Posted on 09/11/2016 10:20:37 AM PDT by ebb tide
Bishop David Konderla--is reportedly shutting down the Society of the Most Sorrowful Mother--a Latin Mass Society of Exorcists Priests.
So here's the Situation: an anonymous priest of the Diocese of Tulsa has reportedly confirmed this week that Bishop Konderla informed the Society's Superior Fr. Chad Ripperger that he will not permit their Society to continue their work in the Tulsa diocese.
Newly Ordained Bishop David Konderla
This story was first released 2 days ago by The Hirsch Files blog, here LINK & here LINK. In fact, the Society's website TODAY was tellingly shut down, click HERE
Some Background: The Society of the Most Sorrowful Mother (SMD) was officially founded just last year in March, 2015 by His Excellency Bishop Edward Slattery, by means of a solemn proclamation during a Pontifical High Mass in Tulsa's cathedral. Repeat: solemn proclamation.
The Doloran Father's website describes their mission to:
provide the assistance of the rites and prayers of our Holy Mother, the Church to some of the most spiritually afflicted suffering souls, many unable to find relief or deliverance from their affliction for years.
And even before their official foundation, for several years these priests have provided full-time spiritual direction, counseling, and when necessary--exorcism-- to some of the most spiritually and psychologically afflicted souls of Eastern Oklahoma, with the full support of Bishop Slattery. (Catholic Encyclopedia on "Exorcism" LINK)
Their Winter 2016 Newsletter shares with joy their approval of being subject to the Ecclesia Dei Commission in Rome, which overseas all religious institutes that celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass.
Their founder, Bishop Slattery, served as Tulsa bishop from 1995 until this June of 2016 after his retirement. He was an open supporter of Pope Benedict XVI's vision for church restoration--especially to restore the Church's ancient Roman liturgy and spiritual traditions. He established 4 Latin Mass communities in the Tulsa diocese: Clear Creek monastery and convent, the Fraternity of St. Peter parish, and most recently these "Doloran Fathers" as they are affectionately called.
Bishop Edward Slattery. Described as one of the most dedicated bishops in the world to restoring traditional Catholic liturgy/spirituality.
HOWEVER...
Pope Francis appointed Fr. David Konderla of Austin, Texas to be the new Bishop of Tulsa, Oklahoma on May 16, 2013; he was ordained a bishop on June 29, 2016. You may recall my inquisitive blog post "New Tulsa Bishop" CLICK HERE
Just 2 months after becoming a bishop, Bishop Konderla has decided to shut down the SMD Doloran Fathers founded just 1 year earlier by his predecessor. (I'm pinching myself)
The Most Sorrowful Mother
Assessment:
All we know for certain AT THE MOMENT is that the new bishop has informed them their foundation no longer has approval to operate in the diocese, and they need to start bringing their apostolate to an end. Again friends, that is all we know so far.
The Diocese has not yet released an official communique explaining the Exorcist Society's suppression. My concern is they will be quietly SNUFFED OUT to more effectively bring them to an end. This would be a victory for Satan and Church Modernists.
Many Catholics in Tulsa continue to seek the spiritual help of these priests. Many donors and benefactors have helped with the foundation of the Society of the Most Sorrowful Mother. Several priests have committed their vocations to fighting Satan and giving relief to those tormented by demons.
Recommendation:
Please share this with other concerned Catholics, especially in the Tulsa area. Share it on Facebook.
Let us pray for the Doloran Fathers--the rosary, the St. Michael the Archangel prayer.
Let us voice our concern to the new bishop.
Questions:
Why exactly is Bishop Konderla shutting them down? Is this final?
How much of his decision is really his decision, vs. that of the "presbyteral council" (i.e. council of diocesan priests)?
Aren't these well-respected priests who have been nothing but Instruments of God's Mercy?
Are perhaps among the reasons that they celebrate exclusively the Traditional Latin Mass?
That they take a traditional Catholic attitude to spiritual combat, the devil, and reality of demonic possession?
Is this new bishop starting a program of progressive reform, "Pope Francis-style"? (recall the suppression of the Latin Mass in the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate order just months after the pope's election)
To reverse the traditional influence of his predecessor???
How then will he treat the Clear Creek monks and nuns, Fraternity of St. Peter priests, St. Peter and Paul's Latin Mass community, and other diocesan priests who value Catholic tradition? Or the laity attached to the traditional Mass?
Conclusion:
As I see it sitting here in my Okie armchair, I'm just reporting necessary facts now openly declared that Catholics of Oklahoma have a right to know about. For one, the donors and benefactors have a right to know about this development. But especially the many, many people who have been spiritually and psychologically comforted by these good priests.
Kyrie eleison.
What can be done about these heretic priests?
I was going to suggest that the Bishop take a more active role in every Church, like stopping in to say Mass at one parish each week. Unannounced, just to show up and visit with the common folk. Now I have 2 things to discuss.
To Bergoglio, capitalism is how Satan reveals himself in this world, not through demonic possession.
Why would those influenced by Satan wish to allow that which would fight off Satan?
As much as I don’t like how this looks on its face, given that this is a very new society, the bishop is probably completely in his rights to ask them to stop. Forming a new religious order or Society of Apostolic life takes quite a bit of time and goes through a number of steps. My guess is that, while they refer to themselves as a ‘Society’, that they were a Private Association of the Faithful in the early stages toward becoming a Society of Apostolic Life. Maybe the bishop’s reasons are good and maybe not.
Some of the other groups, including the FSSP, the Clear Creek monks, and the Latin Mass communities have different statuses, which would provide them considerably more rights than it would seem the Doloran Fathers had.
This bishop is reversing his predecessor’s approval of the society. Also, the society had been approved of being subject to the Ecclesia Dei Commission in Rome.
I don’t understand your concerns.
My concern is that neither you nor the author seems to understand the way that an Institute of Consecrated Life or a Society of Apostolic Life comes to be erected under Canon Law. It doesn't happen all at once -- it happens in stages, and at each stage, the Diocesan Bishop must approve. As the Order/Society progresses, it has more rights under Canon Law (and is harder for a Diocesan Bishop to suppress).
This was a new "Society" -- Yes, Bishop Slattery created it (as I said, most likely as a Private Association of the Faithful), and Ecclesia Dei approved of it. That said, if it is in fact a Private Association of the Faithful, the new bishop would be able to suppress it (though the benefactors do then have a right to know what is happening). Whether it was done in a "solemn proclamation" at a Pontifical Mass or a letter delivered to Fr. Ripperger privately matters not (though if I saw the text of the proclamation, that would clarify the status that I am speaking about above).
(Rant on) This is part of the reason why we as Traditional Catholics have had such a hard go of things in the past decades. Have we been treated badly? Certainly. However, there are too many folks who look at a situation like this and cast aspersions on the bishop without understanding 1) why he chose to ask the Society to stop its apostolate in the diocese or 2) the rights the Diocesan Bishop has to do just that and then 3) begin to stir up people by questioning what will happen to the rest of the Traditional orders and parishes (all of whom have more rights under Canon Law than a Private Association of the Faithful). This is especially true when one of the works is Exorcism, which falls under the oversight of the Diocesan Bishop.
In my opinion, the way The Okie Traditionalist has reported on this is imprudent bordering on irresponsible and will only hurt Traditional Catholics in Oklahoma. (Rant Off)
Yeah, I’m sure he had a good reason. /s
Please be sure to share it when the “truth” comes out.
First of all, I don’t consider, for one second, that you are a traditional Roman Catholic. Otherwise you would have known that Fr. Chad Ripperger, ordained in 1997, had been a long time member of the FSSP, for 18 years, and the author of quite a few orthodox books.
Secondly, your entire strawman is based on your personal assumption that the society is nothing more than a private assosciation.
But as a commentator stated on August 25, 2015, on the AKA Catholic website:
“To your point about Fr. Chad Ripperger the take away from your comment is “whilst still a priest of the FSSP” Fr. Chad Ripperger is no longer an active member of the FSSP that speaks volumes for those who know him. Fr. Chad Ripperger has gone deeper into new church and my prediction is that he will get burned for doing so. I could be wrong we will wait and see. I hope he does well.”
Looks like the waiting is over and Fr. Ripperger did get burned by francischurch/newchurch.
:o)That is a question Satan's minions would be asking.
Hard to believe sometimes, but exorcisms are STILL needed in this world. I thank our good Lord that we have priests to do that.
“:o)That is a question Satan’s minions would be asking. Hard to believe sometimes, but exorcisms are STILL needed in this world. I thank our good Lord that we have priests to do that.”
I apologize for my lack of clarity.
I was speaking of the bishop who is doing away with the exorcists.
I am quite aware of Fr. Ripperger and have been for some time. While I haven't read any of his books, I have read quite a few articles he has written in Latin Mass Magazine, including back from when he was a member of FSSP. I'm not questioning his orthodoxy or his motives in founding the Society -- what I'm talking about has nothing to do with any of that, and it seems that Bishop Konderla's decision is a loss for the Church.
Also,, I will also concede when I am wrong -- with a little more digging, I found that the Doloran Fathers were in fact established as a Society of Apostolic Life of Diocesan Right -- Bishop Slattery established them as such with unusual speed. The Okie Traditionalist should have mentioned that -- and you should have supplied the information if you knew it (my so-called "strawman" was based on the normal timeframe for an establishment of a new religious order/society). Being a Society of Apostolic Life of Diocesan Right means that the bishop can ask them to stop their works but he cannot outright suppress them without the approval of the Holy See, which in this case is the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei.
It puts them in a difficult spot. I won't say that what Bishop Konderla did was prudent, just, right, or good -- I'm not in a position to know any of that, especially his motivations. But I also can't say he doesn't have the right to do what he did. Praying for all involved helps. Stirring up the faithful and suggesting this could be the first salvo of an attack on other Traditional Catholics in the diocese does not.
Excellent points. Trads too frequently shout “fire” and even though the theatre is half-empty, it does get annoying for those responsible for trucks and ladders.
To continue with bizarre metaphors, much more progress would be made if trads did not compulsively cut off the nose to spite the face.
Ripperger has been a problem in the past. Until the matter becomes clear, should we not give the benefit of the doubt to the Bishop?
Those who don’t first look to their own bishop to explain his reasons are not exactly acting in good faith as Catholics. Thus they come across as ignorant and reactionary whiners and will continue to be ignored. And as long as their attitude is arrogant superiority over all those “moderns” and “N.O.” people, they deserve to be ignored.
Do you know the reason why Bishop Konderla asked them to stop? I certainly don’t.
However, until we find out the reason why he made this decision, Charity demands we presume the best of intentions, even when we disagree with the decision itself.
The attitude you show here is exactly the kind that I was speaking about in my earlier post — when we speak with such hostility toward the bishops that are not favorable to tradition, we give them an excuse to deny us a hearing and to reaffirm their prejudices againt the “bitter traditionalsts”.
I don’t know if Fr. Ripperger has been a “problem” in the past or not. It’s not important to me (though if true, it may be important to the bishop). What I do know is that we have a Society of Apostolic Life of Diocesan Right (SAL) that:
- was established very swiftly (usually it takes closer to decades to be erected as such)
- had very few members (in my bit of reading since my first post, I saw that Bishop Slattery had waited for a third priest before erecting it as a SAL)
- had exorcism and spiritual deliverance as its major apostolic work (while all apostolic works of a SAL of any sort are under oversight of the bishop, this is true in a special way for exorcism)
Perhaps most importantly — THIS IS A RUMOR THAT COMES FROM NEITHER THE DIOCESE NOR THE SOCIETY (The originator of the story has updated, and I will post below)
There is much uncertainty about this, but the three reasons I mention leave plenty of room for legitimate reasons that the bishop asked them to stop that have nothing to do with oppressing traditional Catholics. If there is any truth to the rumor, I would expect that there was some discussion behind the scenes between the bishop and Fr. Ripperger before reaching this point.
UPDATE
UPDATE: 11:00PM, 9-11-16
I am the progenitor of this news story. I broke it, and so the source of the news leads to me.
I have not been told by Fr. Ripperger, or other priest in the exorcism society, to take this news story down. However, I have been reading from other sources close to Father that he wants the laity to cease their chatter on this topic.
Rather than wait for them to contact me, I have elected to take the news story down. Please do not call the bishop to protest this action. Your prayers for this situation will be appreciated, I am sure.
Most importantly, and for the record, I MUST state that I am not a priest. I am not a priest from that society, nor am I close friends with any priest in the exorcist society. I am a layman in the diocese acting of his own accord when it comes to this blog.
http://thehirschfiles.blogspot.com/2016/09/pope-francis-new-tulsa-bishop.html?m=1
Yes, I see. It could be a confluence of issues for the bishop, and we may never know the exact reasoning. It’s easy to imagine some complexities that may have arisen even in just a year. Exorcism is a complex and misunderstood thing. Exorcism also must always fall directly under the bishop’s supervision, the rites performed only on a case-by-case basis. That may have been the reason for a special group, but it also could have led to some unforeseen obstacle when handled by a SAL.
I don’t see this so much as a new bishop squashing trad priests. My initial thought was something is not going smoothly, perhaps thru no fault of Ripperger or the priests, maybe just administratively or pastorally. Most dioceses, including larger ones that this, only have 1 or 2 exorcists and they do not work in a “free lance” way. But as you say, we cannot surmise the reasoning from the loose info we have so far. Thanks.
Sorry you are living in a dream world.
The fact that those Catholics who actually follow the Catholic Faith and Tradition have to walk on eggshells around the Modernists in the Church is not our fault. In Billy Joel’s words, “We didn’t start the fire”.
You are kidding yourself if you think things would be that much different if those angry traditionalists would just shut up and “play nice”.
The update to this story tells me nor proves nothing. Other than perhaps Fr Rippberger was silenced on the matter. Rather than telling the laity to stop their chatter perhaps he should let us all know why this happened.
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