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Dr. Kwasniewski: Worst crisis in Church history is happening right now It is manifestly the case that the modern(ist) crisis is far worse than all the earlier ones put together.On June 8, 2026, a journalist named Wouter J. Suenens published an article at The Catholic Herald entitled “The Traditional Latin Mass does not need the SSPX.” In this article he claimed that the crisis through which the Church is passing today is just one of many in her history, and not even the worst. On this basis he maintains that the Society of St. Pius X is guilty of poor...

[Catholic Caucus] Jesuit priest says he ‘hates’ Traditional Latin Mass and criticises Pope Benedict XVI Jesuit priest Fr Thomas Reese SJ has explained why he “hates” the Traditional Latin Mass and criticised Pope Benedict XVI’s approach to liturgical reformJesuit priest Fr Thomas Reese SJ has written a column entitled “Why I hate the Latin Mass”. The column takes the form of the priest pretending to go to confession. He begins by telling the imaginary confessor: “It has been a week since my last column, I mean my last confession. Since that time, I have expressed hatred toward the old Latin...

[Catholic Caucus] An Interview with Don Pietro Leone in which he discusses his latest book: Vatican II and the Eclipse of God - A Critique of the Council 'In this final version I have been forced to level the charge of atheism against the Council'.CARL HEINRICH BLOCH - THE MOCKING OF CHRIST, 1880"Our Lord is attacked; eternal life is endangered. We have seen the consequences in these postconciliar years. An entirely reprehensible spirit of insubordination has entered the Vatican, a “fertility goddess” is venerated in St. Peter's. This belongs to a context and cannot be passed over in silence."Interview with...

[Catholic Caucus] Leo XIV says we shouldn’t ‘retreat into our own religious certainties’ Contrary to what Leo suggested, the Church has never seen a conflict between 'religious certainties' and an 'authentic relationship with Christ.'In his recent Angelus message, Leo XIV introduced a puzzling dichotomy to call into question “religious certainties”:“Dear brothers and sisters, let us seek not to retreat into our own convictions and religious certainties, but to remain open to an authentic relationship with Christ.”According to Leo, one must choose between our “convictions and religious certainties” on the one hand, and an “authentic relationship with Christ” on the other....

[Catholic Caucus] NEW BOOK: Publication of 'Vatican II and The Eclipse of God. A Critique of the Council' by Don Pietro Leone Rorate Caeli is delighted to report that “Vatican II and the Eclipse of God” ‘A Critique of the Council’ by Don Pietro Leone has finally been published. Readers will recall that Rorate had the honour of posting instalments of this very important work over a period of two years. (See note)* Since then, the author has added further analysis to the original texts. Below is the link to Loreto Publications and a short presentation of the book. Readers...

[Catholic Caucus] Latin Mass suppression left this monastery to face ‘sacramental euthanasia’ Dom Alcuin Reid, founding prior of a traditional Benedictine monastery, called Latin Mass restrictions a product of 'narrow-minded Vatican II extremists.'A French Benedictine monastery revealed that Pope Francis’s restrictions on the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) left it without the ordinations needed to sustain its sacramental life.On August 16, Ad Vaticanum published an interview with Dom Alcuin Reid, founding prior of the Monastère Saint-Benoît in Provence, France. Reid described how Pope Francis’ 2021 restrictions on the Traditional Latin Mass affected his community, saying the monastery ultimately accepted ordinations from...

[Catholic Caucus] Unspeakable horror: lay Eucharistic Ministers and Communion in the handIf you are presently receiving Communion in the hand or serving as a Eucharistic Minister, then please prayerfully stop. Here's why...Not a great photo but if you look carefully, you’ll see the angels catching Our Lord’s Precious Blood with chalices. There’s a reason for that so please read on…Among the many moving scenes in Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ film is the scourging at the pillar. Often sugar-coated in fine art over the centuries, Gibson depicted it as it was all those centuries ago in pagan-occupied Palestine: sheer,...

[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] Leo invokes 1970s talking points to defend Vatican II’s liturgical revolution'The liturgical assembly is in fact fulfilled through the active participation of brothers and sisters,' he said during an audience.A quick glance at Leo XIV’s August 12 audience on the liturgical year suggests it was a run-of-the-mill catechetical lesson.But a closer look reveals that his address on the Second Vatican Council’s document Sacrosanctum Concilium is cloaked in decades-old modernist talking points.Looking at the meat of Leo’s address, it becomes clear that his emphasis on the Eucharist, the Resurrection, the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints, along with his...

[Catholic Caucus] Bishop Strickland asks whether Vatican II surrendered to modernism Bishop Joseph Strickland pointed out that Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger once described Gaudium et Spes as a kind of ‘counter syllabus’ in opposition to Pope Pius IX’s Syllabus of Errors. Bishop Joseph Strickland questioned in a recent video address whether the Second Vatican Council compromised with the modern world.Strickland highlighted the dangers of modernism as well as Pope St. Pius X’s warnings against this “synthesis of all heresies.” The bishop pointed out that in 1910 the saintly pope required priests, bishops, and others “entrusted with teaching the Catholic faith” to...

How to be a DhimmiIn late July, some 60,000 migrants surged into the Spanish North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco. The migrants were mainly young males. And since 99 percent of Moroccans practice Islam, most were almost certainly Muslim. Ceuta is not a Spanish colony. It’s an “autonomous city” integral to the Spanish state, with Spanish sovereignty dating back to 1580. It’s thus a (hoped for) gateway to the European Union, and a priority target of “undocumented” immigration.Spanish police pushed most of the migrants back across the border. They left behind – as the Wall Street Journal noted –...

Indian Catholics remain jailed for defending parish from Hindu mob during MassA group of Catholics in India have been jailed for three months and were denied bail again this week after trying to stop Hindu activists from disrupting Holy Mass.Ten Catholics from the Bandaria parish in the Indian Diocese of Udaipur were denied bail again this week and remain incarcerated three months after being arrested and charged with wrongful restraint, illegal conversion, rioting, attempted murder, and breach of peace, after defending their Mass site from a group of Hindus who forced their way inside during Mass. Father Arvind Amliyar, the...

[Catholic Caucus] Latest Book by Fr. Claude Barthe Compares & Contrasts the Traditional & New Sacramental RitesIn 1969, A Short Critical Study of the Novus Ordo Missae was published with the signatures of two powerful cardinals, Bacci and Ottaviani. Nicknamed The Ottaviani Intervention, it quickly become a classic, and has never gone out of print. But... where was its companion volume? You know, the one about the other six sacraments? For, indeed, the reform of the Mass was accompanied by a profound overhaul of all the other sacraments—baptism, confirmation, marriage, holy orders, penance, and extreme unction (the last two renamed...

[Catholic Caucus] Guest Post: Daniel Graham Gives a History Lesson on the Crisis in the ChurchI'm delighted to post this article from Daniel Graham, author of Lex Orandi, a book that gives a side-by-side comparison of all the sacraments before and after the changes made in the spirit of Vatican II. Every concerned Catholic should know exactly what we've lost. I highly recommend Dan's book. Only when we understand what's been lost can we be like the woman in the parable who sweeps her house looking for her lost coin and rejoicing when she finds it. Those of us who...

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...

[Catholic Caucus] Benedict XVI and Vatican II Condemn Leo XIV’s Synodal RevolutionBenedict XVI's own words dismantle the Vatican's case against the SSPX. Read his statements alongside Leo XIV's current treatment of Tradition, Vatican II, and Synodality, and you'll notice that Benedict's criticism applies more to today's Vatican than to Archbishop Lefebvre.As Leo XIV stated prior to the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) proceeding with the episcopal consecrations without his approval, he believes that the real problem with the SSPX is that it does not accept certain teachings of Vatican II:“Certainly, division among Christians is always a painful matter. But...

SSPX is actually more faithful to Vatican II than the Vatican itselfLeo XIV and his Vatican actually reject certain key portions of Vatican II — on doctrinal development and ecumenism — that the SSPX accepts. When Leo XIV condemned the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) for refusing “to accept certain fundamental elements of the Church, beginning with various points of the Second Vatican Council,” most Catholics might have inferred that the pope considered complete acceptance of the teachings of Vatican II to be an essential requirement of the Faith. As such, it could come as a surprise to many...

[Catholic Caucus] Did Pope St. John XXIII Disobey Fatima?On the Third Part of the Secret of Fatima, part 4: Order Given, Order Thwarted?Between 1956 and 1957, there was an order from the Vatican for copies of all Lúcia’s writings to be sent to the Vatican. Of course, the issue of the third part of the Secret had arisen. It was not 1960 and the text was still within the sealed envelopes. When the matter of the third part was brought to Bishop da Silva, he ordered that the original, not a copy, be sent to Rome. To make a copy,...

Rome’s Punishment of the SSPX Reveals Vatican II’s God ProblemRome insists the SSPX deserves punishment, but what if that judgment reveals more about modern Rome than it does about the Society itself? The real issue isn't canonical penalties, but whether today's Vatican still measures religion according to God's unchanging truth... or according to the priorities of the Vatican II revolution. In our everyday lives, it is possible to evaluate many things without explicitly thinking about how God sees them. For example, when considering the best type of vehicle, the most reliable appliances, or the healthiest foods, we seldom ask ourselves...