The Absurdity of the Recognize-and-Resist Position demonstrated in two Memes

Everything in the Vatican II Church is false – except the “Pope”?

The Absurdity of the Recognize-and-Resist Position demonstrated in two easy-to-understand Memes

Some things are easier to grasp in simple memes than in pages upon pages of text. We have produced the following two memes to illustrate the folly of the pseudo-traditionalist “recognize-and-resist” position, according to which one must recognize the papal claimants after Pius XII as valid Popes but resist them in whatever they teach, legislate, etc., that appears to one contrary to the pre-Vatican II Magisterium.

Depsite its inherent absurdity and anti-Catholic nature, this position is very popular, perhaps because it promises “the best of both worlds”, so to speak: One gets all the comfort and convenience of having a Pope and a hierarchy, all the while being exempt from the pesky problems associated with submitting to Modernists. The irony is that this position, although it has some superficial semblance of validity based on the necessity to resist sinful commands, is not at all compatible with the traditional Catholic teaching on the Papacy and Church authority. Thus, those who espouse this stance because they desire to uphold the traditional Catholic Faith denied by these Modernist “authorities”, end up denying that very Faith in the process. It is really a tragicomedy.

The following set of two memes is intended to dispel the confusion by pointing out that if it is recognized that there is a magisterium in place that teaches false doctrines, gives the faithful false sacraments, false saints, false theology, false devotions, etc. — in short, a false religion — then this can only be so because the authority from which it proceeds is not the lawful authority instituted by Christ but a counterfeit that is just as false as the effects it has produced.

If you like them, please spread these memes far and wide. You can click on each one for a larger version that you can then download.

That the recognize-and-resist position is entirely at odds with Catholic teaching on the Papacy is something we demonstrate in countless articles on this web site, such as the following:

• The Catholic Doctrine on the Papacy: A Compilation of Magisterial Quotes
• Pope Leo XIII quashes the Recognize-and-Resist Position
• The Papacy and Sedevacantism: Have the Gates of Hell Prevailed?
• Anything but Sedevacantism: Analysis of a Curious Phenomenon
• The Stumbling Block of the Papacy: Why Bergoglio doesn’t fit
• A Dangerous Experiment: Taking Francis’ Claim to the Papacy Seriously
• Theological Absurdistan on Full Display: Response to Fr. Paul Robinson, SSPX

Groups and individuals who endorse this false-traditionalist position include (to various degrees) the Society of St. Pius X, Tradition in Action, some individuals associated with the Rorate Caeli blog, Bp. Richard Williamson, Fr. Francois Chazal, Fr. Joseph Pfeiffer, “Fr.” Brian Harrison, “Fr.” Chad Ripperger, Atila Sinke Guimaraes, Marian Horvat, Henry Sire, Louie Verrecchio, John Salza, Robert Siscoe, Eric Gajewski, Christopher Ferrara, Michael Matt, Matthew Gaspers, Brian McCall, and the late “Fr.” Nicholas Gruner and John Vennari.

For more funny memes like this, you can view our meme collection here. For more material vindicating Sedevacantism and refuting objections to it, please visit our topical page here.

Image sources: istockphoto.com / Novus Ordo Watch composite (with element from istockphoto.com)
Licenses: Paid / paid