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Yes we will be shunned and scorned for bringing up these important problems with Vatican II documents. But, all the prophets were shunned and killed for criticizing the leaders of the people of God, the Israelites. We are so blessed to be traditional Catholics and to know there was a Catholic Church and many councils before 1963.

In 2014, how can grown men write this with a straight face? International Theological Commission of the Catholic Church The Church had one Pentecost. One. The Church does not need new foundations, she is not a country in search of new constitutional orders. Enough is enough: 50 years of collapse of the sensus catholicus, collapse of Catholic life in all countries where the Church was firmly established in Europe and the Americas, near-disappearance of all Catholic communities across the Middle East (in this case, mostly through no fault of the hierarchy, but still indicating that speaking of a "new Pentecost"...

(Barcelona / Rome) Does the Congregation of Religious suffer from a villainous portrait of tradition? This question has hung in the air since last weekend. The Franciscan José Rodriguez Carballo, for a year secretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, participated in a Conference of Religious of Catalonia. In his speech he delivered last Saturday without directly mentioning the Order by name, gave a first official hint as to why the Franciscans of the Immaculate have been reprimanded by his Congregation. The reason implied much to the young religious Order, and is of...

Pope Francis has issued a message on the occasion of a symposium devoted to the 50th anniversary of Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. Stating that the anniversary evokes “sentiments of gratitude for the profound and widespread renewal of liturgical life made possible by the conciliar Magisterium, to the glory of God and the edification of the Church,” the Pope called for a renewal in the “commitment to receive and implement” the document’s teaching in a fuller manner. Pope Francis said that the Constitution and the postconciliar Magisterium “have made us better understand the liturgy...

The head of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) has denounced Vatican II, described the post-conciliar liturgy as “evil,” and said that he is grateful the group never reached an accommodation with the Holy See. In a provocative address to the Kansas City audience, Bishop Bernard Fellay said: “It is has never been our intention to pretend either that the Council would be considered as good, or the New Mass would be ‘legitimate.’” He said that although the Novus Ordo Mass introduced after Vatican II may be valid, “The New Mass is bad, it is evil.” Bishop Fellay...

"And we know that this Council of the media was accessible to all. So, dominant, more efficient, this Council created many calamities, so many problems, so much misery, in reality: seminaries closed, convents closed liturgy trivialized... and the true Council has struggled to materialize, to be realized: the virtual Council was stronger than the real Council." - Pope Benedict XVI - (www.RemnantNewspaper.com) Pope Benedict XVI has declared in what is likely to be his last address to the clergy of his diocese of Rome that he will vacate the chair of Peter completely committed to the Second Vatican Council. If...

Just two little words in a carefully written text of the Second Vatican Council carry tremendous significance in terms of the emphasis that text was meant to convey. Two little words, so easily overlooked, add urgency to the task for evangelization, and usher in a reminder of why the task of the Church in announcing Jesus Christ is so critical.What are these words? Simply these:“But often….”Perhaps you are less than amazed and wonder what they could have to do with evangelization, let alone urgency. These words occur in a critical text of the Second Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium # 16,...

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...

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...

Pilgrims at the World Youth Day closing Mass (Photo: CNS)A friend has forwarded to me an interesting blog, dated September 28, by Fr Stephen Wang of the Westminster diocese. Entitled “Liberal, conservative, progressive, traditionalist: where is the Church going?” it throws open a debate about an article written by John Allen of the National Catholic Reporter at the conclusion to World Youth Day.In his article, Allen thinks the Church is turning towards “Evangelical Catholicism”. He defines this as having three aspects: 1. A strong defence of traditional Catholic identity, meaning attachment to classic markers of Catholic thought (doctrinal orthodoxy) and...

  Last week, I chronicled something of the bafflement that ensued as I was confronted with the weirdly malleable term "neo-Catholic." Judging from the combox discussion that followed, many readers share the tremendous confusion surrounding the term. Did it denote converts or those who loathe converts? Was it code for "neocon" or for non-neocon? Was it meant to denote a political or theological group? Was it a floor cleaner or a dessert topping? So many questions!   In response to my bafflement over the meaning of the term, one of my readers finally replied:   In the past, when...

CMR is known for its parodies. But I promise you, this is not a parody. It comes from a book published by the Liturgical Conference in 1969 called Manual of Celebration by Robert Hovda (who is also widely known as one of the chief authors of the 1978 bishops' document on church architecture, Environment and Art in Catholic Worship.) If you think the choices in your parish are bad today, here's a real trip to 40 years ago..."A Scriptural Service for a Community Experience of the Sacrament of Penance"(The following is a more ambitious penance service than is usual....

I first met Sioux City, Iowa Bishop Walker Nickless a month ago at the Serra International gathering in Omaha, Neb. Little did I know then that he was working on his bold first pastoral letter since his installation as bishop four years ago. Ecclesia Semper Reformanda (The Church is Always in Need of Renewal), released yesterday, takes a look at the impact of the Second Vatican Council and sets forth a plan for the people of Sioux City and beyond. In many ways, it’s a pastoral letter unlike one we’ve yet seen. Forty-four years after the close of the...

The success of future talks with the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) depends to a great extent on whether the parties can come to an understanding about Vatican II. The questions are not new: even after the Lefebvrite schism the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei has discussed the disputed points with traditionalist believers. But how are we to understand the requirement that someone should take up unreservedly a position based on the Council? Moreover the demand for complete acknowledgment of all the conciliar documents is made by people who for their part are far from complying with this demand. The...

Most Catholics in 1959 probably didn't even know what an ecumenical council was. And yet, here it was. Pope John XXIII announced that the goals of the Second Vatican Council would be "the renewal of the spirit of the Gospel in the hearts of people everywhere and the adjustment of Christian discipline to modern-day living" -- a proclamation that was on the face of it ambiguous. How was authentic renewal to be achieved? How should essential discipline be adjusted to modern culture?   John was a relentless optimist, inclined always to look for good in the world, disinclined to...

From the Italian news agency ANSA, this news (ht: National Catholic Register):The Society of Saint Pius X whose ultratraditionalist bishops were recently rehabilitated by Pope Benedict XVI will not accept the reforms introduced by the Second Vatican Council, the head of the order has told a Swiss paper. Monsignor Bernard Fellay told the daily Le Courier on Thursday that the Council has caused the Catholic Church ''only damages''. ''The aftermath of the Council has been to empty seminaries, nunneries and churches. Thousands of priests have left their orders and millions of faithful have stopped being practicing Catholics and have joined...

PARIS (Reuters) - An ultra-traditionalist bishop seeking rehabilitation from the Vatican said in an interview on Wednesday that his breakaway movement could not fully accept landmark 20th century church reforms, as his critics demand. Bishop Fellay, whose excommunication was lifted last month along with those of three other bishops, said his Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) did not agree with a key document of the Second Vatican Council on respecting other religions. He also told the French weekly Famille Chretienne he did not reject the 1962-1965 Council completely but only "a dangerous spirit that runs through the whole Council"...

Washington DC, Feb 6, 2009 / 03:23 am (CNA).- Catholic commentator George Weigel has suggested that the Society of St. Pius X’s (SSPX) response to the lifting of the excommunications of its leaders may not bode well for the full reunion of the traditionalist breakaway group with Rome. Writing in a Jan. 26 issue of Newsweek, Weigel said SSPX leader Bishop Bernard Fellay’s Jan. 24 letter to society adherents may be seen by some as a “unilateral declaration of victory.”The bishop’s letter said that “Catholic Tradition is no longer excommunicated” and affirms “all the councils up to the Second Vatican...

In 1850, Cardinal Nicholas Wiseman wrote his fellow-Englishmen from Rome, announcing that Pius IX had restored the diocesan hierarchy in England and that he, Wiseman, would be cardinal archbishop of Westminster. “From Out the Flaminian Gate,” a pastoral letter longer on baroque rhetoric than ecumenical diplomacy, caused a perfect storm in Protestant England. Queen Victoria wondered whether she remained the sovereign. Lord John Russell, the prime minister, said he would rely on the good sense of the English people, who “looked with contempt on the mummeries of superstition.” The Anglican archbishop of York warned that Rome was plotting Anglicanism’s “captivity...

The last few days have been have been amazing for the Church in America. I spent the last few days watching events and reading speeches. With all the hoopla surrounding the papal visit, I wondered if there might be some stories that you and I have missed. After the mass at Yankee stadium, I have spent the last few hours trying catching up. With papal speeches still clinging to my brain, slowly completing the osmosis process, I saw a thread in some of this other news that I might have missed otherwise. Prior to the Pope's election three years ago,...