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[Catholic Caucus] Pope Leo calls on priests to ‘respect’ the post-Vatican II liturgies in new letter In a recent letter publicly released today, Pope Leo XIV said that anyone involved in preparing liturgies, especially priests, must show “respect” for the liturgical rites of the Second Vatican Council.The letter, addressed to Cardinal Arthur Roche, the head of the Vatican’s liturgy office and dated June 29, is the latest in a series of strong signals Pope Leo has sent indicating he does not plan to reverse Pope Francis’ restrictions on the pre-Vatican II Latin Mass.“In order to promote the dignified celebration of...

[Catholic Caucus] Leo XIV Backs Liturgical Program after 'Traditionis Custodes' Leo XIV has sent a message to Cardinal Arthur Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship. The occasion is a meeting at Mount Angel Abbey in Oregon devoted to liturgical formation. Dated June 29, the brief message was published today in the Vatican bulletin. The text appears to reinforce Cardinal Roche’s recent statement that Leo XIV does not intend to abolish Traditionis Custodes. Leo XIV calls for respect for “the rites promulgated by Pope Saint Paul VI and Pope Saint John Paul II.” He adds that this respect must...

[Catholic Caucus] Only Diocesan TLM in Diocese of Pittsburgh Abolished The Diocese of Pittsburgh has canceled its only remaining diocesan indult Latin Mass, at St Titus in Aliquippa, about to enter its 20th consecutive year, because according to Bishop Eckman, it "was only ever meant to be temporary." (Information from the X account of the Mason-Dixon Latin Mass Society, which published the grotesque letter below):

Catholic Star Wars: The SSPX Excommunication as You’ve Never Seen ItOne of the year's biggest Catholic controversies in a witty, self-deprecating parody (think exiles, empires, liturgical battles, etc.). Whether you agree or disagree, this take explores why so many faithful Catholics feel like they're the rebels in their own Church. A fortnight ago, I attended the illicit episcopal consecrations in Écône to bid farewell to the SSPX as newly separated brethren (again). I did so because I was in the neighbourhood and I could; more so as an observer than participant, because I was loth to incur the wrath and...

Suicide is Canonized, Another Latin Mass is Banned, and an Openly “Gay” Priest Gives Lectures on “Living Queer.” Meanwhile the SSPX is in “Schism.”A suicide memorial, Lutheran worship in a Catholic sanctuary, a suppressed Latin Mass, and the boundaries of Leo XIV’s open-door ChurchChicago’s Pastoral CanonizationOn June 26, the Archdiocese of Chicago dedicated a memorial called At Peace near the main entrance of Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois. The memorial offers families affected by suicide a place for prayer, remembrance, and mourning. Bishop Lawrence Sullivan described it as a visible sign that grieving families remain within God’s loving...

Cardinal Koch falsely claims ‘no salvation outside the Church’ only applies to CatholicsEven the salvation of those remaining outside the Church ‘through no grave fault of their own’ is effected through the graces of the Catholic Church.Cardinal Kurt Koch has erroneously claimed that the doctrine “no salvation outside the Church” only applies to Catholics who already believe the Catholic Church “points the way” to salvation.In an interview with Koch the day following the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) episcopal consecrations, German theologian Jan-Heiner Tück asked the cardinal why extra ecclesiam nulla salus (“no salvation outside the Church”) has become...

A systematic dissection of the Vatican’s legal framework reveals what independent canonists and traditionalists view as a deep-seated crisis of consistency within modern Catholic governance. When the theological and legal arguments used against the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) are laid bare alongside the treatment of the Eastern Orthodox amd protestants, the structural defense provided by Rome (that it is merely maintaining public order and guarding the sacred nature of the sacramental contract) it effectively implodes under the weight of its own internal contradictions. What remains is a system that appears to onlookers not as a defense of immutable...