The Limits of Papal Power: Contrasting Traditional Catholic Teaching with Recognize-and-Resist Distortion

Enough of the semi-trad sophistry!

The Limits of Papal Power: Contrasting Traditional Catholic Teaching with the Recognize-and-Resist Distortion


Detail taken from “Homage by Catholics to Pope Pius IX” by Wilhelmus Petrus van Geldorp (1871)

The semi-traditionalist pundits of our day love to pontificate (pardon the pun) on the limits of the Papacy. The Pope can’t just do whatever he pleases, they (rightly) point out and thereby (wrongly) feel vindicated in their theologically disastrous position of recognizing Jorge Bergoglio as Pope (Francis), while nevertheless resisting his magisterium, his acts of governance, his canonizations, and his liturgical prescriptions where they believe these deviate from what he ought to be teaching and legislating.… READ MORE

What is the ‘True Obedience’ Demanded by the First Vatican Council? An Answer for Kennedy Hall

It doesn’t mean what he thinks it means…

What is the ‘True Obedience’ Demanded by the First Vatican Council? An Answer for Kennedy Hall


The papal keys bind all — including Kennedy Hall

On Feb. 9, 2024, the Canadian writer and YouTuber Kennedy Hall wrote on the web site of Crisis Magazine:

It is all the rage as of late to discuss the “False Spirit of Vatican I” as a way of understanding the cult-like mentality that so many Catholics have imbibed regarding the limits of papal power. Granted, we can admit of a false spirit of Vatican I because there is a true spirit of Vatican I.

… READ MORE

UPDATED: The Fanciful Theology of Fr. Gregory Hesse (1953-2006): Some Worthwhile Observations

Eccentric recognize-and-resist theologian…

The Fanciful Theology of Fr. Gregory Hesse (1953-2006):
Some Worthwhile Observations

This article was updated on Feb. 23, 2024, replacing incorrect documentation with the proper (and even stronger) evidence. Please excuse the oversight.

The Austrian ‘Fr.’ Gregorius D. Hesse (1953-2006) was a one-of-a-kind recognize-and-resist traditionalist from Vienna. Somehow he always managed to sound convincing while he dished out unconventional theological ideas that were usually quite unique to him. He and his devoted cheerleaders considered his theology to be exemplary ‘traditional Catholicism’, of course, and his fan base ate it up (recent case in point: Kennedy Hall).… READ MORE

The Immoral Pope Benedict IX: Response to a Recent ‘One Peter Five’ Article

More anti-papal junk from the semi-trads…

The Immoral Pope Benedict IX:
Response to a Recent One Peter Five Article


He may have been a moral reprobate, but he was nevertheless a true Vicar of Christ

The pseudo-traditionalist web site One Peter Five has been on a ferocious campaign against the Papacy for years.

Always promoting a conclusion that is still in search of a good argument, One Peter Five under the editorship of Timothy S. Flanders has been cranking out, with foolhardy determination, all kinds of propaganda material that ultimately only has one chief purpose: to uphold Jorge Bergoglio (‘Pope Francis’) as a true Pope, no matter how badly the Catholic teaching on the Papacy must be distorted in order to accomplish the desired result.… READ MORE

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

The Persecution and ‘Death’ of the Church: The Testimony of Scripture and Tradition

The Pope will be Victim, Not Persecutor…

The Persecution and ‘Death’ of the Church:
The Testimony of Scripture and Tradition

pius12-vs-antichrist.jpg

Researched and Explained by
Cardinal Henry Edward Manning (1808-1892)

This is a slightly revised version of an article posted on this web site in 2015.

As we all suffer through these most distressing times in which confusion and chaos reign among all who seek to be genuine Catholics, members of the only true religion established by God, it is helpful and important to reflect on the fact that the situation we find ourselves in today — no (known) valid Pope since 1958, and no apparent Catholic bishop left with ordinary jurisdiction, while a counterfeit institution masquerades as the Catholic Church, spreading heresy, immorality, and impiety — was foretold in Holy Scripture and Sacred Tradition.… 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

Unofficial Attitudes or Official Teachings? How Eric Sammons Again Distorts the Papacy

Old errors in new garb…

Unofficial Attitudes or Official Teachings?
How Eric Sammons Again Distorts the Papacy

The web site of Crisis Magazine informs the visitor that the online publication is “Orthodox. Faithful. Free.”

Free though it may indeed be, who vouches for its purported orthodoxy and faithfulness? Why, the people who operate Crisis Magazine, of course. In other words, it is a self-endorsement, nothing more than an advertisement. (Hans Küng didn’t think of himself as a heretic either, by the way.) If they are indeed as orthodox and faithful as they claim to be, why do they not get an endorsement — a digital imprimatur of sorts — from the local Novus Ordo bishop of the diocese in which they operate, or at least a nihil obstat from the diocesan censor?… READ MORE

Video: Sedevacantism Debate with SSPV Clergy and Indult Traditionalists (1990s)

Historical tidbit found on VHS…

Video: Sedevacantism Debate
with SSPV Clergy and Indult Traditionalists


top left to right: Rev. Brian Harrison, Bp. Clarence Kelly
bottom left to right: Fr. William W. Jenkins, Count Neri Capponi

A reader of this web site recently found a real treasure buried on an old VHS tape: a debate on Sedevacantism between Society of St. Pius V (SSPV) clergy and ‘mainstream’ traditionalists.

The length of the recording is 2 hours 43 minutes. The exchange must have taken place around 1995. The participants were Bp. Clarence Kelly and Fr. William Jenkins for the SSPV, versus ‘Fr.’… READ MORE

Real or Fake? Lightning Reportedly Maims Statue of St. Peter in Buenos Aires

Heralding the end of Bergoglio’s reign?

Real or Fake? Lightning Reportedly Maims Statue of St. Peter in Buenos Aires

The internet is abuzz right now with a report by Resignationist Andrea Cionci, author of The Ratzinger Code (debunked by a Francis adherent here), saying that a statue of St. Peter on the façade of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Rosary of St. Nicholas in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, was zapped by lightning on Dec. 17 which made its halo and right hand fall off, along with the key it was holding (by which is symbolized the key to the kingdom of heaven; cf.… READ MORE

Too Traditional for Tradition? Peter Kwasniewski vs. Pope Saint Pius X

Will the real Traditionalist please stand up?

Too Traditional for Tradition?
Peter Kwasniewski vs. Pope St. Pius X

UPDATE 08-DEC-2023 17:44 UTC:

Dr. Kwasniewski has contacted Novus Ordo Watch and disputed the accuracy of our claim that he has never had an official teaching mandate from the Novus Ordo hierarchy.

Here are the professor’s comments in full, which we are repeating here for the sake of accuracy and fairness:

I noticed in your latest article about my “hubris” a simple factual error:

“When an academic who has a Ph.D. in philosophy but no degree in theology, and who has never had an official teaching mandate from what he recognizes to be the lawful ecclesiastical authority…”

In fact, I received the mandatum to teach theology twice: first from Cardinal Schönborn (yes, I know… but he was the bishop of the diocese in which the International Theological Institute was located), and then from Bishop David Ricken of Cheyenne (prior to his transfer to Green Bay).

… READ MORE

Scott Hahn’s Botched Attempt to Reassure Catholics during Bergoglio’s Reign of Error (PODCAST)

Celebrity apologist claims Pope is not head of Church…

See Nothing, Hear Nothing, Say Nothing: Scott Hahn’s Botched Attempt to Reassure Catholics during Bergoglio’s Reign of Error

UPDATE 28-NOV-2023: Scott Hahn corrects himself in new podcast: “It was wrong of me to say that it is heretical to say the Pope is the head of the Church, because the Pope is the head of the Church.” (see 5:17 time stamp)

ORIGINAL POST:

The conservative Novus Ordo apologists are at their wits’ end with ‘Pope’ Francis, Jorge Bergoglio.

This was manifest in a recent podcast episode of Pints with Aquinas, hosted by Novus Ordo apologist Matt Fradd.… READ MORE

Exclusive Translation: Pope Pius IX’s Apostolic Letter ‘Multiplices Inter’ of 1851

Condemnation of sundry familiar-sounding errors…

Exclusive Translation:
Pope Pius IX’s Apostolic Letter Multiplices Inter of 1851

Pope Pius IX was the second-longest-reigning Pope in the history of the Catholic Church.

Born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti in 1792, he reigned as Pope Pius IX for nearly 32 years, from June 16, 1846 until his death on Feb. 7, 1878. The only Pope who reigned longer than he was St. Peter.

One of the highlights of Pius IX’s long pontificate was the Syllabus of Errors, released on Dec. 8, 1864, along with the encyclical letter Quanta Cura, in which he declared:

But now, as is well known to you, Venerable Brethren, already, scarcely had we been elevated to this Chair of Peter (by the hidden counsel of Divine Providence, certainly by no merit of our own), when, seeing with the greatest grief of Our soul a truly awful storm excited by so many evil opinions, and (seeing also) the most grievous calamities never sufficiently to be deplored which overspread the Christian people from so many errors, according to the duty of Our Apostolic Ministry, and following the illustrious example of Our Predecessors, We raised Our voice, and in many published Encyclical Letters and Allocutions delivered in Consistory, and other Apostolic Letters, we condemned the chief errors of this most unhappy age, and we excited your admirable episcopal vigilance, and we again and again admonished and exhorted all sons of the Catholic Church, to us most dear, that they should altogether abhor and flee from the contagion of so dire a pestilence.

… READ MORE

Pope Pius IX, Apostolic Letter “Multiplices Inter” (1851)

Apostolic Letter of Pope Pius IX

Multiplices Inter (1851)

Apostolic Letter of His Holiness Pope Pius IX, issued on June 10, 1851, condemning certain Errors of Francisco de Paula González Vigil

from which the 1864 Syllabus of Errors draws condemned propositions 15, 21, 23, 30, 51, 54, 68, and 74

(Not to be confused with the Encyclical Inter Multiplices of 1853
nor the Allocution Multiplices Inter Machinationes of 1865)

1. Among the manifold and very heavy cares of Our office, by which We are weighed down on all sides, and among the very great misfortunes of this time, which disturb and violently distress Our mind amid the increasing novelty of all things, there is added the greatly-to-be-lamented fact that the most dangerous books are daily springing forth from the lairs of the Jansenists and other men of that kind, whereby the sons of this age, in order to attract disciples to follow them, speak perverse things in the convincing words of human wisdom.… READ MORE