Pope Benedict and the Lefebvrist Puzzle

A minor uproar has arisen due to the lifting of excommunication of some of the leaders (bishops) of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). The press has been presenting this as a “reinstatement” of the bishops – even though it was merely a cancellation of the excommunications. The persons in question technically are not permitted to act as a bishop (or priest) and have no pastoral role. Whether or not they accept that or continue to hold themselves out as a bishop is another issue. And the remarks of one of the bishops, Richard Williamson, have turned a minor matter of church governance into an international incident.

The SSPX is schismatic. The press usually frames it as with respect to the Latin Mass (and ad orientum) but it is deeper than that. The SSPX has its origins in the discontent by some on the French Catholic right with the secularization of the French Republic. The impetus was opposition to Vatican II reforms to be sure, but the real genesis was a desire to return to the "throne and altar" Catholicism of the Old Regime. So the SSPX is as much a political organization as it is a religious one.

The excommunications took place in 1988 and were automatic as the result of Lefebvre consecrating four bishops (one of whom was Williamson). An Archbishop has the power to consecrate another bishop, but the consecration must be approved by the Vatican (which had told Lefebvre NOT to consecrate the four). So while the consecrations are valid in some respects, the Vatican does not permit the four to act as bishops. Lefebvre did it to ensure the SSPX would continue after his death. The Vatican bent over backward to keep SSPX inside the church. Pope John Paul II offered Lefebvre one new bishop of his choosing. In addition, the SSPX would have become a personal prelature of the church in a similar situation as Opus Dei. The organization would therefore have been permitted to continue its work but under the direct authority of the Pope. Considering the then strong and continuing opposition of many bishops to traditionalist Catholicism, it would have allowed SSPX to operate in dioceses were the hierarchy was hostile or indifferent.

Lefebvre refused and consecrated the bishops. By doing so, he engaged in a schismatic act for which the penalty was excommunication to him and all participants. This in turn led to the effective casting out of the SSPX from the Church.

Since the act, some other things have happened. One is that the SSPX in turn has fell into schism. Second, the Church has taken steps to help traditionalist Catholics stay within the church. These include:

• The founding of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter by a group of former SSPX priests
  
• The issuance of Ecclesia Dei in 1988 (issued in reaction to the consecrations) which directed bishops to allow the traditional Mass.
  
• The issuance of Summorum Pontificum in 2007, which essentially took the decision out of the hands of the bishops and into the hands of the parishes.
  

I was and remain quite happy that the Latin Mass is making something of a comeback, even though it will never replace the vernacular. But even this has not been enough for SSPX. For one thing, they still complain about the Missal – traditionalist Catholics in communion with the Church use the official 1962 Roman Missal. The SSPX demands use of the 1950 Missal (and offshoot of the SSPX uses an even older Missal). To a large extent the problem is political – the Catholic Church has moved away from a throne and altar philosophy while SSPX wants to go back there.

One good thing has been the fact that the church has been able to get ordinary traditionalist Catholics back into the church. Most of those who attended SSPX masses were not there because they had an interest in the philosophy of Joseph de Maistre but rather because they liked the devotions of the “old” Church. They now have a place to go. The hard core of the SSPX though will never be happy. The church continues to bend over backward to keep the SSPX in communion and all we get for it is biting. If you ever get into a conversation with a true believing SSPX member, every sentence contains the words “Satan”, “Jews”, or “Freemasons”. Despite the action, the SSPX still remains outside the Church.

Which brings us to Williamson. The guy is a loon. It is not just the Holocaust; he is also a 9/11 Truther, JFK conspiracist and God knows what else he really believes. But he has not been "reinstated" as bishop, he cannot celebrate Mass in a Catholic church, he has only had his excommunication revoked. While I understand the concerns raised by some in and outside the church, his loony beliefs have nothing to do with the cancelation of his excommunication. One irony is that the father of Archbishop Lefebvre died in a Nazi concentration camp during World War Two.

George Weigel in a Newsweek article discusses the Lefebvrist puzzle here.

Pope Benedict on "The Apostles"

I just finished Pope Benedict's book on the Apostles. It is a wonderful little book.
The book itself is based on a series of papal audiences given in 2006 and 2007. So it is conversational, not scholarly (if this Pope could wrote anything that is not scholarly that is). Each of the subjects (and it goes beyond The Twelve to also discuss Paul and some of the early Church's co-workers) is presented in a way to make their life lesson relevant to today.

With the exception of Paul, who was an educated man, the Apostles mostly were what today we would call "blue collar" types. They were working men (and women too), ordinary people with ordinary concerns and lives. I think about that when I think about people like my Uncle Joey -- a big gruff tough guy who none the less would use a finger rosary to pray while driving. Like several of the Apostles, he also liked to fish. He never had it easy in life, yet he accepted the bad things and worked hard to persevere.

Holiness can be found in the most unlikely places.

The Pope Meets Stephen Hawking

Pope Benedict met briefly with Stephen Hawking at a Church sponsored conference on faith and science. The Pope spoke briefly, noting that "There is no opposition between faith's understanding of creation and the evidence of the empirical sciences."

Accepting God and evolution pose no problem for me. I have never really understood the issue. Creation just is, accept it as it is. God's message is one of redemption, not the Bible as a science book.

The Pope's Visit

I have to admit that I have not been watching much of the mainstream media's coverage of the Pope's visit. Partly, it seemed that the media never understood Pope John Paul II and that Pope Benedict is even harder for them to understand. He is a walking contradiction. He is supposed to be a narrow authoritarian, yet he meets with his philosophical opponents such as Hans Kung. He invites those who threaten him to discuss with reason and respect.

And now he has gone and met with some of the victims of the clerical scandal. Yes it is a symbolic gesture, but considering how much pain the scandal brought us in the American Church, I thought a wonderful and healing gesture. It will take a long time for the pain and wounds to heal. But the Catholic Church has been around for 2000 years -- we can use time to cure ourselves.

The Anchoress of course has the best analysis of the visit.

A Quote I Really Like

"One must welcome the true conquests of the Enlightenment, human rights and especially the freedom of faith and its practice, and recognize these also as being essential elements for the authenticity of religion." -- Pope Benedict's reply to the 138 Muslim Scholars.

Pope Benedict wrote those words as part of a reply to a letter addressed to him by 138 Muslim scholars. The scholars wrote to the Pope hoping to begin a dialogue between religions, following the Pope's Regensburg Address. While addressed to a specific group of Muslims, these words I believe have relevance for us all. Some believe it is impossible to unite faith, reason and liberal democracy. Yet I argue that the three not only co-exist but are enhanced and strengthened by each other.

The Pope's Undelivered Speech

I found an English translation of the Pope's speech that he was supposed to deliver to the students and faculty of Rome University.

The speech is what you would expect of the Pope. The speech began with a discussion of historical context. It briefly traced the history of the university and its importance to the Italian state. It then discussed the Pope's connection to the actual invitation, noting that it was to the Pope as "bishop of Rome".

The speech then turned to discuss the nature and purpose of two institutions, the Papacy and the University. Looking to the history of words, the speech noted that the Pope was first and foremost a bishop, who Greek word is tied with the idea of the shepherd. So the Ope is, in essence, someone who is a voice to guide "ethical reasoning." But the Pope also speaks from faith. So as always, Pope Benedict sees faith and reason intertwined.

The Pope next turned to the purpose of the university. A university is a physical manifestation of man's quest for knowledge. Which again is where faith and reason connect. To the early Christians, the quest for knowledge was a way of blowing away the clouds of myth and understanding God. As the Pope put it, "to discover the God that is creative Reason as well as Reason-as-Love." And what is the end of knowledge? As the speech explained the "purpose of knowing the truth is to know what is good."

What is perhaps most ironic about this affair is that the Pope, the most scholarly of clerics by far, was forced away from a university. Those who protested his planned appearance would have done well to hear what would have been his closing words:

What does the Pope have to do or say in a university? He certainly should not try to impose in an authoritarian manner his faith on others, which can only be freely offered. Beyond his ministry as Pastor of the Church and on the basis of the intrinsic nature of this pastoral ministry, it is his task to keep alive man’s responsiveness to the truth. Similarly he must again and always invite reason to seek out truth, goodness and God, and on this path urge it to see the useful lights that emerged during the history of the Christian faith and perceive Jesus Christ as the light that illuminates history and helps find the way towards the future.

Anyway, do not take my word on it -- read the speech.

Pope Benedict, Faith, Reason, and the University of Rome

Pope Benedict had planned to visit Sapienza University of Rome, perhaps Italy's most prestigious university, to celebrate the start of the academic year. Instead, a coalition of students and professors demanded he stay away, so he did. Their complaint is that the Pope, an advocate of free inquiry and the importance of reason, is responsible for Galileo or something like that.

This has lead recriminations from Italy's left wing government, with both the president and Prime Minister condemning the actions of the protesters.

The Vatican has released the text of the Pope's undelivered speech. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find it in either English or Italian. I probably will have more to say once I read it.

Pope Benedict to Address Tax Evasion and Tax Havens

It was reported today that the Pope's second encyclical letter will address tax evasion and tax havens. As a tax lawyer, I considered going into my group head and saying that I needed to be excused from work, but then thought better of it.

This is not a new requirement. The Catechism (of which Pope Benedict was an important contributor) lists tax evasion as a morally illicit business practice. US law recognizes the difference between tax evasion (which is illegally arranging your affairs to evade paying taxes) and legal tax avoidance (which is arranging your affairs so that you pay the minimum amount of tax due). Someone owning Microsoft stock purchased in 1982 is not required to sell it to pay tax -- the taxpayer is perfectly permitted to hold the stock, borrow against it, and use it in such a way that no tax is due.

It will be interesting to see what the letter says. I believe it probably must be read in the European and specifically the Italian milieu where money is transferred secretly offshore into haven jurisdictions.

Pope Benedict -- Unflappable

I did not realize this happened, but back in June, someone tried to jump onto the "Popemobile." The man was unarmed but the Pope did not even react or turn around. I guess dealing with the Curia prepares you for everything!