Like all saints, St. Paul shared this yearning to adhere to what Jesus had taught, which is why He gave Christians a simple test for maintaining the true Faith:
“But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach a gospel to you besides that which we have preached to you, let him be anathema. As we said before, so now I say again: if any one preach to you a gospel, besides that which you have received, let him be anathema.” (Galatians 1:8-9)
In his Oath Against Modernism, St. Pius X echoed St. Paul’s test in order to refute one of the most pernicious aspects of Modernism:
“I sincerely hold that the doctrine of faith was handed down to us from the apostles through the orthodox Fathers in exactly the same meaning and always in the same purport. Therefore, I entirely reject the heretical misrepresentation that dogmas evolve and change from one meaning to another different from the one which the Church held previously.”
Malicious heresy, despair, and the gates of hell — bring to mind Francis, and we ought to reflect on the religious beliefs he has foisted on the Church and world for ten years.
For those with properly functioning intellects, this should be self-evident. Tragically, though, the enemies of God and His Church had long conspired to undermine and pervert Catholic teaching and thinking. In his Open Letter to Confused Catholics, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre described how much damage these attacks on the Faith had done prior to Vatican II:
“My personal experience never ceases to amaze me. These bishops for the most part were fellow students with me in Rome, trained in the same manner. And then, all of a sudden, I found myself alone. But I have invented nothing new; I was carrying on. Cardinal Garrone even said to me one day: ‘They deceived us at the French Seminary in Rome.’ Deceived us in what? Had he not himself taught the children of his catechism class thousands of times, before the Council, the Act of Faith: ‘My God, I firmly believe all the truths Thou hast revealed and that Thy Church doth teach, because Thou canst neither deceive nor be deceived?’ How have all these bishops been able to metamorphose themselves in this manner? I can see only one explanation: they were always in France and they let themselves become gradually infected. In Africa I was protected. I came back the year of the Council, when the harm had already been done. Vatican II only opened the gates which were holding back the devastating flood. In no time at all, even before the end of the fourth session, it was catastrophic. Everything, almost, was to be swept away; prayer first of all.”
For the most part, Archbishop Lefebvre’s fellow bishops were not heretics or infiltrators. They had, however, been poisoned by the Liberal and Modernist errors about which the pre-Vatican II popes had warned for almost two centuries. They had slowly learned to doubt what St. Paul and St. Pius X had taught about the immutable nature of the Faith.
Although there have been some truly malicious heretics masquerading as Catholics since the Council, much of the damage has been carried out by those who believe that they are faithful sons and daughters of Holy Mother Church. God alone can judge the souls of those who have advanced the Spirit of Vatican II, but we can say with certainty that the collective efforts of these deluded Catholics have brought the Church and world to the brink of ruin. Were it not for Our Lord’s promise that the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church, we would have every reason to despair.
Unlike proponents of Modernism and other heresies who subtly try to infect those who wish to remain Catholic, Francis imposes his anti-Catholic teaching through tyranny: if you want to remain Catholic, he sneers, you better reject what the Church has always taught.
These thoughts — malicious heresy, despair, and the gates of hell — bring to mind Francis, and we ought to reflect on the religious beliefs he has foisted on the Church and world for ten years. Just months into Francis’s occupation of the papacy, Bishop Bernard Fellay characterized Francis as a “genuine Modernist” for his statement to the effect that true believers have doubts about God:
"What Gospel does he have? Which Bible does he have to say such things. It’s horrible. What has this to do with the Gospel? With the Catholic Faith? That’s pure Modernism, my dear brethen. We have in front of us a genuine Modernist . . . How much time will be needed for people with authority in the Church to stand up and to say ‘by no means!’ [will we accept this new teaching]. I really hope and pray this will happen. But that means an enormous division in the Church . . .”
Bishop Fellay saw this years before Amoris Laetitia, Traditionis Custodes, and the Synod on Synodality. If only more good shepherds had seen it so clearly ten years ago, the Church and world might have been spared some of the horrors we have experienced!
Over ten years into Francis’s occupation of the papacy, though, can we still say that his philosophical and religious beliefs are characterized primarily by the errors that poisoned the men responsible for Vatican II? In his 1907 encyclical on Modernism, Pascendi, St. Pius X called Modernism the “synthesis of all heresies,” and almost certainly we can fit many of Francis’s aberrations within the category of Modernism. And yet there is something even worse about Francis’s professed religious beliefs.
Unlike proponents of Modernism and other heresies who subtly try to infect those who wish to remain Catholic, Francis imposes his anti-Catholic teaching through tyranny: if you want to remain Catholic, he sneers, you better reject what the Church has always taught. No faithful Catholic with the use of reason accepts his lies. Indeed, every faithful Catholic with the use of reason rejects and detests most of Francis’s professed religious beliefs. Those who promoted Liberalism and Modernism paved the way for Francis, but his complete hostility to the Catholic religion requires us to find some other way to characterize his system of religious beliefs.
It is Satan’s great triumph to have most of the world mistakenly believe that the religion of Francis — which is the demon’s religion — is that of the Catholic Church.
Above all else, it is clear that Francis hates the integral Catholic Faith and wants to do as much damage to it as possible. This is not mere speculation: he has told us this in various ways throughout his occupation of the papacy, as most “rigid,” “backward” Traditional Catholics know well. Whereas his predecessors sought to maintain some minimal continuity with the Church’s tradition, Francis does not even feign interest in preserving the link to the pre-Vatican II Church, let alone Christ. In this, he appears to be perfectly aligned with Satan.
We must also recognize that Francis’s increasingly overt attacks on true Catholicism have coincided with signs of increased demonic influence throughout the world. Among these signs, the promotion of transgenderism as something we must all accept and teach our children is almost certainly the most open and unambiguous. Everything associated with the Great Reset also shows signs of demonic influence, albeit in a more subtle manner. On all of this, Francis’s reactions have ranged from tacit approval — “who am I to judge?” — to enthusiastic support.
All of this appears to coincide with the warnings of Our Lady of Akita (Japan, 1973), which Benedict XVI claimed were essentially the same as those contained in the Third Secret of Fatima:
“The work of the devil will infiltrate even the Church in such a way that one will see cardinals opposing cardinals, bishops against other bishops. The priests who venerate Me will be scorned and opposed by their conferees . . . churches and altars sacked, the Church will be full of those who accept compromise and the demon will press many priests and consecrated souls to leave the service of the Lord. The demon will be especially implacable against souls consecrated to God. The thought of the loss of so many souls is the cause of My sadness. If sins increase in number and gravity, there will be no longer pardon for them.”
Cardinals opposing cardinals, and bishops opposing bishops: some cardinals and bishops would be fighting for the immutable Catholic Faith, and some fighting for the religion promoted by the demon. This is what we see today, although those who fight for the immutable Faith appear far outnumbered at this point.
Liberalism, Modernism, and other heresies served to dislodge Catholics from the immutable Faith, allowing them to forfeit the great gifts that God entrusted to His Church. Although many souls apostatized as soon as Vatican II’s innovations became apparent, many souls accepted errors incompatible with the Faith while remaining nominally Catholic. Over the decades, this led to the steady perversion of minds that has allowed a critical mass of nominal Catholics to think that Francis professes the Catholic Faith. It is Satan’s great triumph to have most of the world mistakenly believe that the religion of Francis — which is the demon’s religion — is that of the Catholic Church.
If we can calmly and rationally evaluate the situation, we see that God is permitting this crisis so that we turn to Him, firmly holding to the unadulterated Catholic Faith that Satan hates so much.
Even if we cannot know with certainty why God is permitting these horrors, we can see that they are a fitting punishment for blind shepherds having accepted the lies against which St. Pius X warned. Because God is loving and merciful, He has allowed it to become progressively clear that the fateful betrayal occurred at Vatican II. The only remedy is to return to the immutable Catholic Faith and try to serve God as faithfully as possible.
No faithful Catholic should think of abandoning the Church. Not only has God promised to protect it when it looks as though all is lost, we also have the remarkable fact that Satan hates it so very much as to do all he can to destroy it. Yes, the crisis envelops us in a great mystery and brings many questions — but God sent us various warnings that the crisis in the Church would give rise to this mystery. If we can calmly and rationally evaluate the situation, we see that God is permitting this crisis so that we turn to Him, firmly holding to the unadulterated Catholic Faith that Satan hates so much.
Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò summed up the current situation, and the necessary response, in his recent interview with Aldo Maria Valli:
“The present crisis is the punishment with which the Lord punishes the Church and the world for the infidelity of His Ministers and of the rulers of the Nations. Let's look at this scourge as the severe gesture of a Father who has been offended for too long but who still wants to save us. Conversion is the only possible way: let's go back to God, before Mercy gives way to Justice.”
The greatest heroes in the history of the world have been those who have made themselves entirely docile to God’s will, for God gives them alone the wisdom and strength to overcome all enemies, even Satan. We should pray for Francis’s conversion, but unless and until that happens we must put ourselves entirely at God’s disposal, so that He can use us as He sees fit to crush Francis’s demonic religion. Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!
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