A Critique of the False Recognize-and-Resist Ecclesiology of Michael Matt and ‘The Remnant’ (VIDEO)

Review of Matt’s opening speech at Catholic Identity Conference…

A Critique of the False Recognize-and-Resist Ecclesiology of Michael Matt and The Remnant (VIDEO)

The so-called Catholic Identity Conference (CIC) is an annual ‘traditional Catholic’ event in the United States, typically held in or near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In 2022, it tried to get some serious media coverage with its ‘Declaration of Filial Resistance to the Pope’, which, however, predictably went nowhere:

The last such identity conference took place Sep.… READ MORE

TRADCAST 037 is here: The Vatican II Church and the Signs of the Times

Novus Ordo Watch for your ears…

The Vatican II Church and the Signs of the Times

TRADCAST 037 now available

TRADCAST — The Traditional Catholic Podcast

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
AND TO LISTEN TO ALL EPISODES

Great news, everyone! We have published another full-length episode of our popular TRADCAST podcast program. As always, it is loaded with real traditional Catholicism, insightful commentary, hard-hitting refutations of various errors, and razor-sharp analysis. Our content is typically challenging but is always delivered in an accessible way — and with an occasional relieving touch of humor, so necessary in our chaotic and bizarre times.… READ MORE

TRADCAST 037 (January 14, 2024)

TRADCAST 037 (14 JAN 2024)

Contents

  • Segment 1 — John XXIII, Francis, and the signs of the times. Italian Novus Ordo priest declared excommunicated after calling Francis ‘usurper antipope’ in sermon. Brazilian Novus Ordo bishop says all religions are expressions of God and seek to do good. The Naturalist plot against the Papacy. ‘Cardinal’ Bo wants to save humanity for heaven on earth.
  • Segment 2 — GAME: What did Francis really say? Fill in the blanks! The ‘human elements’ ecclesiology of Michael J. Matt. How the Catholic Answers Focus podcast speaks about the Son of God.
  • Total run time: 1 hr 29 min

You can listen to the show by clicking the big play button in the embedded player above.… READ MORE

Reaction Roundup: Semi-Trads Lose It after Francis Pulls the Plug on Strickland

Defiance, denial, disconcertion…

Reaction Roundup: Semi-Trads Lose It after Francis Pulls the Plug on Strickland

Unless you were under a rock the past three days, chances are you’ve heard about 65-year-old ‘Bishop’ Joseph Edward Strickland of Tyler, Texas, being removed from his post by Jorge Bergoglio, the Argentinian apostate currently occupying the Vatican guest house under the stage name ‘Pope Francis’. We blogged about it when it on Saturday:

It was a given that this development, not unexpected, would generate a tidal wave of reactions, and so it has.… READ MORE

Must Francis be considered a Valid Pope? A Sedevacantist Response to ‘Bishop’ Athanasius Schneider

Refutation of ‘On the Validity of Pope Francis’…

Must Francis be considered a Valid Pope?
A Sedevacantist Response to Athanasius Schneider

‘Bishop’ Athanasius Schneider looks at ‘Pope’ Francis on Sep. 15, 2022, in Astana, Kazakhstan.
(image: AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

On Sep. 6, 2023, the Rev. James Altman — one of the “canceled priests” in the United States — published a video in which he explained, in his own style, why he believes that Jorge Mario Bergoglio (‘Pope Francis’) is not in fact the Pope of the Catholic Church:

This has of course triggered a wave of reactions, mostly by recognize-and-resist traditionalists (“semi-trads”) and conservative Novus Ordos who had shown support for ‘Fr.’… READ MORE

Sedevacantism and the Mystery of the Church’s Passion: Reply to Robert Morrison

The Faith allows for mystery but not for contradiction…

Sedevacantism and the Mystery of the Church’s Passion:
Reply to Robert Morrison

On June 30, 2023, the semi-traditionalist flagship publication The Remnant published a brief article entitled “Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre’s Vision of the Great Mystery of the Church’s Passion”. Its author is Robert Morrison, a writer we have had occasion to critique a number of times before on this blog and in our podcast program.

In this post we will touch on a few things from that article that appear to call for some sedevacantist reaction. Morrison writes:

Whereas Archbishop Lefebvre accepted the existence of a great mystery as it relates to the Church’s crisis, others have attempted to eliminate the mystery, typically in one of two ways described by Archbishop Lefebvre:

“There are people who are seeing the passion of the Church and the tragedy of papacy and so they conclude that such a degradation of papacy is not possible and so the pope can not be the pope.

… READ MORE

TRADCAST 036 is here: Ecclesiastical Déjà Vu: The Apostasy Advances, Semi-Trads out of Ideas

Novus Ordo Watch for your ears…

Ecclesiastical Déjà Vu:
The Apostasy Advances, Semi-Trads out of Ideas

TRADCAST 036 now available

TRADCAST — The Traditional Catholic Podcast

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
AND TO LISTEN TO ALL EPISODES

In case you missed our initial announcement on July 28: We have published another full-length episode of our popular TRADCAST podcast program. As always, it is loaded with real traditional Catholicism, insightful commentary, hard-hitting refutations of various errors, and razor-sharp analysis. Our content is typically challenging but is always delivered in an accessible way — and with an occasional relieving touch of humor, so necessary in our chaotic and bizarre times.… READ MORE

TRADCAST 036 (July 28, 2023)

TRADCAST 036 (28 JUL 2023)

Contents

  • Segment 1 — Ecclesiastical déjà vu: the eerie similarities between the 1960s and today; critique of a recent Remnant article by Robert Morrison; ecumenical requiem for a glacier; some comments on the Victor Manuel Fernandez appointment; how Vatican City defends its own borders; Vatican condemns desecration of religious symbols as offense against human dignity; president of ‘Pontifical International Marian Academy’ says Marian apparitions that warn of divine punishment are false.
  • Segment 2 — Francis’ message to World Youth Day pilgrims; Francis to travel to Mongolia; comments on the upcoming Synod on Synodality; response to Remnant editor Michael Matt and his ‘Bellarmine Moment’; critique of Peter Kwasniewski’s attempt to bring a Coptic Orthodox man back to the Vatican II Church.
… READ MORE

Can Catholics resist the Pope because St. Paul resisted St. Peter? Lecture by Fr. Gabriel Lavery

Lecture by Fr. Gabriel Lavery, CMRI

Can Catholics resist the Pope because St. Paul resisted St. Peter?

Time and again the recognize-and-resist traditionalists — those who recognize Francis as a true Pope but resist his teachings, laws, and canonizations if they judge them not to be “in line with Tradition” — invoke the incident described in the second chapter of St. Paul’s Letter to the Galatians, in which the Apostle resisted Pope St. Peter “to his face”, as supposed historical precedent and divine approval for “resisting the Pope”.

In a prior blog post, we had already explained, using solid Catholic authorities, why this argument does not hold water.… READ MORE

The Latest Athanasius Schneider Interview: A Sedevacantist Assessment

Blah blah recognize, blah blah resist…

The Latest Athanasius Schneider Interview:
A Sedevacantist Assessment

“Bishop” Athanasius Schneider (b. 1961) is currently in the United States, traveling from one speaking engagement to another. As one of “Pope” Francis’ most outspoken critics, the Kazakh auxiliary of Astana is in high demand with the recognize-and-resist traditionalists, who need a kind of ‘substitute pope’ to reassure them that they are right to resist Francis while still recognizing him as a valid successor of St. Peter. And Schneider delivers.

Never mind that, supposing him to be Pope for a moment, it is Francis who has universal jurisdiction over all Catholics, whereas Schneider has jurisdiction over none, being a mere auxiliary and not in charge of a diocese.… READ MORE

A Case of Mistaken Identity: Semi-Trad Conference tries to be Catholic against the ‘Pope’

Overhyped ‘Declaration of Resistance’ issued…

A Case of Mistaken Identity: Semi-Trad Conference tries to be Catholic in Opposition to the ‘Pope’


Eric Frankovitch, John-Henry Westen, and Michael Matt during a press conference Oct. 1, 2022

This past weekend, from Sep. 30 to Oct. 2, 2022, American recognize-and-resist traditionalists held an event called the “Catholic Identity Conference” in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (official web site).

Not unexpectedly, it was very well attended, being one of the few ways every year the semi-traditionalist crowd can gather together to reassure each other that they’re on the right track, regardless of what the “Pope” says — or the sedevacantists.… READ MORE

TRADCAST 033 is here: False Popes, False Prophets, False Positions

Novus Ordo Watch for your ears…

False Popes, False Prophets, False Positions:

TRADCAST 033 now available

TRADCAST — The Traditional Catholic Podcast

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
AND TO LISTEN TO ALL EPISODES

In case you missed our initial announcement on Aug. 15: We have published another full-length episode of our popular TRADCAST podcast program. As always, it is loaded with real traditional Catholicism, insightful commentary, hard-hitting refutations of various errors, and razor-sharp analysis. Our content is typically challenging but is always delivered in an accessible way with a relieving touch of humor, so necessary in our chaotic and bizarre times.… READ MORE

TRADCAST 033 (August 15, 2022)

TRADCAST 033 (15 AUG 2022)

Contents

  • Segment 1 — Response to Michael Voris and the Church Militant Live program “Is Bergoglio really the Pope?”, aired on Feb. 18, 2022: Church Militant and “Public Criticism of the Pope” – refreshing Voris’ memory with concrete examples; whether Francis lost the Papacy on account of heresy; the question of scandal and leading souls out of the Church.
  • Segment 2 — One Peter Five on Freemasonry and the Papacy; The Remnant‘s contradictory positions on the Vatican II Church; why you can’t go wrong being a Sedevacantist.
  • Total run time: 1 hr 12 min

You can listen to the show by clicking the big play button in the embedded player above.… READ MORE

Bergoglio breaks the Semi-Trads: Is the Fence-Sitting coming to an End?

Recognize-and-Resisters pushed over the edge…

Bergoglio breaks the Semi-Trads: Is the Fence-Sitting coming to an End?

Good news, everyone: It seems more and more semi-traditionalists are finally at the breaking point with Jorge Bergoglio. His recent apology tour for indigenous Canadians seems to have put some people over the edge. During this trip, the man otherwise known by his stage name, “Pope Francis”, did not just unload heaps of the expected ideological blather, he also participated in a pagan smudge ceremony petitioning the “western grandmother” for “access to the sacred circle of spirits”.

At this point, even Taylor Marshall has had enough: “I’m at a loss.… READ MORE

Denouncing “Newchurch”: Another Theological Train Wreck from ‘The Remnant’

The tragedy of schizophrenic theology…

 Denouncing “Newchurch”:
Another Theological Train Wreck from The Remnant

Dr. Jason Morgan is a university professor in Japan and author of numerous articles that have appeared in various journals and papers over the years.

Since 2018, he has been writing for the recognize-and-resist flagship publication The Remnant. One of his first posts was about Sedevacantism, to which we responded here:

One of his most recent contributions is a scathing denouncement of the Vatican II Sect, to which he, quite appropriately, gives the Orwellian term “Newchurch”:

This write-up is actually quite tragic itself, especially considering that the author believes himself to be a faithful traditional Roman Catholic and his position to be expressive of orthodox Catholicism.… READ MORE