The SSPX and their 'Key Concerns'
Jun 19, 2018 15:57:35 GMT
Post by Admin on Jun 19, 2018 15:57:35 GMT
More signs of the slackening and weakly defense of Tradition and the Catholic Faith by the SSPX...
In the About section of the SSPX website fsspx.org/en, there is a section titled, 'Key Concerns'.
Notice that the Key Concerns of the the SSPX are the New Liturgy, Collegiality, Magisterium, Religious Liberty, and the New Ecclesiology. Notice too that these issues are relegated to only the concerns of the SSPX and not major errors of the Conciliar Church [much less offensive to their Conciliar 'friends']. And finally notice how a token quote from the Archbishop is repeated, in response to a questionnaire.
Here is their statements about the New Liturgy- notice how through out they attempt to serve two masters, the Conciliar Church - by their very mild and gentle condemnation of the New Mass, and the Catholic Church- by those same weak attempts to show that the New Mass is "not good".
New Liturgy
On April 3, 1969, Pope Paul VI promulgated the Apostolic Constitution Missale Romanum which published two documents relating to the reform of the Mass ritual: the Institutio generalis Missalis Romani (General Instruction of the Roman Missal) and the Novus Ordo Missae. The Latin edition of the new Roman Missal was definitively published on May 11, 1970.
On April 3, 1969, Pope Paul VI promulgated the Apostolic Constitution Missale Romanum which published two documents relating to the reform of the Mass ritual: the Institutio generalis Missalis Romani (General Instruction of the Roman Missal) and the Novus Ordo Missae. The Latin edition of the new Roman Missal was definitively published on May 11, 1970.
The Short Critical Study
2. Our evaluation of the Novus Ordo Missae repeats the basic arguments of the Short Critical Study (also known as “The Ottaviani Intervention”) presented to Paul VI by Cardinals Ottaviani and Bacci. We note that the new rite “represents, both as a whole and in its details, a striking departure”[1] from the Catholic definition of the Mass, considered in its four causes:
1. material cause (the Real Presence),
2. formal cause (its sacrificial nature),
3. final cause (its propitiatory purpose)
4. and efficient cause (the priesthood of the priest).
This serious shortcoming prevents us from regarding this new rite as legitimate and even allows us to doubt the validity of the celebrations in more than one instance. Masses celebrated in conformity with the Novus Ordo are not only less good than those celebrated according to the traditional Ordo of St. Pius V; they are bad, because of the “departure” noted above.
In the questionnaire dated January 11-12, 1979, to the question posed by the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith:
Archbishop Lefebvre answered:
The problem with this New Mass
The Mass is a rite, in other words, a set of signs (gestures and words), each of which, though necessary, is not sufficient and must converge with all the other in order to assert doctrine. We object to the new rite, not for explicitly denying some point of doctrine, as a heretical proposition might do, but for having altered the set of all the signs that make up the rite, in such a way that it no longer asserts doctrine as adequately as it did in the past [as we will show later, this is an extremely weak and mild version of what the Archbishop said over and over about the New Mass].
For example, in order to express adoration for the Real Presence, why were the 14 genuflections reduced to only 3? Within the context of a sacramental right, the eloquence of a sign or symbol is achieved by way of an adequate multiplication of gestures. On this symbolic level, the reduction of the number of genuflections within the context of the New Mass is tantamount to an omission, which obliterates the expression of the doctrine. All the more so because these 3 genuflections, at the places where they have been retained (2 after the elevation and no longer before it; 1 before the Communion of the faithful) present an equivocal meaning: it is no longer clear whether they express the real Eucharistic Presence in the strict sense, or the spiritual and mystical presence of Christ in the assembly, which is the result of the belief of the faithful.
All through this rite we criticize omissions by diminishment, which end up obscuring the expression of the Catholic Faith. Even though they may have recalled one or another point of the traditional doctrine, the subsequent Magisterial explanations (the Catechism of the Catholic Church [1992], the encyclical Ecclesia de eucharistia [2003], the Compendium of Catechism of the Catholic Church [2005], the post-synodal exhortation Sacramentum caritatis [2007]) could not be considered valid arguments justifying the New Mass, because despite everything it remains such as it is, as a rite signifying something, with its profound defects.
The codification of the rite of the Mass carried out by St. Pius V had had as its result the highlighting of those aspects of the Catholic Faith that were denied by the Protestant heresy but had already been made explicit by Tradition. The liturgical reform carried out by Paul VI had as its result the obscuring of those same aspects. The Missal of Paul VI therefore was not an improvement on the Missal of St. Pius V. It departed from it, in the sense in which it made obscure and ambiguous what the Missal of St. Pius V had clarified and made explicit. And if someone objects that the liturgical reform of Paul VI intended to clarify other aspects that had been left in obscurity until now, we reply that a new clarification cannot call into question a clarification already made.
The New Mass therefore is not good, inasmuch as it has been deprived of the clarifications necessary for a complete expression of the Catholic Faith. By reason of this intrinsic deficiency, it could not possibly be the object of a law which as such obliged the whole Church. Indeed, the purpose of liturgical law is to propose authoritatively the common good of the Church and everything required for it. Since it is the privation of that good, the New Mass of Paul VI could not be the object of a [liturgical] law; it is not only bad but also illegitimate, despite all the appearances of legality with which it has been and is still surrounded.
2. Our evaluation of the Novus Ordo Missae repeats the basic arguments of the Short Critical Study (also known as “The Ottaviani Intervention”) presented to Paul VI by Cardinals Ottaviani and Bacci. We note that the new rite “represents, both as a whole and in its details, a striking departure”[1] from the Catholic definition of the Mass, considered in its four causes:
1. material cause (the Real Presence),
2. formal cause (its sacrificial nature),
3. final cause (its propitiatory purpose)
4. and efficient cause (the priesthood of the priest).
This serious shortcoming prevents us from regarding this new rite as legitimate and even allows us to doubt the validity of the celebrations in more than one instance. Masses celebrated in conformity with the Novus Ordo are not only less good than those celebrated according to the traditional Ordo of St. Pius V; they are bad, because of the “departure” noted above.
In the questionnaire dated January 11-12, 1979, to the question posed by the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith:
Do you maintain that a faithful Catholic can think and affirm that a sacramental rite, in particular the rite of the Mass, approved and promulgated by the Supreme Pontiff may be not in conformity with the Catholic Faith or favens haeresim [promoting heresy]?”,
In itself this rite does not profess the Catholic Faith as clearly as the old Ordo Missae did and consequently it may promote heresy. But I do not know to whom it should be attributed, nor whether the pope is responsible for it. What is astonishing is that an Ordo Missae smacking of Protestantism and therefore favens haeresim could have been issued by the Roman Curia.”[2]
The problem with this New Mass
The Mass is a rite, in other words, a set of signs (gestures and words), each of which, though necessary, is not sufficient and must converge with all the other in order to assert doctrine. We object to the new rite, not for explicitly denying some point of doctrine, as a heretical proposition might do, but for having altered the set of all the signs that make up the rite, in such a way that it no longer asserts doctrine as adequately as it did in the past [as we will show later, this is an extremely weak and mild version of what the Archbishop said over and over about the New Mass].
For example, in order to express adoration for the Real Presence, why were the 14 genuflections reduced to only 3? Within the context of a sacramental right, the eloquence of a sign or symbol is achieved by way of an adequate multiplication of gestures. On this symbolic level, the reduction of the number of genuflections within the context of the New Mass is tantamount to an omission, which obliterates the expression of the doctrine. All the more so because these 3 genuflections, at the places where they have been retained (2 after the elevation and no longer before it; 1 before the Communion of the faithful) present an equivocal meaning: it is no longer clear whether they express the real Eucharistic Presence in the strict sense, or the spiritual and mystical presence of Christ in the assembly, which is the result of the belief of the faithful.
All through this rite we criticize omissions by diminishment, which end up obscuring the expression of the Catholic Faith. Even though they may have recalled one or another point of the traditional doctrine, the subsequent Magisterial explanations (the Catechism of the Catholic Church [1992], the encyclical Ecclesia de eucharistia [2003], the Compendium of Catechism of the Catholic Church [2005], the post-synodal exhortation Sacramentum caritatis [2007]) could not be considered valid arguments justifying the New Mass, because despite everything it remains such as it is, as a rite signifying something, with its profound defects.
The codification of the rite of the Mass carried out by St. Pius V had had as its result the highlighting of those aspects of the Catholic Faith that were denied by the Protestant heresy but had already been made explicit by Tradition. The liturgical reform carried out by Paul VI had as its result the obscuring of those same aspects. The Missal of Paul VI therefore was not an improvement on the Missal of St. Pius V. It departed from it, in the sense in which it made obscure and ambiguous what the Missal of St. Pius V had clarified and made explicit. And if someone objects that the liturgical reform of Paul VI intended to clarify other aspects that had been left in obscurity until now, we reply that a new clarification cannot call into question a clarification already made.
The New Mass therefore is not good, inasmuch as it has been deprived of the clarifications necessary for a complete expression of the Catholic Faith. By reason of this intrinsic deficiency, it could not possibly be the object of a law which as such obliged the whole Church. Indeed, the purpose of liturgical law is to propose authoritatively the common good of the Church and everything required for it. Since it is the privation of that good, the New Mass of Paul VI could not be the object of a [liturgical] law; it is not only bad but also illegitimate, despite all the appearances of legality with which it has been and is still surrounded.
+++
A few comments:
The SSPX gently talks about diminution of the Catholic Faith by omissions in the New Mass:
but seemingly chose to not to make this point by employing the much stronger language of their founder, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre:
All through this rite we criticize omissions by diminishment, which end up obscuring the expression of the Catholic Faith.
“It must be understood immediately that we do not hold to the absurd idea that if the New Mass is valid, we are free to assist at it. The Church has always forbidden the faithful to assist at the Masses of heretics and schismatics even when they are valid. It is clear that no one can assist at sacrilegious Masses or at Masses which endanger our faith.…All these innovations are authorized. One can fairly say without exaggeration that most of these [new] Masses are sacrilegious acts which pervert the Faith by diminishing it. The de-sacralization is such that these Masses risk the loss of their supernatural character, their mysterium fidei; they would then be no more than acts of natural religion. These New Masses are not only incapable of fulfilling our Sunday obligation, but are such that we must apply to them the canonical rules which the Church customarily applies to communicatio in sacris with Orthodox Churches and Protestant sects.” (The New Mass and the Pope, November, 8, 1979)
Or perhaps here:
…that the evil in the New Mass is truly intrinsic, in the text … and not only something purely extrinsic, [in the abuses], this is certain. Precisely by this general effect which diminishes the proclamation of our faith, this diminution is present everywhere, in the words and in the actions. They wanted to be ecumenical to such a point, to bring themselves closer to the Protestants in order to pray with them, that in the end they no longer affirm the Faith. And that is very grave. This diminution is excessively grave for our faith, how can it be otherwise? … Really, in conscience, I cannot advise anyone to attend this Mass, it is not possible.” (Conference at Econe, June 24, 1981)
The SSPX summarizes their incredibly short defense [?] of the Traditional Mass [or rather, their excuse for not being 'recognized' by the Conciliar Church] by the following words:
The New Mass therefore is not good...
Here is just a sample of the language of the Archbishop on the New Mass - and then it becomes easy to see who is championing Tradition and who is placating a Rome that is destined to become 'the seat of the Antichrist':
1) On The New Mass
-“And we have the precise conviction that this new rite of Mass expresses a new faith, a faith which is not ours, a faith which is not the Catholic Faith. This New Mass is a symbol, is an expression, is an image of a new faith, of a Modernist faith… Now it is evident that the new rite, if I may say so, supposes another conception of the Catholic religion - another religion.” (Sermon, June 29, 1976)
-“I will never celebrate the Mass according to the new rite, even under threat of ecclesiastical penalties and I will never advise anyone positively to participate actively in such a Mass." (Conference April 11, 1990)
-“The current Pope and bishops no longer hand down Our Lord Jesus Christ, but rather a sentimental, superficial, charismatic religiosity through which, as a general rule, the true grace of the Holy Ghost no longer passes. This new religion is not the Catholic religion; it is sterile, incapable of sanctifying society and the family.” (Spiritual Journey, p. ix)
-“It is the new Mass in itself. It is not the priest who is saying it. It is not because he says it piously or anything that the new rite changes. It doesn’t change anything in the rite of the Mass. It is obvious that this new rite is a rite that has been made only to draw us closer to the Protestants. That is clear! (April 11, 1990)
-“This Mass is poisoned, it is bad and it leads to the loss of faith little by little. We are clearly obliged to reject it.” (The Mass of All Times, p. 353)
-“… this [new] rite is bad! Is bad, is bad. And the reason why this rite is bad in itself, is because it is poisoned. It is a poisoned rite! Mr. Salleron says it very well, here: "It is not a choice between two rites that could be good. It is a choice between a Catholic Rite and a rite that is practically a neighbor to Protestantism,” and thus, which attacks our Faith, the Catholic Faith! So, it is out of the question to encourage people to go to Mass in the new rite, because slowly, even without realizing it, they end up ecumenist! It’s strange, but it's like that. It is a fact. Then, ask them questions on ecumenism, on what they think of the relations with other religions and you will see! They are all ecumenist. For the priest himself, the fact of saying this mass and celebrating it in a constant manner, even without thinking about anything, about its origin, or why it was made, turns him and the people who assist at it ecumenist.” (Conference, April 11, 1990)
-"This union which liberal Catholics want between the Church and the Revolution is an adulterous union — adulterous. This adulterous union can only beget bastards. Where are these bastards? They are [the new] rites. The [new] rite of Mass is a bastard rite. The sacraments are bastard sacraments. We no longer know whether they are sacraments that give grace. We no longer know if this Mass gives us the Body and the Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ. ... The priests emerging from the seminaries are bastard priests." (Homily preached at Lille, August29, 1976)
-“The radical and extensive changes made in the Roman Rite of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and their resemblance to the modifications made by Luther oblige Catholics who remain loyal to their faith to question the validity of this new rite.”(Écône, February 2, 1977)
-“Your perplexity takes perhaps the following form: may I assist at a sacrilegious Mass which is nevertheless valid, in the absence of any other, in order to satisfy my Sunday obligation? The answer is simple: these Masses cannot be the object of an obligation; we must moreover apply to them the rules of moral theology and Canon Law as regards the participation or the attendance at an action which endangers the faith or may be sacrilegious. The New Mass, even when said with piety and respect for the liturgical rules, is subject to the same reservations since it is impregnated with the spirit of Protestantism. It bears within it a poison harmful to the faith.” (An Open Letter to Confused Catholics, Ch. 4)
-“The current problem of the Mass is an extremely serious problem for the Holy Church. I believe that if the dioceses and seminaries and works that are currently done are struck with sterility, it is because the recent deviations drew upon us the divine curse. All the efforts that are made to hang on to what is being lost, to reorganize, reconstruct, rebuild, all that is struck with sterility, because we no longer have the true source of holiness which is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Profaned as it is, it no longer gives grace, it no longer makes grace pass.” (Archbishop Lefebvre, August 1972, priestly retreat)
-“We must not forget that the conciliar reforms of the liturgy, the reforms of the Bible, the changes in the internal structure of the Church, of the constitution of the Church—all these things are a result of the ecumenical spirit. That is clear, since Protestants were present for the changes in the Mass—six Protestant ministers were photographed with Pope Paul VI who thanked them for having come to participate in the liturgical commission, which transformed our Catholic Mass! Everything was done in this ecumenical spirit: liturgical reforms, catechetical reforms, an ecumenical Bible—which is sold in the bookstore at the Vatican. There was then, a considerable Protestant influence.” (Conference in Germany, October 29, 1984)
-“…if they are going to the New Mass—slowly, slowly they change their mind and become, slowly, slowly Protestant. It is very dangerous to go to the New Mass regularly, each week, because the New Mass is not some accidental change, but it is a whole orientation, a new definition of the Mass. It has not the same definition as the True Mass.” (Interview, St. Michael’s Mission, Atlanta, April 27, 1986)
“… So, if someone asks me: “I only have Mass of St. Pius V once a month. So what should I do on the other Sundays? Should I go to the New Mass if I do not have the Mass of St. Pius V? ...
I reply: Just because something is poisoned, obviously it is not going to poison you if you go on the odd occasion, but to go regularly on Sunday like that, little by little the notions will be lost, the dogmas will diminish. They will become accustomed to this ambiance which is no longer Catholic and they will very slowly lose the Faith in the Real Presence, lose the Faith in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and have a spirituality, since the prayers are changed and they have modified everything, in the sense of another spirituality. It is a new conception of Christian spirituality. There is no longer any ascetical effort, no longer a combat against sin, no longer a spiritual combat. There is a great need to combat against our own tendencies, against our faults, against everything which leads us to sin. So I would say to them: Listen, I cannot advise you to go to something which is evil. Myself, I would not go because I would not want to take in this atmosphere. I cannot. It is stronger than me. I cannot go. I would not go. So I advise you not to go." (Spiritual Conference at Econe, June 25, 1981)
“The consequences of this state of mind or spirit spread within the Church, inside the Church, are deplorable, and are ruining and sapping the spiritual vitality of the Church. In conscience, all we can do is turn priests and faithful away from using the Novus Ordo Missae if we wish that the complete and whole Catholic Faith remains still living.” (Letter to John Paul II, April 5, 1983 - Archbishop Lefebvre, Conference #1, St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary, April 24, 1983)
-“And we have the precise conviction that this new rite of Mass expresses a new faith, a faith which is not ours, a faith which is not the Catholic Faith. This New Mass is a symbol, is an expression, is an image of a new faith, of a Modernist faith… Now it is evident that the new rite, if I may say so, supposes another conception of the Catholic religion - another religion.” (Sermon, June 29, 1976)
-“I will never celebrate the Mass according to the new rite, even under threat of ecclesiastical penalties and I will never advise anyone positively to participate actively in such a Mass." (Conference April 11, 1990)
-“The current Pope and bishops no longer hand down Our Lord Jesus Christ, but rather a sentimental, superficial, charismatic religiosity through which, as a general rule, the true grace of the Holy Ghost no longer passes. This new religion is not the Catholic religion; it is sterile, incapable of sanctifying society and the family.” (Spiritual Journey, p. ix)
-“It is the new Mass in itself. It is not the priest who is saying it. It is not because he says it piously or anything that the new rite changes. It doesn’t change anything in the rite of the Mass. It is obvious that this new rite is a rite that has been made only to draw us closer to the Protestants. That is clear! (April 11, 1990)
-“This Mass is poisoned, it is bad and it leads to the loss of faith little by little. We are clearly obliged to reject it.” (The Mass of All Times, p. 353)
-“… this [new] rite is bad! Is bad, is bad. And the reason why this rite is bad in itself, is because it is poisoned. It is a poisoned rite! Mr. Salleron says it very well, here: "It is not a choice between two rites that could be good. It is a choice between a Catholic Rite and a rite that is practically a neighbor to Protestantism,” and thus, which attacks our Faith, the Catholic Faith! So, it is out of the question to encourage people to go to Mass in the new rite, because slowly, even without realizing it, they end up ecumenist! It’s strange, but it's like that. It is a fact. Then, ask them questions on ecumenism, on what they think of the relations with other religions and you will see! They are all ecumenist. For the priest himself, the fact of saying this mass and celebrating it in a constant manner, even without thinking about anything, about its origin, or why it was made, turns him and the people who assist at it ecumenist.” (Conference, April 11, 1990)
-"This union which liberal Catholics want between the Church and the Revolution is an adulterous union — adulterous. This adulterous union can only beget bastards. Where are these bastards? They are [the new] rites. The [new] rite of Mass is a bastard rite. The sacraments are bastard sacraments. We no longer know whether they are sacraments that give grace. We no longer know if this Mass gives us the Body and the Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ. ... The priests emerging from the seminaries are bastard priests." (Homily preached at Lille, August29, 1976)
-“The radical and extensive changes made in the Roman Rite of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and their resemblance to the modifications made by Luther oblige Catholics who remain loyal to their faith to question the validity of this new rite.”(Écône, February 2, 1977)
-“Your perplexity takes perhaps the following form: may I assist at a sacrilegious Mass which is nevertheless valid, in the absence of any other, in order to satisfy my Sunday obligation? The answer is simple: these Masses cannot be the object of an obligation; we must moreover apply to them the rules of moral theology and Canon Law as regards the participation or the attendance at an action which endangers the faith or may be sacrilegious. The New Mass, even when said with piety and respect for the liturgical rules, is subject to the same reservations since it is impregnated with the spirit of Protestantism. It bears within it a poison harmful to the faith.” (An Open Letter to Confused Catholics, Ch. 4)
-“The current problem of the Mass is an extremely serious problem for the Holy Church. I believe that if the dioceses and seminaries and works that are currently done are struck with sterility, it is because the recent deviations drew upon us the divine curse. All the efforts that are made to hang on to what is being lost, to reorganize, reconstruct, rebuild, all that is struck with sterility, because we no longer have the true source of holiness which is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Profaned as it is, it no longer gives grace, it no longer makes grace pass.” (Archbishop Lefebvre, August 1972, priestly retreat)
-“We must not forget that the conciliar reforms of the liturgy, the reforms of the Bible, the changes in the internal structure of the Church, of the constitution of the Church—all these things are a result of the ecumenical spirit. That is clear, since Protestants were present for the changes in the Mass—six Protestant ministers were photographed with Pope Paul VI who thanked them for having come to participate in the liturgical commission, which transformed our Catholic Mass! Everything was done in this ecumenical spirit: liturgical reforms, catechetical reforms, an ecumenical Bible—which is sold in the bookstore at the Vatican. There was then, a considerable Protestant influence.” (Conference in Germany, October 29, 1984)
-“…if they are going to the New Mass—slowly, slowly they change their mind and become, slowly, slowly Protestant. It is very dangerous to go to the New Mass regularly, each week, because the New Mass is not some accidental change, but it is a whole orientation, a new definition of the Mass. It has not the same definition as the True Mass.” (Interview, St. Michael’s Mission, Atlanta, April 27, 1986)
“… So, if someone asks me: “I only have Mass of St. Pius V once a month. So what should I do on the other Sundays? Should I go to the New Mass if I do not have the Mass of St. Pius V? ...
I reply: Just because something is poisoned, obviously it is not going to poison you if you go on the odd occasion, but to go regularly on Sunday like that, little by little the notions will be lost, the dogmas will diminish. They will become accustomed to this ambiance which is no longer Catholic and they will very slowly lose the Faith in the Real Presence, lose the Faith in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and have a spirituality, since the prayers are changed and they have modified everything, in the sense of another spirituality. It is a new conception of Christian spirituality. There is no longer any ascetical effort, no longer a combat against sin, no longer a spiritual combat. There is a great need to combat against our own tendencies, against our faults, against everything which leads us to sin. So I would say to them: Listen, I cannot advise you to go to something which is evil. Myself, I would not go because I would not want to take in this atmosphere. I cannot. It is stronger than me. I cannot go. I would not go. So I advise you not to go." (Spiritual Conference at Econe, June 25, 1981)
“The consequences of this state of mind or spirit spread within the Church, inside the Church, are deplorable, and are ruining and sapping the spiritual vitality of the Church. In conscience, all we can do is turn priests and faithful away from using the Novus Ordo Missae if we wish that the complete and whole Catholic Faith remains still living.” (Letter to John Paul II, April 5, 1983 - Archbishop Lefebvre, Conference #1, St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary, April 24, 1983)
This clear change from the clear founding principles of the SSPX by the Archbishop reminds one of the words in a 1993 Si Si No No article titled, Catholics in Surrender!
Evil is evil: error is error. Man, though free, is not free to choose evil. He must choose good and avoid evil. He cannot be freed from this obligation, for which he will be answerable before God. Therefore, with evil remaining the evil it is, and error being the error that it is, he is obliged to make a stand against evil and error.
It was certainly part of the providential plan that Jesus be betrayed by Judas, condemned to death by the Sanhedrin and renounced by a number of Jews. However, Judas, the Jewish leaders, and those who rejected Our Lord, carry with themselves a personal responsibility, for which they will have to answer. Jesus referred to His Passion as "the chalice the Father has given me." Yet he accuses the Jews of always resisting the Holy Spirit, and says of Judas: "It would have been better for him had he never been born!"
Man enters the Providential plan as a creature endowed with freedom, not under constraint. He is, therefore, responsible for the good or bad use of this freedom. Consequently, he is responsible for the stance he takes in the face of evil and error - things which God merely tolerates in furthering His unfathomable designs.
We cannot see why the words of Pius IX - not only true then, but forever true - should change our attitude towards the errors and destructive course upon which the Church has embarked upon, nor our attitude towards the Catholics who are knowingly and willingly partaking in these errors and destruction.
It was certainly part of the providential plan that Jesus be betrayed by Judas, condemned to death by the Sanhedrin and renounced by a number of Jews. However, Judas, the Jewish leaders, and those who rejected Our Lord, carry with themselves a personal responsibility, for which they will have to answer. Jesus referred to His Passion as "the chalice the Father has given me." Yet he accuses the Jews of always resisting the Holy Spirit, and says of Judas: "It would have been better for him had he never been born!"
Man enters the Providential plan as a creature endowed with freedom, not under constraint. He is, therefore, responsible for the good or bad use of this freedom. Consequently, he is responsible for the stance he takes in the face of evil and error - things which God merely tolerates in furthering His unfathomable designs.
We cannot see why the words of Pius IX - not only true then, but forever true - should change our attitude towards the errors and destructive course upon which the Church has embarked upon, nor our attitude towards the Catholics who are knowingly and willingly partaking in these errors and destruction.