What difference, at this point, does it make?

First-Ever Anglican Liturgy comes to St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican

© FILIPPO MONTEFORTE/AFP/Getty Images

[UPDATE 08-FEB-17 15:10 UTC: La Stampa confirms Anglican liturgy will take place at St. Peter’s]

Breaking news from the Anglican Centre in Rome: On March 13, 2017, the Vatican will permit its Anglican friends to celebrate a “Choral Evensong” at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. The Centre‘s web site has announced the event as follows:

On March 13, for the first time ever, Anglican Choral Evensong will be celebrated at the altar of the Chair of St Peter in St Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican. Permission for this unique occasion was granted by Cardinal Angelo Comastri, Archpriest of St Peter’s Basilica, during a recent meeting with Archbishop David Moxon, the Director of the Anglican Centre in Rome.

Archbishop Moxon will preside at the 3.00pm service, while the preacher will be Archbishop Arthur Roche, the Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments at the Vatican. The music will be sung by the Choir of Merton College, Oxford.

The gesture reflects the deepening bonds of affection and trust between the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church. It comes just five months after Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin Welby celebrated Vespers together at the Basilica of San Gregorio al Celio to mark the Anglican Centre’s fiftieth anniversary. It also reciprocates the liturgical hospitality of the Archbishop of Canterbury and Dean Robert Willis in welcoming Cardinal George Pell to celebrate Solemn Mass at the High Altar of Canterbury Cathedral on July 7, 2015.

This date has been chosen as the nearest available day to the historic feast day of St Gregory the Great, who has become an unofficial patron of relations between the two churches. St Gregory was the Pope who sent St Augustine to England in 595 to evangelise the Anglo-Saxons and who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury.

(“First-ever Anglican Evensong in St Peter’s, Rome”, The Anglican Centre in Rome; accessed Feb. 7, 2017)

While we have not yet seen official confirmation from the Vatican on this, this is sure to follow, since it is inconceivable the Centre would make such a historic announcement without it being absolutely clear that the event is “on”.

“Choral Evensong” is not a Mass but is basically the Anglican equivalent of solemn Vespers in the Catholic Church. In any case, it is a formal liturgical celebration carried out by a false religion, and for the Vatican authorities to permit it to be carried out at St. Peter’s is a mortal sin of sacrilege and implied heresy. As the Anglican Centre notes on the same page, “The service will be celebrated according to the 1662 Book of Common Prayer” (footnote 3). Apparently that is the only way to get the Vatican to permit a liturgy from before 1962.

Aside from the fact that Anglican clergy do not have valid orders — that is, they are all laymen or, as the case tends to be nowadays, laywomen — to permit a Catholic church to be used for Protestant worship is a sacrilege of the highest order. That it should happen at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, of all places, is a testimony to how rotten the Modernist Vatican II Sect really is.

The news article quoted above says that “[p]ermission for this unique occasion was granted by Cardinal Angelo Comastri, Archpriest of St Peter’s Basilica”. Those with their heads still in the sand will rush to point out that this approval was clearly not given by Francis, who of course must be presumed innocent in the whole matter until there is evidence to the contrary.

This, of course, is nonsense. (We remember how that defense worked out during the Marxist crucifix kerfuffle in Bolivia.) First, the “Archpriest” of St. Peter’s Basilica would never be able to give permission for something as explosive as this without the nod from the big guy at the top. Secondly, even if this had been decided without Francis’ knowledge or permission, it would not be incumbent upon Francis to make clear that (1) he never gave his approval and (2) had no knowledge of this. Thirdly, let’s get real: Precisely what in Francis’ “pontificate” so far could possibly give the impression that he would be opposed to such a thing? This is the man who just participated in a syncretist-indifferentist commemoration of the Reformation in Sweden and once told a Lutheran questioner to do whatever she liked about whether to receive “Holy Communion” at a “Catholic Mass”.

It is ironic that the Anglican evensong should be celebrated at the altar of the Chair of St. Peter — the very symbol of the spiritual authority that the Papacy has over all Christians, and which Anglicans obstinately reject. In 1865, the Holy Office under Pope Pius IX sent a letter to certain Puseyite Anglicans to remind them that “all groups entirely separated from external and visible communion with and obedience to the Roman Pontiff cannot be the Church of Christ, nor in any way whatsoever can they belong to the Church of Christ…” (italics added). The letter also clarified that it is not sufficient for Anglicans to simply put aside any enmity against Catholicism but they must in fact become Catholics:

…it was not enough to restore this much desired intercommunion to lay aside enmity and hatred against the Roman Church, but … it was wholly necessary to embrace the faith and communion of the Roman Church by reason of the command and ordinance of Christ. As the Venerable Bede, the most brilliant ornament of your people, says, “All who separate themselves in any way whatsoever from the unity of faith and the fellowship of him (Blessed Peter) cannot be loosened from the bonds of sins and cannot enter upon the gate of the heavenly kingdom.

(Holy Office, Letter Ad Quosdam Puseistas Anglicos, Nov. 8, 1865)

How far that is from the teaching of Francis and the Vatican II Sect today, who claim that heretics can equally be saved and that baptism alone suffices to make one a member of the Church!

Choosing the altar of the Chair of St. Peter for this spiritually-criminal act of Anglican worship in a Catholic church is not only ironic, however, it is also blatantly heinous.

That it should take place on March 13, under Francis, with Anglicans in particular is quite fitting, however. Although the news snippet does not mention it, March 13 of this year marks the 4th anniversary of the election of “Pope” Francis. The Anglican religion was founded by an adulterous King Henry VIII, who insisted on receiving an annulment for his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. Since he did not have legitimate grounds for having the union declared invalid, however, Pope Clement VII refused to grant him the annulment, which ultimately led to the creation of the so-called “Church of England”, of which Henry VIII made himself the head, and to which almost the entire English Catholic hierarchy defected under threats of execution. Since fake annulments and adultery-as-marriage are the hallmarks of Francis’ “pontificate”, it only makes sense for him to allow the original adultery-promoters to worship according to their rite in St. Peter’s.

To be clear, though: Allowing heretics and schismatics to use Catholic sacred buildings is not new in the Vatican II religion. The door for it was opened by the Second Vatican Council, and it was formally enshrined in the law of the Novus Ordo Church by “Saint” John Paul II, in his 1993 mammoth document, Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms on Ecumenism. See for yourself:

Catholic churches are consecrated or blessed buildings which have an important theological and liturgical significance for the Catholic community. They are therefore generally [!] reserved for Catholic worship. However, if priests, ministers or communities not in full communion with the Catholic Church do not have a place or the liturgical objects necessary for celebrating worthily their religious ceremonies, the diocesan Bishop may allow them the use of a church or a Catholic building and also lend them what may be necessary for their services. Under similar circumstances, permission may be given to them for interment or for the celebration of services at Catholic cemeteries.

(John Paul II, Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms of Ecumenism, March 25, 1993, n. 137)

Now, some may say that this explicitly states that Protestants must be lacking a place for their worship, as a condition for them being permitted to use a Catholic church. This is indeed true, but irrelevant, for two reasons: (1) It does not say that that this is the only scenario under which a Protestant service may be conducted in a Catholic church; (2) Even if it did say so, since the principle that Protestants are allowed to conduct their heretical services in Catholic churches under certain circumstances is admitted, the door has been opened to this sacrilege, and now it is merely a question of extending the circumstances under which it may happen. In other words, John Paul II put a wedge in the door, and now it is just a matter of opening it further and further since it is no longer closed. On what grounds could anyone argue that it is licit to allow Protestants to use a Catholic church for their worship if they have no other place, but not if some “spiritual advantage” suggests it (to use typical Vatican II speak)?

As a side note, we must mention that there is no such thing as Protestants “celebrating worthily their religious ceremonies”, since their religious ceremonies are per se odious to God. Objectively speaking, no heretical worship as such can possibly be “worthy” in God’s sight, so John Paul II’s phraseology right there implies the heresy of indifferentism. All heretical worship is false worship and is a sin against the First Commandment:

False worship is opposed to the truth of religion (e.g., Old Testament rites which signify that Christ is still to come), or of rites (e.g., Mass by a layman, Mass according to a form disapproved by the Church), or of facts (e.g., fictitious revelations, ecstasies, mysticism, miracles, relies), or of morals (e.g., human sacrifice, praises of God to the accompaniment of lascivious words or music, etc.).

(Rev. John McHugh & Charles Callan, Moral Theology, Vol. II, n. 2274)

Since heretical worship is always at the very least “opposed to the truth of religion”, it constitutes false worship.

That, of course, has never stopped the Vatican II Sect. In 2013, John Paul II’s sacrilegious law was applied in the archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, where “Cardinal” Daniel DiNardo — currently the “conservative” head of U.S. Novus Ordo Bishops — permitted Methodist heretics to use his co-cathedral to confer “ordinations” on women! See our coverage of this abominable spectacle here:

You can’t make this stuff up!

Officially permitting a false religion to carry out its liturgical rites — not some joined “ecumenical” service but a specifically Anglican liturgy — inside the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Basilica is a new one for the Novus Ordo Church. But then again, all things considered, it really isn’t any more outrageous than what we’ve seen for decades. After all, St. Peter’s has long been defiled with the Novus Ordo Missae (“New Mass”) of Paul VI, the errors of the Second Vatican Council, and the incredible Modernist heresies and blasphemies of the false Novus Ordo popes, especially Paul VI, John Paul II, and Francis. And we must not forget that on Dec. 8, 2015, St. Peter’s facade was turned into a virtual zoo of grunting, howling, roaring, and chirping animals. All of this is part of some “great renewal” we simply haven’t properly understood yet, no doubt.

So now it’s the Anglicans’ turn to profane St. Peter’s.

What difference, at this point, does it make?

Image source: Getty Images (Filippo Monteforte/AFP); cropped
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25 Responses to “First-Ever Anglican Liturgy comes to St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican”

  1. James Pridmore

    Will someone please send up a flare when they see the abomination of desolation stand in the holy place? I’m afraid I’ll miss it given the near total chaos of the Francis papacy.

  2. John Hixson

    Lets hurry up and post this story on the Remnant’s You Tube channel. Then they will finally see that sedevacantism is the only log….er never mind they will just delete it. 🙂

  3. poapratensis

    What is up with partial communion, anyway? Isn’t communion with the church like pregnancy? You are either in communion with the Church or you are not. Partial communion seems to me about as sensible as partial pregnancy. The same thing I wonder in regards to the SSPX. How does one achieve fuller communion? Is this like having twins?

  4. ClareB

    The “great renewal” is clearly a slogan to shroud something like “Operation Creeping Conquest”. A detailed timeline of events in the Vatican over the last 59 years or so that whittled away at all things Catholic, might give the impression that the Vatican City State territory was slated early on by the enemies of Catholicism to be the center for the ecumenical One World Order religions.
    Has any non-Catholic ever turned down an invitation to practice their religion within the boundaries of the Vatican City State stating publicly with media coverage that it would not be right, that their conscious would sear them, that they would be condemned on the spot, that they must needs remain in their own church confines so as not trespass?
    King Henry XIII became head of a new church when he took the spiritual supremacy from the Pope and gave it to himself by confiscating, plundering and devastating England. The new church of our time has come not in the form of a person this time but in the form of documents, documents that mandate
    the stealth confiscation, plunder and devastation of the Catholic Church from within. The Six Servants of Vatican II Council have altogether exceeded the monster King Henry VIII.

    “Choosing the altar of the Chair of St. Peter for this spiritually-criminal act of Anglican worship in a Catholic church is not only ironic, however, it is also blatantly heinous.”

      • ClareB

        That one sentence to which you refer was fresh in my mind because right now I am reading “A History of the Protestant Reformation in England and Ireland” by William Cobbett written in 1824 – 1827.

        He writes, p.44, …for being now “head of the Church”, he had a deal to manage; he had, poor man, to labor hard at making a new religion, new articles of faith, new rules of discipline, and he had new things of all sorts to prepare. Besides which, he had, as we shall see in the next number, some of the best men in his kingdom, and that had ever lived in any kingdom or country, to behead, rip up, and cut into quarters. He had, moreover, as we shall see, begun the grand work of confiscation, plunder and devastation.
        p. 50, …still there were some men to raise their voices against the illegality and cruelty of the divorce of Catherine, as well as against that great preparatory measure of plunder, the taking of the spiritual supremacy from the Pope and giving it to the King.
        p.53, …If the bishops, or only a fourth part of them, had shown equal courage, the tyrant would have stopped in that career in which was now on the eve of producing so many horrors. The stand made against him by these two poor friars was the only instance of bold and open resistance until he had actually got into his murders and robberies.”

        I got this book from True Restoration Radio. It is on sale right now at Restoration Radio two for the price of one. This book, like Restoration Radio says about their series, The Root of the Rot, is a real eye-opener from true history to really grasp and understand our present crisis. (And it is a 406 page book.)

        https://www.truerestoration.org/press/

  5. Teuton1981

    At least the Anglicans don’t cover their heresy under the name ‘catholic’ as the VII heretics do. So maybe the NO mass in St. Peter’s Basilica is even worst than the their Anglican brothers counterpart…

  6. unam_sanctum

    This is great news, Anglicans let us celebrate Mass at Canturbury Cathedral, so we let them sing some songs at St. Peter’s Basilica. This is a win for Catholics. We’re bringing in thousands of Anglicans. The Episcopal Church is falling apart. Do not be surprised if England becomes Catholic again.

    • Alan F.

      Right…

      I think you’ll find the Novus Ordo sect is also falling apart. A few disgruntled Anglicans (who haven’t stopped being Anglicans, by the way) isn’t changing that.

      And to think England might become Catholic in the foreseeable future requires a new level if having one’s head in the sand. England in reality isn’t even a Protestant country anymore, it’s an atheist one.

  7. Richard Harrold

    Come on, this sort of thing has been going on for years. Westminster and St Paul’s Cathedrals have been doing Vespers/Evensong exchanges for ages. What matters above all else is that this is a chance to reveal to the Catholics the cultural treasures of the English choral tradition: Evensong itself is merely an amalgamation of Vespers and Compline, with no meaningful changes to either.

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