaving open to legitimate discussion the examination and theological explanation...

Cardinal Karl Josef Becker sees big problems for an agreement between the Vatican and the traditionalist SSPX "to combine both positions, that's difficult," the Jesuit said in an interview with the Cologne diocesan church newspaper on Sunday. He has worked as a consultant to the CDF during the negotiations between the SSPX. Pope Benedict XVI in mid-March asked the SSPX to clarify by April 15 their position and to avoid a breach with Rome.

During the meeting of 14 September 2011 between Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and president of the Pontifical Commission ‘Ecclesia Dei,’ and Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior general of the Society of St. Pius X, the latter was presented with a Doctrinal Preamble, accompanied by a Preliminary Note, as a fundamental basis for achieving full reconciliation with the Apostolic See. This defined certain doctrinal principles and criteria for the interpretation Catholic doctrine, which are necessary to ensure faithfulness to the Church Magisterium and ‘sentire cum Ecclesia.’ “The response of the Society of St....

3/16/2012 9:33:00 AM Vatican says SSPX response to basic doctrinal principles 'insufficient' Catholic News Service photo Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior of the Society of St. Pius X, addresses the crowd before a 2009 ordination ceremony in Econe, Switzerland. The Vatican has given the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X a formal "doctrinal preamble" listing several princi ples they must agree with in order to move toward full reconciliation with church. Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, with the approval of Pope Benedict, has defined as "insufficient" the position of the traditionalist Society...

From the website of the "French District of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter" (FSSP): Offering up our Lent for Catholic Unity (Last modification: 02.24.2012, 0827) In this Lenten season, some among our friends have taken the initiative of offering up their struggles and sacrifices for reconciliation and unity between all Catholics. At a moment in which the dialogue between the Society of Saint Pius X [SSPX] and the Holy See reaches a decisive point for the future, the District of France [of the FSSP] encourages its friends to double their fervor in prayer. P.S. reading material to enrich our...

Bernard Fellay The first text reached the Vatican in December, but it was considered inadequate: the Holy See called for a new document, which has just arrived and is now being examined Andrea TornielliVatican City   The true response of the superior of the Fraternity of Saint Pius X, Bernard Fellay, formulated according to the requests of the Holy See, arrived at the Vatican just last week. The first reply, received by the Vatican on 21 December, was not considered adequate by Vatican authorities, who urged the head of the Lefebvrians to redraft it, considering the first delivery as more of...

While the neo-conservative Polish Bishops lead the country slowly into the abyss, the apostolate of the SSPX blooms in the land. (kreuz.net) The apostlate of the Society of St. Pius X is growing "surprisingly fast" even for the conditions of the Society. This was written by the District Superior for East Europe, Fr. Karl Stehlin in his Christmas letter. The Society can only devote twelve priests in eastern Europe. Actually, the present pastoral work would require thirty priests -- so says Father Stehlin. In Warsaw the Fathers will be shortly leading a third old Mass on Sunday. Every week there...

The traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) has delivered its official response to a Vatican offer for reconciliation, but the response is not what the Holy See expected, reports leading Vatican journalist Andrea Tornielli. Last week the SSPX submitted a response to the “Doctrinal Preamble” that was presented to the traditionalist group in September as the possible basis for a reconciliation with the Holy See. The document allowed for some amendment or clarification, but the Vatican made it clear that the SSPX would be expected to accept the essence of the statement, acknowledging the authority of Vatican II, before...

Bishop Bernard Fellay, the Superior General of the Society of Saint Pius X (FSSPX / SSPX), said it in his sermon of December 8: the Roman proposals are at each time more interesting, but in their formulations there remains a point with a bitter taste, that demands before everything else the concession that Vatican II is consistent with the Tradition of the Church. Following the declarations of His Swiss Excellency, pressure mounts, minds are enkindled. Now that the familiar sirens wave anew the red flag of definitive schism, that vaticanist Tornielli lets himself be taken by feeling - by imagining...

From Our Store: Essays in Apologetics, Volume I (eBook) What is finally emerging as the sticking point between the Vatican and the Society of Saint Pius X is the question of the assent owed to the Second Vatican Council. This is now the subject of an important essay in L’Osservatore Romano by one of the key negotiators for the Vatican, the vicar general of Opus Dei, Msgr. Fernando Ocariz. Note that there is a link to the full text at the end of our news story, which itself includes substantial quotations.I hate to say I told you so, but Msgr. Ocariz...

St. Pius X Society superior general Bishop Bernard Fellay Rome, Italy, Nov 29, 2011 / 01:16 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X says he will inform the Vatican “in the next few days” that they cannot give the doctrinal reassurances required of them to advance reconciliation with the Catholic Church.“It is true that this Doctrinal Preamble cannot receive our endorsement,” said Bishop Bernard Fellay on the society’s website, Nov. 28. However, Bishop Fellay said his understanding is that the document is “not a definite text” and that it “can be clarified and...

Q. Why is the Doctrinal Preamble that Cardinal Levada delivered to you on September 14 still surrounded by so much secrecy, both on the part of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and by the Society of St. Pius X? What is this silence hiding from the priests and faithful of Tradition? A. This discretion is normal for any important proceeding; it ensures the seriousness of it. It so happens that the Doctrinal Preamble that was delivered to us is a document which can be clarified and modified, as the accompanying note points out. It is not a...

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Jewish groups have called on the Vatican to suspend reconciliation talks with a traditionalist group after one of its bishops argued that the Jewish people were responsible for the death of Jesus. "Comments like these take us back decades to the dark days before there was a meaningful and mutually respectful dialogue between Jews and Roman Catholics," Chief Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, president of the Conference of European Rabbis, said in a statement Oct. 19. "We call upon the Catholic Church to suspend negotiations with extremist Catholic tendencies until it is clear that these groups show a...

Fr. Niklaus Pfluger Rome, Italy, Oct 4, 2011 / 03:01 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- A senior figure in the breakaway traditionalist group, the Society of St. Pius X, says it could “very, very difficult” for the Vatican and the Society to agree terms for reconciliation. “Assisi III and even more the unfortunate beatification of John Paul II but also many other examples make it clear that the leadership of the Church now as before is not ready to give up the false principles of Vatican II and their consequences,” said the Society’s First Assistant, Father Niklaus Pfluger, in an interview...

During an interview the SSPX Superior for Germany, Fr. Franz Schmidberger, made and interesting comment about the Holy Father’s visit in Germany. Original German.He gave an opinion about the style of the Papal Masses.The following is from the translation provided by our friends at Rorate who are deeply tapped into SSPX veins. Q: What do you as the District Superior think of a celebration of the Eucharist in a football stadium with a colorful opening act and with both boys and girls serving as altar servers?Fr. Schmidberger: All those mass meeting have in them the danger of an “event”, that...

New York, NY, September 16, 2011 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) urges the Vatican to ensure that a breakaway Catholic sect which teaches anti-Judaism will be required to accept the church's official positive teachings about Jews and Judaism before they are fully accepted back into the Roman Catholic Church. The Vatican announced earlier this week that in order for The Society of St. Pius X to gain full reconciliation with the church, SSPX must accept some core church teachings, but they have not been made public. It was unclear from news reports and Vatican statements whether the landmark reforms of...

VATICAN CITY, 14 SEP 2011 (VIS) - At midday today the Holy See Press Office released the following communique concerning the postion of the Society of St. Pius X: "On 14 September at the offices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal William Joseph Levada, prefect of the congregation and president of the Pontifical Commission 'Ecclesia Dei'; Archbishop Luis Francisco Ladaria Ferrer S.J., secretary of the congregation, and Msgr. Guido Pozzo, secretary of the pontifical commission, met with Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior general of the Society of St. Pius X, who was accompanied by Fr. Niklaus Pfluger...

The Vatican is close to an agreement with the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) that would regularize the status of the breakaway traditionalist group, according to a report in Le Figaro. Jean-Marie Guenois, the veteran religion correspondent for the French daily, predicts that a September 14 meeting between the SSPX leader, Bishop Bernard Fellay, and key Vatican officials will lead quickly to a resolution of the split that began in 1998 when the late Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre ordained 4 traditionalist bishops without permission from Rome, resulting in the excommunication of the SSPX leaders. Pope Benedict XVI lifted the excommunications...