Video on Walsingham Pilgrimage

From Rorate Caeli:

This video was put together by the Latin Mass Society about the recent Pilgrimage to Walsingham in England, this involved walking the 55 miles from Ely, the traditional pilgrims' route.
 
 

On the last day of the Month of the Rosary: the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Fr. Domenico Zipoli
Litaniae Lauretanae in C

Fr. Domenico Zipoli, S.I. (1688-1726), a Tuscan, was active in the Jesuit missions of Paraguay (now in Paraguay, Northeast Argentina and Southern Brazil).

An explosion of converts and priests! (during the reign of Pius XII)

So allow me to do a bit of public school math:  If, at the time of Pope Pius XII's death in 1958, the United States had almost 37,000 seminarians, and by 1965 (the year the Council ended) the U.S. had approximately 47,000 seminarians...why do we now have around 5,000?

Oh yes, silly me:  We are in the "Springtime" of Vatican II.

From Rorate Caeli:

There's been a lot of talk lately about proselytizing, the "new evangelization," etc. Many of these same people who think the Church has it all right now say that the Church was broken pre-Vatican II. That no one understood the Latin Mass and it had to go. That the rigid Church turned off non-Catholics and that the firm stand against false ecumenism was a barrier to great conversions of non-Catholics. 

A priest reader of Rorate recently saw a 1959 version of the Kenedy Directory (now The Official Catholic Directory) for sale and purchased it. As the priest tells us: "Much to my joyful surprise, there was a beautiful tribute page to Pope Pius XII, this being the first Directory published after his death."

For those who say we are now living in the greatest age of the Church, let us consider the numbers below. They are remarkable, to say the least:

While all these numbers may make one yearn for the Church of old, a few of them are truly staggering for the modern mind to comprehend in today's Catholic-lite world: a 200+% increase in American converts; a nearly 250% increase in seminaries built; a 200+% increase in seminarians; and a 50% increase in priests. All of this happened over Pius XII's glorious 19-year-reign. 

While we would never criticize the canonization of a saint, we can say, looking at these numbers, that there may be one venerable former pontiff who is conspicuously missing from the lineup on April 27.

"You can keep you plan..." Right!

Diary of a Latin Mass Wedding

It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. Back in the 1990s, all the best people knew the Latin Mass wouldn’t last.

Nevertheless, at the behest of Pope John Paul II, in bishops’ palaces around the world a grudging ’accommodation’ was made to those faithful who were — albeit inexplicably — still ‘attached’ to the old Form of the Mass. (In this way, it was to be hoped, the old Mass would quietly die out with those die-hards in the old generation.)

But it didn’t happen that way.

Today, this inexplicable ‘attachment’ has spread far and wide — and most rapidly and passionately, among young, serious Catholics.

Herewith then, is the story of a young couple, amid photos of their magnificent wedding that ‘all the best people’ would never have believed possible — in Latin, in Connecticut, in 2013. (With honeymoon photos in Rome!)

“At first, I was fascinated by the concept of Mass in an ancient and otherwise silent language. I wanted to hear it, just once. When I went, I felt like I was living inside a movie. It felt like something transcendent.”

KERRY HARRISON’S STORY: I’m 26 and Peter is 27. I am from Connecticut — Peter is from the Boston area originally, but moved to Connecticut to work for the Knights of Columbus Headquarters in New Haven, CT. We got engaged on our one year anniversary, at church after the Easter Vigil Mass, at the stroke of midnight.

HOW I FOUND THE LATIN MASS: I’ve been attending the TLM since 2009. I took Latin in school, and one day someone told me, “Did you know that in the Middle Ages the Mass used to be in Latin?” I thought, “I wish that still happened, somewhere on earth.” Then, I found out there was a traditional Latin Mass at St. Agnes in New York City, so I started taking the train from Connecticut to attend. I had no idea there were any TLMs anywhere else, much less any in Connecticut.

PETER IS INTRODUCED TO THE LATIN MASS: Peter had gone to one TLM before, in college, but since he didn’t know the Latin, he was a bit lost. When we went on our first date, I told him how I loved this Mass, and said he was welcome to come any Sunday. He showed up the next day. However, it was Palm Sunday, and he didn’t know that meant a two hour liturgy, followed by a Gregorian chant procession through the city streets, and an hours-long brunch, quaintly termed “coffee hour”. I think the poor man was in shock.

HOW THE LATIN MASS DEEPENED MY FAITH: At first, I was fascinated by the concept of Mass in an ancient and otherwise silent language. I wanted to hear it, just once. When I went, it felt absolutely otherworldly. I found it wasn’t so hard to believe, after all. When you realize that your grandparents, and great-grandparents, and great-great grandparents, all the saints and doctors of the Church, have prayed these same prayers, repeated these same words, you realize how small you are in the vastness of time, how little you are and how big God is. And you begin to really love Him for loving you.

THE POINT IS TO ‘GET LOST’: One of the best pieces of advice I got is that you’re not really going to get it at first, and that’s normal. You can go every week and months in, still get totally lost. It’s not a play. The priest is doing one thing, the choir is doing another, the altar boys are doing something, and a bell is ringing, all at the same time. You don’t know where you’re supposed to look. But that’s okay, and knowing where you are in the Mass isn’t the goal. If you get lost in prayer, or reading and re-reading one part while everyone else has moved on, or you forget to care what the words mean when the chant takes your breath away, then, in my mind, you really have met the goal. The POINT is to ‘get lost.’

WHAT ABOUT CHASTITY? I would say that I think it’s critical for the formation of a healthy relationship. If you use sex from the start as a means of fixing fights or providing entertainment when you’re bored, I think you cheat yourself of a lot of information. You may use intimacy as a crutch, instead of realizing, “We fight a lot” or “I’m bored… we don’t have that much in common”. You skip a lot of steps, instead of seeing if the relationship has real staying power and real compatibility. The Church doesn’t teach what it does because it enjoys being a fun-squasher. It teaches what it does because God knows us better than we know ourselves sometimes, and because God wants to call us to be better than our human nature often does. I don’t think too many people regret holding out on sex. I think a lot more people regret too much, too fast, too soon.

A RELATIONSHIP BASED ON TRUTH: On our first date, we started talking about politics. I began to say, “I think the most important issue today is -” and he finished my sentence with the exact words I was going to use: “the right to life. Because without that right, all other rights are meaningless.” We both began to realize that we saw the world the same way. Our unity on this issue has drawn us closer together and been the basis for a relationship based on truth rather than the lies our society is often selling.

WHAT PEOPLE SAID ABOUT OUR LATIN MASS: My family knew that the wedding would be a TLM. (They’re usually pretty entertained by us.) Our practicing Catholic friends were very interested in the Mass, and our other friends seemed interested in the concept. I didn’t get a lot of questions beforehand about the Mass, one of my aunts wanted to know what it was so she could look it up. The response from guests was positive. Many people had never been to a Latin Mass before and found it very interesting. A few people thanked us for the opportunity to attend a TLM.

HOW I FEEL ABOUT MY LATIN MASS PARISH: I was so excited when I heard about the Latin Mass in Connecticut. I went the next Sunday and haven’t stopped since. That parish is a blessing in my life. I can’t describe how much I have learned and changed in the time since I found it, and how grateful I am for the wonderful people I’ve met at St. Mary’s in Norwalk, Connecticut. They’ve been with me through thick and thin, good days and bad. It really feels a lot like family.

The Royal Shave

Every man needs to have a real shave, at least once in their life.

What We Have Lost

Yesterday, The Feast of Christ the King, was celebrated throughout the traditional Catholic world (or before the late 1960s, simply everywhere).  The Mass we attended was a Solemn High Mass, in all its magnificence and glory.  The celebrant, and two other priests acting as deacon and sub-deacon, moved perfectly around the sanctuary, providing the faithful with the beauty of the faith rarely, if ever, seen by millions of modern (Novus Ordo) Catholics.

The celebrant gave one of the finest sermons I’ve ever heard.  He discussed the meaning of the sovereignty of Christ’s Kingship over all, and how the Council (in Dignitatis Humanae) stripped away that sovereignty into one of religious relativism.  He also discussed our current Holy Father, and emphasized the fact that this man on the Chair of Peter is, by his very statements, a flat out modernist, plain and simple.  He illustrated the point with the Holy Father’s recent public remark that “…who was he to judge” when it came to sins such as homosexuality.

Our celebrant reminded the faithful that the Holy Father was the successor to St. Peter, and therefore God’s representative here on earth.  It was his JOB to judge!

Following the Mass, the entire congregation had a procession for a few miles around the parish neighborhood, with Our Lord held high in the monstrance.  This procession of clergy, choir and the faithful made its way down the main streets, in front of numerous houses on that Sunday morning.

But the saddest part of that spectacle, once so common in all Catholic communities, is that this city of almost one million people, with over 70% Hispanic Roman Catholics is this:  Not one single person in front of their homes acknowledged Our Lord, and hit their knees in adoration and thanks.

And this, ladies & gentlemen, is what the Council and the “new springtime” has given us.  Catholics who haven’t a clue who they are, or what their faith is.  The Novus Ordo world is falling apart, and her bishops haven’t a clue as to why.

So what must we, the Traditionalists, do in such times?  Continue doing what we’ve done for 2,000 years.  Remain true to the Faith, to the Mass, and True to Catholic Rome.

“We hold firmly with all our heart and with all our mind to Catholic Rome, Guardian of the Catholic Faith and of the traditions necessary to the maintenance of this faith, to the eternal Rome, mistress of wisdom and truth. We refuse on the other hand, and have always refused, to follow the Rome of Neo-Modernist and Neo-Protestant tendencies which became clearly manifest during the Second Vatican Council, and after the Council, in all the reforms which issued from it.” -Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre

Today, Sunday, October 27th, is the Feast of Christ the King for those who celebrate the True Mass.  I  have no idea what day it is on the made-up Novus Ordo calendar, but then again, I don't care.  

But one thing is for sure:  Since the end of that horrendous council, they have uncrowned Him.

2013 Summorum Pontificum Pilgrimage - Mass in the Vatican Basilica

And to think that just 50 years ago, the True Mass was the ONLY Mass celebrated every day in St. Peter's.

From Rorate Caeli:





Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos celebrated the Pontifical Mass on the Altar of the Chair, crowning this year's Summorum Pontificum Pilgrimage. First images by Messa in Latino below:
 

 

The Remnant has put up the following video of the procession from Santa Maria in Vallicela to Saint Peter's Basilica, and of the Solemn Pontifical Mass that took place there.

Pope expels German 'luxury bishop' from diocese

By NICOLE WINFIELD and DANIELA PETROFF
Associated Press
VATICAN CITY
Pope Francis temporarily expelled a German bishop from his diocese on Wednesday because of a scandal over a 31-million-euro project to build a new residence complex, but refused popular calls to remove him permanently.

The Vatican didn't say how long Bishop Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst would spend away from the diocese of Limburg and gave no information on where he would go or what he would do. It said his fate would ultimately be decided by the outcome of a church commission investigation into the expenditures.

It said Limburg's vicar general, the Rev. Wolfgang Roesch, who had been due to take up his duties on Jan. 1, would start immediately and would run the diocese during Tebartz-van Elst's absence.

At the center of the controversy is the 31-million-euro ($42 million) price tag for the construction of a new bishop's residence complex and related renovations. Tebartz-van Elst has said the bill was actually for 10 projects and there were additional costs because of regulations on buildings under historical protection.

The Limburg scandal has been front-page news for weeks in the country where Martin Luther launched the Reformation five centuries ago in response to what he said were excesses and abuses within the church. The perceived lack of financial transparency has also struck a chord since a church tax in Germany brings in billions of euros a year to the German church.

The head of the German bishops' conference, Archbishop Robert Zollitsch, had been particularly blunt in his criticism of the expenditures and the credibility problem it was causing the church. He has said the church commission would investigate the costs of the renovation, the financing and how decisions about the restoration evolved. Canon lawyers are to determine if Tebartz-van Elst violated church law regarding the use of church money, he said.

The decision on the expulsion was taken after Francis met in the past week with Zollitsch and Tebartz-van Elst.

The Vatican stressed that Francis took the decision based on continuous and "objective" information, suggesting that the Vatican wasn't being swayed by the popular outcry over the scandal. At the same time, though, Francis has made clear he expects his bishops to live simply, setting as an example his own humble lifestyle.

In a statement, the Vatican said the situation in the diocese had become such that Tebartz-van Elst "at the current time cannot exercise his episcopal ministry."

Pending the results of the commission of inquiry, "the Holy See considers it opportune to authorize (Tebartz-van Elst) a period of time away from the diocese," the statement said.

A bishop being sent away from his diocese is very much in keeping with the church's legal tradition of making a public reparation for a scandal done to the church. While the circumstances were vastly different, the Vatican earlier this year sent a Scottish cardinal away from his diocese after he admitted to sexual misconduct.

Germany's main lay Catholic group, the Central Committee of German Catholics, praised the decision as creating "the necessary space to clear up completely and firmly the events in Limburg," said the group's head Alois Glueck.

"Pope Francis' decision offers the chance of a first step toward a new beginning in the Limburg diocese, because the situation can become an increasing burden for the faithful there and in all of Germany over recent weeks," Glueck said.

The German government, which last week called the situation "very difficult" and said it hoped for a solution that would give confidence to the faithful, refused to comment Wednesday on the Vatican's decision. A spokesman for Chancellor Angela Merkel, Georg Streiter, said it was "an internal church matter."

Documenting the journey of Marcel Lefebvre

From Rorate Caeli:

The recent documentary on the life and trials of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre was released in French months ago and is now being officially released in English. See the trailer, below:



 While not film critics, we will say this: regardless of where you stand on the current situation of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), this film will at bare minimum be entertaining, and a solid look at history -- but not in the way you may think.

The first half of the film really has little to do directly with the current crisis. It's more of a history of how the Church, led by Father, Bishop and Archbishop Lefebvre, made Christianity -- and society -- flourish in French West Africa. The interviews with priests, nuns and the laity whom were around during his time are both compelling, and historically important.

At one hour and 43 minutes, the film leaves you wanting for more. For those of you that didn't live through the troubling days of 1988, with its decisive and enduring consequences, or were too young to notice, you especially should consider watching. That goes for those who are pro, anti, and just not sure what to make of the current situation.

To find a screening at a theater or to organizing a screening, click here. The documentary can be pre-ordered here.

The Remnant Forum: Radical Traditionalism?

The Remnant Forum: Francis on Praying vs. Traditional Prayer

Press summary: The dangerous dilemma of the two living popes

From Rorate Caeli:

In the English-speaking media, there is an almost unanimity around the events of the current pontificate. As French blog Riposte Catholique reports, this attitude is certainly not the case in the media in other languages, mainly in the nation of the papacy itself - a sign that English-speaking religious correspondents are not doing their job properly. And the words of the main correspondent of French liberal religious magazine La Vie are almost terrifying in what they imply.

An emerging portion of the Ratzingerian iceberg, Sandro Magister, journalist at L'Espresso, a star among Vaticanists, releases in his blog chiesa, every week, and at times every day, severe criticisms of Pope Francis: "Martini Pope. The Dream Come True," on October 15; "Encyclicals have a new format: the interview," on October 7; "Ricca and Chaouqui, two enemies in the house," on August 26; "The Francis transformation", on October 3; among not few others.

But he is not alone: "Francis is in the process of founding a new religion opposed to Catholic magisterium" (Mattia Rossi, Il Foglio, October 11); "We do not like this pope" (Alessandro Gnocchi and Maria Palmaro, in Il Foglio on October 9 - they were removed from the staff of Radio maria [because of this article]); "Flock before doctrine? We risk losing both" (Rino Cammilleri, Il Giornale, October 10).

The coalition of media praise surrounding Pope Francis is as of now far from being unanimous in Italy. Not only in the media. It is necessary to understand that Italian journalists often "act" for the Curial prelates, some of whom in very high positions, who give them very reliable pieces of information and ask them in return to pass on this or that message. The Church authorities are themselves very mindful of the opinion expressed by these journalists and, on their side, pass on messages within the world of the dicasteries. In fact, one may even speak, especially on the level of the great ones, such as Sandro Magister, of informal groups in which churchmen and media men analyse [matters] at the same level.

Is Francis attentive to this phenomenon that has taken a relevance that goes beyond the small classic revolts? This is not clear. A pope coming from the peripheries, he "works", brightly anyway, with governing and communication methods that he tried in Argentina. Differently from his predecessor, who lived cloistered, he meets each day, in multiple formal audiences, and in a multitude of different contacts at Santa Marta, [and] over the phone, a number of different interlocutors. But is he better informed because of this? It is not clear that he has a great capacity to listen and view beyond certain patterns. One could not, anyway, require of a 76-year-old man, despite a breathtaking energy, to reorganize all the categories of analysis and reading schemes that he forged and used all through his existence.

Jean Mercier, [correspondent] of La Vie [the main liberal religious periodical in France], is also somewhat disturbed. In an article published on September 18 in his blog, "Is the Pope a demagogue?", he said: "Charismatic and popular, Francis does not hesitate to make gestures that hit their targets and to release statements that create a buzz. Isn't he overdoing it?" On October 4 ("Malaise in communication"), [Mercier] came back to the subject: "Francis multiplies the shock interviews, raising perplexity regarding his communication strategy. The problem of the different levels of his words is raised, and noticeably when the intimate words are taken as elevated to official words." And based on what he hears in the Eternal City, he sounds the alarm: the new order is even more risky "since the Pope Emeritus is still living and some could be tempted to burst the sound of 'Give us back Benedict XVI!' Nothing would be more dangerous than a kind of latent schism between two sensibilities, the one nostalgic of the Pope Emeritus, the other enthusiastic for the new Pope."

Precisely. Instead of comparing, as it was always done under a new pontificate, a living pope and his deceased predecessor, which was done with no risk for the legitimacy of the former, one can today compare two popes who are very alive.

Sister Antonia Brenner dies at 86; nun moved into Tijuana prison to tend to inmates

From the Los Angeles Times:

 

By Richard Marosi

October 17, 2013 

Sister Antonia Brenner, a Beverly Hills-raised mother of seven who became a Roman Catholic nun and moved into a notorious Tijuana prison where she spent more than three decades mending broken lives, easing tensions and dispensing everything from toothbrushes to bail money, has died. She was 86.

Brenner, who had been in declining health, died Thursday of natural causes at the home of her religious order in Tijuana where her fellow sisters had cared for her in her final days, said Christina Brenner, her daughter-in-law.

She was born Mary Clarke in Los Angeles on Dec. 1, 1926, to Irish immigrant parents. Her father grew wealthy running an office supply business, and the family counted Hollywood stars such as Cary Grant among their neighbors. She married and raised four daughters and three sons, all the while becoming deeply involved in charity work.

In 1977, after her children were grown and two marriages had ended in divorce — a source of sadness that she rarely talked about — Brenner gave away her expensive clothes and belongings, left her Ventura apartment and moved to La Mesa penitentiary. She had delivered donations in the past to the prison, each visit filling her with compassion.

"Something happened to me when I saw men behind bars. … When I left, I thought a lot about the men. When it was cold, I wondered if the men were warm; when it was raining, if they had shelter," Brenner told The Times in a 1982 interview. "I wondered if they had medicine and how their families were doing. …You know, when I returned to the prison to live, I felt as if I'd come home."

Small of stature, with blue eyes peeking out from under her traditional black–and-white habit, Brenner cut a strikingly serene presence in the overcrowded prison of 8,000. She lived as any other inmate, sleeping in a 10-by-10-foot cell, eating the same food and lining up for morning roll call.
She would walk freely among thieves and drug traffickers and murderers, smiling, touching cheeks and offering prayers. Many were violent men with desperate needs. She kept extra toilet paper in her cell, arranged for medical treatment, attended funerals.

Guards and inmates alike started referring to her as the prison angel. In the cellblocks she was known simply as "Mama." "There isn't anyone who hasn't heard my lecture on victims," she said in a 2002 Times story. "They have to accept that they're wrong. They have to see the consequences. They have to feel the agony. ... But I do love them dearly."

When prayers didn't work, she took matters into her own hands. On more than a few occasions she broke up fights and quelled brewing riots. Sometimes her presence wasn't enough. In 2008, police opened fire on rioting inmates, killing more than 20. Brenner said she was in the cellblock at the time, but someone had locked the doors to the courtyard where the shooting occurred.

"I didn't know what was happening. That people were being killed," she said in an interview after the siege ended. "I was thinking, all over the world little children have to hear the sounds of guns. It's such a terrible sound."

Brenner was an energetic fundraiser who often visited Southern California to collect food and supplies. Few people said no, though sometimes she didn't leave them much choice.

Father Joe Carroll, who for many years ran the St. Vincent de Paul Village in San Diego, jokingly took to calling Brenner a "thief" for regularly clearing out his charity of donations.

"If I told her she couldn't have it, she'd just be smiling and giggling at me and putting it into her car and leaving," Carroll said in the 2010 documentary "La Mama: An American Nun's Life in a Mexican Prison."

A revered figure in Tijuana, where she counted police chiefs and politicians among her friends, Brenner was honored with the naming of a street after her outside the prison. In the late 1990s, she established her own religious order, the Eudist Servants of the Eleventh Hour. Tijuana Archbishop Rafael Romo said she possessed the qualities of a saint and said her death was a "terrible loss" for the city, the Tijuana newspaper Frontera reported.

Brenner often visited her family in Southern California, where she would regale her more than 45 grandchildren and great-grandchildren with stories about her charity work. "She was a tiny woman with a little fire and a lot of passion," Christina Brenner said. "We called her the Eveready battery. She wouldn't stop. She was always going."

She is also survived by her seven children, James, Kathleen, Theresa, Carol, Tom, Elizabeth and Anthony.

"You walk in her presence and you know you're in a different world," Carroll said. "Rhyme, reason — you can't rationalize why she did it. She has that one-on-one relationship with God."

No scaremongering, please

From Rorate Caeli:

Based on a week-old supposed incident in Rome (first reported by Spanish blogger Francisco José Fernández de la Cigoña five days ago), in which Card. Burke and Abp. Pozzo would have supposedly left a conference by Sandro Magister before it ended, indicating by their rumored action a possible discontent with Sandro Magister's words, the esteemed Fr. John Zuhlsdorf today jumped to wild conclusions.
We did not report it because it is so sketchy, but dear Father considers it relevant enough to drum up fear, instead of passing on serenity:

"Remember, friends. Those of you who uphold the traditional ways had better tread lightly, and with a smile. It is still possible to lose everything."

With all due respect, this is just more of the typical fear-mongering.
Sandro Magister is not a traditionalist - he is just not blind. But his opinions should not hurt traditionalists just because he affords them an impartial treatment, is familiar with traditional liturgy and sacred music, and is sympathetic to their stance.

As for traditional Catholics, those of us who profess it without half-words, we are tired of being afraid. We are the only minority whose persecution within the Church is accepted and encouraged, and yet we "had better tread lightly" or else? We are all for being "wise as serpents and innocent as doves," but not for being cowed into submission.

No, we must keep our heads up, protest as much as liberals do (¡hagan lío!, "make a mess"), but within the limits of licit behavior, and remember: this too shall pass. We are far from 1970, friends, far better in the spread of the Traditional Mass than at any time since Paul VI. If there is still a world a millennium from today, there will still be a Church, and the Traditional Mass will still be celebrated, a Mass that would be recognized by a visitor from the age of Saint Gregory the Great or the great Cluny reformers, this precious Latin gift passed on from generation to generation. And traditional Catholics will still be here, based on the just efforts of those who resisted, under God's blessings: we will not "lose everything", and this too shall pass.

Bishop Fellay on Pope Francis: “We have in front of us a genuine Modernist!”

More from Bishop Fellay.

by John Vennari
Catholic Family News

 
Bishop Bernard Fellay warned on October 12, “The situation of the Church is a real disaster, and the present Pope is making it 10,000 times worse.”

He said this in an address at the Angelus Press Conference, the weekend of Oct 11-13, 2013, in Kansas City.

Bishop Fellay, Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X, gave an extensive lecture on Saturday afternoon that focused on the Third Secret of Fatima, and its apparent prediction of both a material chastisement and a great crisis in the Church.
This report will highlight some of the more dramatic aspects of the Bishop’s Saturday conference and his Sunday sermon.
Bishop Fellay quoted in detail Sister Lucia's words, those who have read the Third Secret, and those who have knowledge of the Secret. He noted Sister Lucia said that if we want to know the contents of the Third Secret, read chapters 8 through 13 of the Apocalypse.” (details of the Third Secret will be contained in the upcoming November edition of Catholic Family News)
Sister Lucia’s reference to Chapters 8 through 13 of the Apocalypse is particularly chilling, since the end of Chapter 13 speaks of the coming of Antichrist.
Bishop Fellay noted that Pope St. Pius X said at the beginning of his pontificate the ‘son of perdition’ may already be on the earth. He also noted the original prayer to Saint Michael of Pope Leo XIII mentions that Satan aims to establish his seat in Rome.
The bishop quoted Cardinal Luigi Ciapi, the Papal Theologian of all the Popes from Pius XII to John Paul II who said, “In the Third Secret we read among other things that the great apostasy in the Church begins at the top.”
He also spent a good bit of time on the famous and dramatic 1957 interview of Father Fuentes with Sister Lucia, in which she reiterated that “various nations will disappear from the face of the earth,” and that “the devil will do all in his power to overcome souls consecrated to God.”
Since the ministers of God are struck with this confusion and disorder, the faithful are left to fend for themselves for their own salvation. The help that should be provided by Churchmen is not there. This is “the greatest tragedy you can ever imagine for the Church.”
The times are very serious. We have to be serious about our salvation, “and to do this we are deprived of a very important element, which is the support of the [Church] authorities. What a tragedy.”
He spoke of Sister Lucia’s comforting words that God has given two last remedies for us: The Holy Rosary and Devotion to the Immaculate Heart.
Rome/SSPX

Bishop Fellay alluded to the SSPX/Vatican drama of 2012: “When we see what is happening now [under Pope Francis] we thank God, we thank God, we have been preserved from any kind of Agreement from last year. And we may say that one of the fruits of the [Rosary] Crusade we did is that we have been preserved from such a misfortune. Thank God. It is not that we don’t want to be Catholics, of course we want to be Catholics and we are Catholics, and we have a right to be recognized as Catholics. But we are not going to jeopardize our treasures for that. Of course not.”
He continued, “To imagine that some people continue to pretend we are decided [still] to get an Agreement with Rome. Poor people. I really challenge them to prove they mean. They pretend that I think something else from what I do. They are not in my head.”
As for the discussions with Rome: “Any kind of direction for recognition ended when they gave me the document to sign on June 13, 2012. That very day I told them, ‘this document I cannot accept.’ I told them from the start in September the previous year that we cannot accept this ‘hermeneutic of continuity’ because it is not true, it is not real. It is against the reality. So we do not accept it. The Council is not in continuity with Tradition. It’s not. So when Pope Benedict requested that we accept that the Second Vatican Council is an integral part of Tradition, we say, ‘sorry, that’s not the reality, so we’re not going to sign it. We’re not going to recognize that’.”
“The same for the Mass. The want us to recognize not only that the [New] Mass is valid provided it is celebrated correctly, etc., but that it is licit. I told them: we don’t use that word. It’s a bit messy, our faithful have enough [confusion] regarding the validity, so we tell them, ‘The New Mass is bad, it is evil’ and they understand that. Period!’” Of course the Roman authorities “were not very happy with that.”
He continues, “It has never been our intention to pretend either that the Council would be considered as good, or the New Mass would be ‘legitimate’”.
“The [April 15, 2012] text we presented to Rome was a very, shall we say, delicate text that was supposed to be understood correctly; it was supposed to be read with a big principle which was leading the whole thing. This big principle was no novelty in the Church: ‘The Holy Ghost has not been promised to Saint Peter and his Successor in such a way that through a new revelation the Pope would teach something new, but under his help, the Pope would saintly conserve and faithfully transmit the deposit of the Faith.’ It belongs to the definition of infallibility [from Vatican I]. That was the principle, the base of the whole document, which excludes from the start any kind of novelty.
“And so take any kind of sentences from the text without this principle is just to take sentences that have never been our thinking and our life. These phrases in themselves are ambiguous, so to take away the ambiguity we wanted to put [in] this principle [from Vatican I]. Unfortunately, maybe that was too subtle and that’s why we withdrew that text, because it was not clear enough as it was written.
“So it is very clear our principle is always the same to stay faithful! We have received a treasure. This treasure does not ‘belong’ to us. We have received this treasure and we have to hand it to the next generation. And what is requested from us is faithfulness, fidelity. We do not have the right to jeopardize these treasures. These are the treasures we have in our hands and we are not going to jeopardize them."
Pope Francis

Bishop Fellay returned to Sister Lucia’s 1957 statement that the Rosary and Devotion to the Immaculate Heart are the two last remedies God has given to mankind.
He said there is “definitely a ‘material’ chastisement of the world in sight. There is something big in front of us. "How? When? I have no idea. But if you put everything together, it is clear that God has had enough of the sins of man.”
He then spoke of those sins that cry to Heaven for vengeance, such as abortion, and the sins against nature, which was an allusion to the unnatural ‘re-definition’ of marriage and related sins. He also spoke of what appears to be a coming persecution of Christians.
“What do we do? Don’t panic, because panic is of no use at all. What you need to do is your job – your daily duty. That is the best way to prepare.”
He continued that we are in “very scary times” but we are not helpless. He noted the “the situation of the Church is a real disaster. And the present Pope is making it 10,000 times worse.”
“In the beginning of the pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI, I said, ‘the crisis in the Church will continue, but the Pope is trying to put on the brakes.’ It’s as if to say, the Church will continue to fall, but with a parachute. And with the beginning of this [Pope Francis] pontificate, I say, ‘he cuts the strings, and he put a [downward] rocket’.”
“If the present Pope continues in the way he started, he is going to divide the Church. He’s exploding everything. So people will say: it is impossible that’s he’s the Pope, we refuse him. Others will say [and this is presently Bishop Fellay’s position]: “Wait, consider him as Pope, but don’t follow him. He’s provoking anger. Many people will be discouraged by what people in the Church do” and will be tempted to “throw it all away.”
But, he reminded, God is “much, much bigger than we are. God is able to have the Church continue” and even can work through these imperfect ministers. “But once again”, he repeats, “don’t follow them. Follow them when they say the truth, but when they tell you rubbish, you don’t” follow them on those points. “Any obedience to be true must be related to God. When I say I obey to a person” he should be a “a mirror of God.” But “when mirror tells me contrary of God, it is no longer a mirror, then I don’t follow him.”
Bishop Fellay noted that we cannot simply obey the present Popes without question, because then we would destroy ourselves, we would endanger our Faith.
Following the warning of Sister Lucia, Pope Leo XIII and Pius X, Bishop Fellay further warned that we may be entering into the time of Antichrist, but we cannot know when, or how far off in the future this may be.
Sunday Sermon
Bishop Fellay returned to these themes at his Sunday sermon at the Pontifical High Mass offered at St. Vincent de Paul’s Church in Kansas city.
He amplified a few points regarding Fatima, the Secret, the 2012 drama with Rome, and then spoke of some of the many grave problems with Pope Francis.
“From the start,” he said, “we have the impression that we have something wrong with this Pope. From the start, he wanted to distinguish himself to be different from anybody else.”
A small example of this is Francis’ insistence on wearing black shoes instead of the red papal shoes, but this is minor compared to greater issues. We must look, said the bishop, at what is his vision of the Church, his vision of the Council, and what is his plan.
It was around the time of World Youth Day, late July of this year, that Francis began an avalanche of talks, interviews, phone calls, etc. “We may not have the entire picture at this point, we have enough to be scared to death.”
As is typical of the Modernist, as Pius X warned in Pascendi, the Modernist will sometimes speak in a heretical fashion, and then speak in an orthodox manner. Bishop Fellay gave the example of one of these contradictions:
He spoke of interview in early October that Pope Francis conducted with the atheist journalist Eugenio Scalfari in Rome’s La Repubblica wherein Francis appears to promote a dangerous relativism:
Scalfari: “Your Holiness, is there is a single vision of the Good? And who decides what it is?”

Pope Francis: “Each of us has a vision of good and of evil. We have to encourage people to move towards what they think is Good.”
Scalfari: “Your Holiness, you wrote that in your letter to me. The conscience is autonomous, you said, and everyone must obey his conscience. I think that's one of the most courageous steps taken by a Pope.”

Pope Francis: “And I repeat it here. Everyone has his own idea of good and evil and must choose to follow the good and fight evil as he conceives them. That would be enough to make the world a better place."
With a good deal of emotion, Bishop Fellay said of the Pope’s response: “That’s really not Catholic! Because whatever I think has absolutely no value if it does not fit with reality. We have a conscience, but it will only lead us to Heaven if our conscience is a mirror of God.” The conscience must be formed according to God’s law. “So to pretend that anyone can full his own idea is just rubbish,” said Fellay, “It has nothing to do with Catholic teaching. It is absolute relativism.”
About a week after this, however, Pope Francis spoke of the necessity of fighting the devil, the final battle with the devil, that nobody can fight the devil half way, and that we must fight relativism. Francis said the opposite of what he said to La Repubblica. “There is the contraction with him”.
Francis: A Man of the Council

Next: what is the vision of Pope Francis on Vatican II? This is found in his much-publicized recent, lengthy interview with the Jesuits, published in various publications throughout the world, and in the Jesuit’s America magazine in the United States
Bishop Fellay says that Pope Francis “takes it for granted that the Council was bright success. What was the main theme of the Council?” To re-read the Faith in light of modern culture. You could say, “to incarnate the Gospel in the modern world.” Francis “is very happy with this…” and believes “The Council brought forth many good fruits. The first example he gives is liturgy – the reformed liturgy. That is the beautiful fruit of the Council. That’s what he says. And he’s very happy with it.”
Francis tells us “this re-reading of the Gospel within the modern culture is irreversible, so we will not go back. We are in front of a major fight.”
Of the Old Mass, Francis speaks of the “Vetus Ordo” (Old Order). Francis believes that Pope Benedict probably helped restore the Old Mass as a prudential act for those who still hold to it. “But don’t expect Francis to come back to the Old Mass. Maybe he will ‘indulge’ it [let us celebrate it unmolested]. God knows.”
But Francis “sees there is a problem with this Old Mass. Because there are people who ideologize this Mass. Guess to whom he is aiming? I don’t need to say much. So what is going to happen with us? What I see: there is quite an obsession in him about those people who look to the past. Listen to the Pope’s words":
Pope Francis: “What is worrying, though, is the risk of the ideologization of the Vetus Ordo, its exploitation. … If the Christian is a restorationist, a legalist, if he wants everything clear and safe, then he will find nothing. Tradition and memory of the past must help us to have the courage to open up new areas to God. Those who today always look for disciplinarian solutions, those who long for an exaggerated doctrinal ‘security,’ those who stubbornly try to recover a past that no longer exists­—they have a static and inward-directed view of things. In this way, faith becomes an ideology among other ideologies. I have a dogmatic certainty: God is in every person’s life.”
Bishop Fellay continues, “The impression we have in the present Pope is that he has a zeal for the ‘more or less’, for the ‘about’; and he wants at all cost to escape what is too clear and too certain. But the Faith is like that [it is certain] because God is like that. Well, that’s not what he thinks.”
Another troubling quote from Pope Francis:
“If a person says that he met God with total certainty and is not touched by a margin of uncertainty, then this is not good. For me, this is an important key. If one has the answers to all the questions—that is the proof that God is not with him. It means that he is a false prophet using religion for himself. The great leaders of the people of God, like Moses, have always left room for doubt.”
Bishop Fellay exclaims in response: “What Gospel does he have? Which Bible does he have to say such things. It’s horrible. What has this to do with the Gospel? With the Catholic Faith? That’s pure Modernism, my dear brethren. We have in front of us a genuine Modernist.”
"How much time will be needed for people in the Church to stand up ‘by no means!’ [will we accept this new teaching]. I hope and pray this will happen. But that means an enormous division in the Church.”
He speaks of the Pope making a mess, and reminds us that this is what the Pope urged at world Youth Day: he urged the young people to “make a mess”. Bishop Fellay responds, ”Incredible. We have never heard of this [a Pope speaking like this]. But that’s what he wants."
 Francis also tells us he is a greater admirer of the ultra liberal Jesuit Cardinal Martini (now deceased). Martini wrote a book calling for a total revolution in the Church. “And that is what Francis wants. And he told us the eight cardinal he chose to help him ‘reform’ the Church think like him."
The bishop says, "We could go on and on" with such examples.
The final example: Ecumenism.
Bishop Fellay says Pope Francis claims “very little has been done in this direction.” This is astounding, the bishop notes, because ecumenism has launched untold disaster to the Church, to Catholic nations. Yet the present Pope says, "very little, almost nothing has been done in this direction.”
As part of his summing up, Bishop Fellay says: “The mystery of the shadow on the Church has never been so great. We are in front of very hard times. Don’t have any illusions. And it is clear the only solution is to stick to what we have; to keep it, to not let it go by any means.
“Pope St. Pius X said that it was the essence of any Catholic to stick to the past. The present Pope says exactly the contrary: forget about the past; throw yourself into the uncertainty of the future.
“Definitely we need the Immaculate Heart of Mary. What are experiencing is the Secret of Fatima. We know what we have to do: pray, pray, pray, and penance, penance, penance. To pray to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the means given to us precisely in these hard times; and to pray the Rosary.
“Be certain,” says Bishop Fellay, “The next [Rosary] Crusade is not far off. Go to the Rosary. Pray it every day. We live in very dangerous time for the Faith, and we need this Heavenly protection.”
- Note from JV: I was present at the Kansas City conference both for Bishop Fellay's Saturday lecture and Sunday sermon. The report is taken directly from my notes and from the complete audio recordings of the talks. More on this topic will be contained in the upcoming November edition of Catholic Family News

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