Posted on 11/12/2021 7:23:14 PM PST by marshmallow
The picture that has been emerging of today’s papacy is one of a pope, with little or no regard for law and due process, governing a Church that has made disregard for law and tradition part of its ecclesiastical culture.
Pope Francis has issued a new decree in the form of a letter which some believe marks a wholly illegal papal power-grab over one of the world’s most ancient and unique institutions. To understand the complexity of this case, it is necessary to recall the events that have led up to this.
In late 2016, Pope Francis—in an act we all thought belonged to the history of the ‘dark age’ papacy—pressured the ruler of a sovereign state into abdication and seized control over it. The Pope thereby effectively toppled a monarch: Fra’ Matthew Festing, Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta (known simply as the Order of Malta), and the Order’s religious superior in full religious vows.
This 900-year-old military and hospitaller order is unique in being a religious order, an order of chivalry, an international aid charity, and a recognised sovereign state with its own territory (comprising the site of the Grand Magistry in Rome’s centre, and the Villa del Priorato di Malta on the Aventine Hill). The Order maintains diplomatic relations with many countries, has official positions with the European Union, and enjoys General Assembly observer-status at the United Nations. The Order even has its own currency and issues its own passports.
The controversy that led to Festing’s abdication began back in 2014. At a Chapter General, a group of theologically liberal German members attempted a takeover of the Order to marginalise Festing, whom they regarded as too conservative. Then, in 2016, Festing discovered that a.......
(Excerpt) Read more at europeanconservative.com ...
Festing died earlier today.
RIP. I hope he gets a traditional requiem.
Dictator Pope Ping
Asshat fake Pope and scumbag.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.