Chris Jackson | Remnant Columnist
A very interesting piece came out in the Atlantic yesterday by Paul Elie which can be read in full here. The article focuses on Pope Emeritus Benedict's life now that he has abdicated. However, it also discusses Pope Francis and includes some key interview quotes from Vatican insiders never before seen. It is worth a read. To whet your appetite, take a look at the four quotes below:
“The irony,” a well-placed Jesuit at the Vatican told me, “is that this pope [Francis], great agent of decentralization in the Church, is personally the most centralized pope since Pius the Ninth. Everything has to cross his desk.”
"There, at 6, he [Benedict] says Mass for the household... The chapel might be the chapel at a Catholic high school in Yonkers: beige brick walls, plank pews, standard-issue wooden crucifix. The reforms of Vatican II detached the altar from the back wall in Catholic churches and turned it around so that the priest at Mass faces the people, rather than facing away, as if toward God on their behalf. But here the lace-dressed altar is pushed nearly to the wall, the old-fashioned way. The women, on their knees, contemplate the old man’s back."
Back on February 27 I wrote an article entitled, “The Curious Case of Fr. Paul Nicholson.” In that article I explained, in detail, why certain rash accusations of Fr. Nicholson regarding the SSPX and Archbishop Lefebvre were factually incorrect. Such accusations included the following:
The SSPX is in schism.
SSPX priests are incapable of forgiving sins.
The Church considers Archbishop Lefebvre damned for all eternity.
Archbishop Lefebvre created his own alternative Church.
I explained why each of these assertions is demonstrably false by citing various credible sources and relaying well-known factual information easily discoverable through simple Internet searches. Since that date, Fr. Paul has not substantively responded to any of the previous article’s demonstrations of why each of these points is false. Instead, not only has he continued to repeat some of these accusations, he has now moved to on to new, equally absurd accusations.
The most preposterous of these new accusations is that Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who was former Apostolic Delegate for West Africa, Superior General of the Holy Ghost Fathers, and appointed by Blessed Pope John XXIII a member of the Central Preparatory Commission for the Second Vatican Council, “didn’t care about the Holy Mass.”
Another day, another bombshell in the Conciliar Church. In his homily today during Friday Mass in Santa Marta, the Pope relayed the following to the congregation:
Notice that Francis does not say that the heretic in this example repented. No, it was the Church who apparently repented and saw the light! Of course this vision of sainthood immediately opens up new vistas for progressives. One can already see liberals using this as a basis of rehabilitation and potential sainthood for all of the notorious Modernists condemned by Pius X such as Loisy and Terrell. After all, wasn't it Francis' right hand man, Cardinal Maradiaga who said:
The following is one of my favorite satire pieces from the Remnant's Alium Cepa News Network (A-CNN).
I reproduce it here for your reading enjoyment...
Demon Alleges Lack of Preparation for Vatican II Exorcism
By I. M. Persiflage
Dear Satan,
It is with great animosity that I file this official complaint regarding my recent assignment to possess a high school student at Blessed Karl Rahner Catholic Community. As you are well aware I am a very junior demon and this was my first possession assignment outside of Hell. The training I received from senior demons in preparation for this assignment did not prepare me in the least for what I experienced. From what I was told, I would be sent into the world to fight the forces of good and score a victory for the powers of Hell. Instead I myself was exposed to a Hell I have heretofore never experienced.
As you are aware, as a junior demon I have been assigned to the more shallow circles of Hell and my contract explicitly states I am not to be exposed to anything approaching the 5th circle or greater. As you will see my experience during this possession rates at least an 8th, if not 9th circle level of torment. I have included a statement of what transpired below as evidence of my claims.
In addition, I am petitioning for compensation. I want to be assigned for at least six weeks to demon corps seven, which is assigned to tempt Catholic politicians. As you know the demons in this corps do practically nothing since it is impossible to tempt people who have no conscience. This will give me adequate time to recover from my traumatic possession experience inflicted by the negligence of those senior demons who failed to properly prepare me. Thank you for your consideration of this request.
Demonically,
Anibalus
Statement Regarding the Possession of Hunter Jones on February 22, 2013
I was assigned to possess a high school student by the name of Hunter Jones at Blessed Karl Rahner Catholic Community in California, U.S.A. Hunter was disinterested in church, but was being forced by his parents to participate in the teen band that played at the parish rock Mass. I took possession of Hunter as his band played a Metallica song for the Eucharistic hymn at the 5pm Saturday Mass. The pastor set up a meeting with me the next week.
National Catholic Reporter notes the following:
And what did Fr. Nicolas say at the Gregorian?
Left: Cardinal Maradiaga, Center: Neo-Catholic Blogger in Natural Position, Right: Cardinal Kasper
The terms “ecclesiastical pornography” and “spiritual pornography” have been made somewhat popular recently. The term “ecclesiastical pornography” was apparently coined in a sermon entitled “Christ is the Point” by an anonymous Traditional priest. It can be found here.[i] In the sermon he describes “ecclesiastical porn” as Catholic commentary in books, magazines, newspapers and preaching that is not leading us closer to Christ, getting us riled up, fomenting anger and hatred in our heart against the Holy Father or against the Church. Instead, the priest says, we need to read things that bring us closer to Christ and his mother. He later speaks of those who allow scandals to destroy their Faith as committing spiritual suicide. If we get too worked up, the priest says to “relax, don’t worry and go have a cold one.”
So far so good. Especially the part about the cold one. Soon after this sermon appeared, however, Fr. Paul Nicholson, a self-described, ”Mission Preacher for the New Evangelization” [ii], attempted to apply this term in addressing the Remnant’s editor, stating, “No doubt there are problems in the Church today. But focusing upon the problems is like being addicted to ecclesiastical pornography.” This was followed a few weeks later by Church Militant TV (CMTV), in a very long and unexpected statement[iii], attempting to also apply this label to The Remnant. The letter stated:
Above Photo From Fr. Paul Nicholson’s Blog
According to his website :
Indeed, Fr. Nicholson has been working vigorously. He is very active on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, his blog, and his website. To his credit, Fr. Paul says the Traditional Mass and has very orthodox Catholic views on important sexual moral issues that are under attack today. On these matters it is safe to say he is doing much good for the Church. However, in other matters this isn’t quite the case. One such matter regards Fr. Nicholson’s multiple recent attacks on the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). As the saying goes, Fr. Nicholson is entitled to his own opinions about the Society, but he is not entitled to his own facts. The Remnant has no affiliation with the SSPX. However, we have often seen fit to publicly correct the record when various “conservative” Catholic apologists have stated inaccuracies about them; inaccuracies which could have been easily prevented by a few simple internet searches.
While responding to a Tuesday night rollover accident in Chula Vista, Calif., a police officer and firefighter got into a dispute over where the fire engine should park. It ended with the uniformed firefighter in handcuffs.
The California Highway Patrol officer reportedly ordered the firefighter, identified as Jacob Gregoir, to move the fire engine off the center divide or he would be arrested. As he worked the scene and checked the overturned car for more victims, he reportedly told the unidentified officer that he would have to check with his captain.
That’s when the officer decided to detain the firefighter instead.
On November 3rd, Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi commented on reports that Pope Francis would name women Cardinals for the February consistory. Almost immediately, certain Neo-Catholic media pundits, as well as the secular press, began to spin the words of Lombardi to imply that he strongly opposed the idea of women Cardinals. Catholic Online chose the headline, “Pope Francis Will Not Appoint Women as Cardinals,” while the Irish Times went with, “Vatican dismisses reports of women cardinals.” Conservatives focused on the fact that Fr. Lombardi called the reports “nonsense” and that it is “…simply not a realistic possibility that Pope Francis will name women cardinals for the February consistory. “