What Pope Benedict says about Vatican II
Thanks to the The Wanderer for pointing out in its current issue that Sandro Magister's July 27 www.chiesa edition (click on this post's title) reproduces a reply that Pope Benedict XVI gave to a priest on July 24 who asked him about Vatican II and its aftermath.
Among other things, the Holy Father said this about the aftermath of the Council in the late Sixties:
"One side was of the opinion that this cultural revolution was what the Council had wanted. It identified this new Marxist cultural revolution with the will of the Council. It said: This is the Council; in the letter the texts are still a bit antiquated, but behind the written words is this 'spirit,' this is the will of the Council, this is what we must do. "
The Supreme Pontiff is acknowledging that a phony "spirit of Vatican II" has existed and that
it has caused much trouble for the Faith.
So it is legitimate for the rest of us to echo the Pope in exposing and criticizing that phony "spirit of Vatican II."
Among other things, the Holy Father said this about the aftermath of the Council in the late Sixties:
"One side was of the opinion that this cultural revolution was what the Council had wanted. It identified this new Marxist cultural revolution with the will of the Council. It said: This is the Council; in the letter the texts are still a bit antiquated, but behind the written words is this 'spirit,' this is the will of the Council, this is what we must do. "
The Supreme Pontiff is acknowledging that a phony "spirit of Vatican II" has existed and that
it has caused much trouble for the Faith.
So it is legitimate for the rest of us to echo the Pope in exposing and criticizing that phony "spirit of Vatican II."
posted by Quintero at 11:25 PM
7 Comments:
Dear Quintero,
I wholeheartedly concur and, as I said in another thread, the existence of a phony "Spirit of Vatican II" neither mitigates nor negates the reality of the real Spirit of Vatican II. What is needed, of course, is discernment and for this, we rely upon the Magisterium for guidance. But let us not forget that the Magisterium is not exercised by the Holy Father alone; the Magisterium is exercised by the Pope and all the bishops of the Church in communion with him.
Dear Anonymous 12:12 p.m.,
Of course, the final word on the Magisterium has to come down to the Vicar of Christ.
Some bishops opposed Pope Paul VI on artificial contraception. And in the 1980's, the bishops of France and the USA came to opposite conclusions about nuclear arms and national self-defense.
Today, some bishops toady to pro-abortion politicians.
And national bishops' conferences are not all-powerful themselves; many people do not realize that.
Dear Quintero,
While what you say is true, like EWTN you only relay half the truth (one of the reasons I said that EWTN does at least as much harm as good in another thread).
Each diocesan bishop is the Vicar of Christ in his own see and the Pope is the Vicar of Christ on Earth...hence the necessity for episcopal collegiality so that the various vicars of Christ are in union and communion.
When the Pope, as Supreme Pastor of the Universal Church, wants to effect some policy throughout the Church, he has the necessary ecclesiological mechanisms at his disposal. But as we know from the earliest history of the Church, it is not easy to motivate or move the entire Church one way or another. (The history of mandatory celibacy for priests in the Latin Church provides a great example.)
Look also at how difficult it is for the Pope to move the bureaucracy of the Holy See. The Italians who work for the Vatican bureacracy have a saying: Popes may come and Popes may go but we are forever.
Dear Anonymous,
Sure would be easier for the Pope to move the Church in the direction he wants if the liberals would start obeying him for once.
They could start by adjusting their minds and souls to remove their biases against the Latin Mass and all who love it.
Part of what fuels the Spirit of Vatican II is the fact that the Vatican II documents themselves contain ambiguity which can help interpret things in an unCatholic way.
The council's texts need to be fixed, if that is even possible or perhaps some huge clarification processes that will clear all the ambiguity up.
Quintero, please email larkiniv@msn.com. Thanks. I have a question for you. May the Lord give you peace.
Dear Paul VI,
Thanks for writing! I hope you don't mind, but it's worked out best for me to communicate with folks on this site not by e-mail but just in posts and comments here.
Thanks for your prayerful wishes, and may the peace of the Lord be with you, too!
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