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Robert Siscoe and John of St. Thomas Respond to Fr. Cekada

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Robert Siscoe and John of St. Thomas Respond to Fr. Cekada Empty Robert Siscoe and John of St. Thomas Respond to Fr. Cekada

Post  MRyan Tue Dec 30, 2014 12:06 pm

It's all over but the crying!

Robert Siscoe and John of St. Thomas Respond to Fr. Cekada

(From September 2014 issue of Catholic Family News)

By Robert J. Siscoe

Fr. Cekada posted a response on his website to my April, 2014 article, titled Bellarmine and Suarez on the Question of a Heretical Pope. (1) Skipping over the citations included in the article, which confirmed that the intervention of the proper ecclesiastical authorities is necessary for a sitting Pope to be declared deprived of his office due to heresy, Fr. Cekada zeroed in on one point in particular: he objected to my assertion that, according to Bellarmine, a Pope becomes a “manifest heretic” by remaining obstinate after being publicly warned.

Now, if my assertion is correct, it reveals a fundamental flaw in one of the principle arguments (if not the principle argument) used in defense of the Sedevacantist position, which could result in an unraveling of the entire Sedevacantist thesis. Fr. Cekada, being well aware of this, reacted at once by posting an article of his own on his website in an attempt to counter my assertion. Fr. Cekada’s attempted refutation included two points: 1) He claims that Bellarmine never said a pope must be warned before losing his office due to manifest heresy. 2) He also argued that two quotations (one from Bellarmins’s fourth opinion and another from Bellarmine’s fifth opinion) which were included together in the article (separated by an ellipses) were referring to “two different issues”. As we will see later, these two quotations do not refer to two different issues, but are logically connected one to another.

I contacted Fr. Cekada directly to ask if he would allow me to respond to his public allegation (which, I’m sorry to say, was replete with sarcastic insults and name-calling), and if he would be willing to include my response beneath his own article on his website. He replied cordially by saying that his website is just not set up for that sort of thing, and furthermore, if he permitted me to respond to his public allegations, he’d have to do the same for others. Heaven forbid! But to his credit, he did edit the original piece by removing most of the sarcastic insults and inappropriate name-calling, thereby bringing his article slightly more in accord with what one would expected from a person who had been elevated to the dignity of the priesthood.

As Providence would have it, after reading Fr. Cekada’s piece, and while looking up the source for a quotation I had used in the April article, I happened across an extremely thorough treatise on the deposition of a heretical pope, which, as far as I know, has never been translated into English (at least not in its entirety). I discovered it in Cursus Theologici, Tract. De Auctoritate Summi Pontificis, Disp II, Art III (1640), written by John of St. Thomas, who is considered one of the greatest minds of the “Counter-Reformation” era, as it is sometimes called. This brilliant professor of Scholastic theology and philosophy, who is recognized as one of the foremost Thomists the Church has known - possibly second only to St. Thomas himself - addresses every aspect of the question with incredible precision, utilizing Thomistic metaphysics and unassailable logic, while citing historical examples and canon law. Through the use of distinctions, he reconciles apparent contradictions in the writings of theologians over this question, and explains, in precise detail, the way in which a heretical pope falls from the Pontificate.

His treatise reveals many errors of today’s Sedevacantists, using some of the same arguments that have appeared in this publication. He even discusses, at length, and confirms the very point I made in the April 2014 article - which Fr. Cekada mocked an ridiculed as “windbaggery from someone who has no idea what he is talking about” – namely, that Bellarmine held the position that a heretical Pope must be warned before losing his office due to heresy.

I will use this response to Fr. Cekada to introduce some of the material contained in this magnificent treatise, which will likely be published, in its entirety, in an upcoming book on Sedevacantism, which should be out in the Spring of 2015.

John of St. Thomas lists the sequence of events for the loss of office for a heretical Pope as follows:

1) A Pope who professes heresy is, in accord with divine law, publicly warned by the proper authorities.

2) If the Pope shows himself manifestly obstinate after being duly warned, a declaratory sentence is issued for the crime of heresy, and faithful are informed that, according to divine law, he must be avoided.

3) Since a Pope cannot govern the Church if he must be avoided by the faithful, God Himself severs the bond that unites the man to the office, and he falls, ipso facto, from the Pontificate, even “before any excommunication or judicial sentence”, by the Church, as Bellarmine himself taught.

4) A General Council issues a second declaration (declaration of deprivation) stating that the Pope has deprived himself of his office. At this point the former pope is judged and punished by the Church.

Notice that the declaratory sentence (#2) and the declaration deprivation (#4) are two separate and distinct events. This is an important point, since it clarifies something that Sedevacantists, such as Fr. Cekada, have missed. All they have considered, regarding this point, is the two-fold opinion regarding how a heretical pope loses his office: one opinion maintains that the Church deposes the pope; the other holds that he loses his office ipso facto, and the Church merely confirms what has already taken place (thereby avoiding the heresy of Conciliarism, which claims that the Church has authority over a pope). But both of these opinions only pertain to the final declaration. What the Sedevacantists have failed to grasp is that before we get to the declaration of deprivation (point #4), both opinion agree that the Church must establish that the Pope has fallen into heresy.

This point was explained by the canonist S.B. Smith. In his classic work, Elements of Ecclesiastical Law (1881), we find the following:

“Question: Is a Pope who falls into heresy deprived, ipso jure, of the Pontificate?

"Answer: There are two opinions: one holds that he is by virtue of divine appointment, divested ipso facto, of the Pontificate; the other, that he is, jure divino, only removable. Both opinions agree that he must at least be declared guilty of heresy by the Church - i.e., by an ecumenical council or the College of Cardinals.” (2)

Notice that Fr. Smith addresses both opinions regarding the question of how a pope loses his office (which relates to point #4 above), and then notes that “both opinions agree that he must at least be declared guilty of heresy by the Church.” (point #2).

And it should be noted that Fr. Smith’s book was carefully examined by two canonists in Rome following its initial publication. The Preface of the Third Edition explains that Cardinal Simeoni, Prefect of the Propaganda Fide, “appointed two Consultors, doctors in canon law, to examine the ‘Elements’ and report to him. The Consultors, after examining the book for several months, made each a lengthy report to the Cardinal-Prefect”. (3) Their detailed reports noted five inaccuracies or errors that required revision. The above quotation was not cited as an error, or even a slight inaccuracy. Hence it remained in the Third revised Edition from which the above quotation was taken. If the statement was in incorrect, it would have been noted by the canonist and revised. The fact that it was not revised shows that the statement is correct.

It only makes sense that a Pope would not lose his office without the Church performing the ministerial function necessary to establish the crime, since if a pope were to lose his office without the Church knowing about, or in any way being involved in the process, Catholics would never have absolute certainty that a pope who defined a dogma, or ratified a council, was a true pope, or an antipope, since they would never have absolute certainty that he had not previously fallen into heresy and thereby lost his office. Everything would be in a state of uncertainty and left to the private judgment of each individual to decide. The scrupulous would be paralyzed by doubt, and the instable would fall into the most outrageous conclusions.

And we can see where it leads when individual Catholics in the pew begin to decide for themselves who is, and who is not, a true Pope, when we consider that we now have a Sedevacantist author who claims that all the popes since Innocent (d. 1143) have been anti-popes. The following was recently posted on his website:

"As of January 2014, I have discovered conclusive evidence that all the so-called popes and cardinals from Innocent II (1130-1143) onward have been idolaters or formal heretics and thus were apostate antipopes and apostate anticardinals.”

This shows where the Protestant notion of private judgment leads when it is used as the basis for determining who is and who is not a true Pope. For this reason, a pope will not lose his office ipso facto by divine law, without the Church first establishing the fact of the crime.

The Necessity of a Warning

St. Bellarmine lists five opinions regarding the loss of office for a heretical Pope. The fourth and fifth opinions refer to the two opinions discussed above by Fr. Smith – namely, whether a heretical Pope loses his office ipso facto (fifth opinion), or is jure divino deposable (fourth opinion). Bellarmine holds to the more common fifth opinion regarding this question.

“Therefore, the true opinion is the fifth” wrote Bellarmine, “according to which the Pope manifestly a heretic ceases by himself to be Pope and head, in the same way as he ceases to be a Christian and a member of the body of the Church; and for this reason he can be judged and punished by the Church.”

But the question dealt with in the April article still remains: what did Bellarmine himself mean by the term “manifest heretic”? The answer is not given in Bellarmine’s explanation and defense of the fifth opinion, but is found in his objection and refutation of the fourth opinion.

In his objection to the fourth opinion, Bellarmine employed the use of a syllogism (4) in order to arrive at a theological conclusion that refutes it. A theological conclusion is a conclusion derived from two premises, one of which is a revealed truth (the Major), while the other is a truth known by reason (the Minor). The following is the syllogism used by Bellarmine.

Major: According to St. Paul, a heretic must be avoided after two warnings.

Minor: A Pope who remains Pope cannot be avoided (for how could the Church avoid its head?).

Conclusion: A manifest heretic cannot be the pope.

The following is all contained in a single paragraph in the original:

“The fourth opinion is that of Cajetan, for whom the manifestly heretical Pope is not ipso facto deposed, but can and must be deposed by the Church. To my judgment, this opinion cannot be defended. For, in the first place, it is proven with arguments from authority [Major] and from reason [Minor] that the manifest heretic is ipso facto deposed, The argument from authority is based on Saint Paul (Titus, 3:10), who orders that the heretic be avoided after two warnings, that is, after showing himself to be manifestly obstinate which means before any excommunication or judicial sentence [Major] (…) . Now, a Pope who remains Pope cannot be avoided, for how could we be required to avoid our own head? [Minor] … therefore the manifest heretic cannot be Pope.” [Conclusion]

Now, before showing how this syllogism requires a warning for a pope to be considered a manifest heretic, I need to address Fr. Cekada’s primary argument against my April article. He claimed that a single quotation from the article, which included a statement from Bellarmine’s fourth opinion, along with a statement from the fifth opinion (the two being separated by an ellipses), were completely unrelated. He wrote: “You don’t have to be a Latinist to figure out that two passages with several intervening columns in small print might just possibly refer to two different issues.” He then used this assertion as the basis for a sarcastic ad hominem attack, which, unfortunately, is a common tactic of Fr. Cekada against anyone who dares to write against the errors of Sedevacantism.

What Fr. Cekada apparently didn’t realize (or pretended not to realize), is that the two quotations included the Major from the syllogism (found in the fourth opinion), along with a statement from the fifth opinion that is virtually identical to the Conclusion of the syllogism. Hence, there is a logical relation between the two citations, which Fr. Cekada claimed not to have seen. The following is how the syllogism reads when the quotation from the fifth opinion replaces the Conclusion from the syllogism in the fourth opinion:

Major: According to St. Paul, a heretic must be avoided after two warnings.

Minor: A Pope who remains Pope cannot be avoided. But how can we avoid our head?

Conclusion: The Pope manifestly a heretic ceases by himself to be Pope.

A simple comparison between the above Conclusion (statement taken from the fifth opinion), and the Conclusion found in the syllogism in the fourth opinion (“the manifest heretic cannot be Pope”), shows that the two statements are virtually identical. Therefore, quoting the Major from the fourth opinion, along with the above statement from the fifth opinion (as was done in the April article), was not connecting together “two different issues”, as Fr. Cekada claimed. Rather, the latter half of the quote is the logical conclusion to the former when you add the Minor. Did Fr. Cekada really not notice this?

How much more appropriate would it have been for Fr. Cekada to have e-maileded me directly for a clarification, rather than posting a sarcastic and insulting article on his website for all the world to see? Is such common courtesy too much to expect from a priest? The question that remains is whether Fr. Cekada will be honest enough to remove the public detraction from his website, now that he has been alerted to his mistake.

Now back to the main the issue: what did Bellarmine mean by the term “manifest heretic”? Notice that the Major in Bellarmine’s syllogism (the revealed premise used to establish why a manifestly heretical pope loses his office) requires a warning, according to the authority of St. Paul. What this shows is that, according to Bellarmine, a pope is not considered a manifest heretic prior to being warned. Fr. Cekada denies this and instead claims the only reason Bellarmine quoted the verse (Titus 3:10) was to show that “heresy is a type of self-judgement that puts you (and by extension, a heretical pope) outside the Church.” But, with all due respect, Fr. Cekada is mistaken. That’s not why Bellarmine cited that particular verse. It was quoted because a warning is necessary. In fact, this principle of divine law is enshrined in canon law, which also requires that a warning be given (canon 2314.2) followed by a declaratory sentence (2223.4).

In fact, a warning is considered so essential that it is even required for a prelate who publicly defects from the Faith (Canon 188.4) by joining a false religion, whether formally (sectae acatholicae nomen dare) or informally (publice adhaerere). Although canon law does not require a declaratory sentence in this instance, it does require a warning before the cleric is degraded. (5) This shows how absolutely essential the Church considers a warning to be to establish pertinacity.

The Purpose of a Warning

The purpose of the warning is to establish whether or not the person is pertinacious in his rejection of a dogma, rather than merely mistaken, or perhaps only guilty of a regrettable statement made out of human weakness. Since pertinacity is a necessary element of heresy, it does not suffice that its presence be presumed; it must be confirmed. A warning is a means for establishing whether a person in material heresy is or is not pertinacious. If a warning is necessary to establish pertinacity in the case of a priest or Bishop (according to canon law), why would it be unnecessary in the case of a Pope? Is the bar set lower for “he who judges all and is judged by no one”, than for those of a lower rank?

Commenting on the proposition that a pope who is externally a heretic, but who has not been warned, remains pope, John of St. Thomas wrote:

“This statement… is obvious and is not contradicted by Bellarmine. The truth is evident for the following reason: the pope insofar as he is externally a heretic, if he is prepared to be corrected, cannot be deposed (as we have said above), and the Church, by divine law, cannot declare him deposed, as it cannot yet avoid him, since, according to the Apostle [Paul], ‘a man who is a heretic is to be avoided, after the first and second warning’. Therefore, before the first and second warning, he is not to be avoided by the Church... Therefore, it is falsely said that a Pontiff, by the very fact that he is a heretic externally is deposed: truly, he is able to be so publicly as long as he has not yet been warned by the Church....”

This teaching of John of St. Thomas is confirmed by the eminent 18th Century Italian theologian, Fr. Petri Ballerini – who is an adherent of Bellarmine’s fifth opinion. A portion of the following quote was included in the April article, but what was not specifically pointed out is that, according to Fr. Ballerini, before the Pope is warned he is still a legitimate Pope (which will become more clear in the commentary that follows). He begins by saying that a Pontiff who “defended heresy” would be a grave danger to the faith. He then asks who would have the authority to issue a warning to a Pope, and explains what such a warning would accomplish:

“Is it not true that, confronted with such a danger to the faith, any subject can, by fraternal correction, warn their superior, resist him to his face, refute him and, if necessary, summon him and press him to repent? The Cardinals, who are his counselors, can do this; or the Roman Clergy, or the Roman Synod, if, being met, they judge this opportune. For any person, even a private person, the words of Saint Paul to Titus hold: ‘Avoid the heretic, after a first and second correction, knowing that such a man is perverted and sins, since he is condemned by his own judgment’ (Tit. 3, 10-11). For the person, who, admonished once or twice, does not repent, but continues pertinacious in an opinion contrary to a manifest or defined dogma - not being able, on account of this public pertinacity to be excused, by any means, of heresy properly so called, which requires pertinacity - this person declares himself openly a heretic. He reveals that by his own will he has turned away from the Catholic Faith and the Church, in such form that now no declaration or sentence of anyone whatsoever is necessary to cut him from the body of the Church. (…) Therefore the Pontiff who after such a solemn and public warning by the Cardinals, by the Roman Clergy or even by the Synod, maintained himself hardened in heresy and openly turned himself away from the Church, would have to be avoided, according to the precept of Saint Paul. So that he might not cause damage to the rest, he would have to have his heresy and contumacy publicly proclaimed, so that all might be able to be equally on guard in relation to him. Thus, the sentence which he had pronounced against himself would be made known to all the Church, making clear that by his own will he had turned away and separated himself from the body of the Church, and that in a certain way he had abdicated the Pontificate…” (6)

Notice that he begins by explaining that an inferior can warn a superior. The reason he mentions this is because the Cardinals, or those who are charged with issuing the public warning, are inferior to the Pope. What this shows is that, according to Fr. Ballerini, a Pope who “defended heresy” would still be Pope prior to the public warning – just like John of St. Thomas said – since a “Pope” who had already lost his office due to heresy would no longer be superior to the Cardinals. Only after remaining obstinate in the face of the “public and solemn” warning would pertinacity be sufficiently manifest. Prior to the public warning, and up to the time of the public declaration, the man would still be a legitimate Pope. This point becomes more evident from what Fr. Ballerini had to say next:

“One sees then that in the case of a heresy, to which the Pontiff adhered privately, there would be an immediate and efficacious remedy… for in this hypothesis whatever would be done against him before the declaration of his contumacy and heresy, in order to call him to reason, would constitute an obligation of charity, not of jurisdiction; and if, after his turning away from the Church had been made manifest, there was a sentence passed on him by the Council, such a sentence would be pronounced against one who was no longer Pope nor superior to the Council.” (7)

Notice that all of the actions (warnings, rebukes, etc.) that occurred before the “declaration of his contumacy and heresy” would be directed to one who was still Pope, which is why such actions would constitute an obligation of charity, rather than jurisdiction (since the Cardinals have no jurisdiction over a Pope). This citation confirms what John of St. Thomas said above, namely, that even if a Pope appears to be a heretic externally, he does not lose his office until he has been duly warned by the proper authorities.

And it doesn’t suffice that the warning be given by a private individual. John of St. Thomas addresses this point directly. In the following quote, he begins by noting that even Bellarmine maintains that a warning is required, which is the very point I made in the April article that Fr. Cekada ridiculed. John of St. Thomas then explains why the warning must come from the proper authorities, and why a public declaration must follow if the warning goes unheeded. He begins by saying: “in truth, Bellarmine objects [to the fourth opinion] by saying the Apostle teaches that a heretic, after two warnings, must be avoided,” and then added:

“A heretic ought to be avoided after two juridical warnings made by Church authority, and not according to private judgment. For great confusion would follow in the Church if it would suffice that this warning could be made by a private individual...”

He then explains why it is necessary for the Church (the proper authorities) to issue a public declaration advising the faithful that, according to divine law, the man is to be avoided.

“For the pope’s heresy cannot be public to all of the faithful except by an indictment brought by others. But the indictment of an individual does not bind, since it is not juridical, and consequently none would be obliged to accept it and avoid him. Therefore, it is necessary that, just as the Church designates the man and proposes him to the faithful as being elected Pope, thus also the Church declares him a heretic and proposes him as one to be avoided.”

The Effect of the Warning and Declaratory Sentence

John of St. Thomas has some very interesting things to say about the effects of the warning and declaratory sentence, and how these relate to the loss of office.

Firstly, as we have seen, the warning serves to determine whether the Pope is indeed pertinacious. Once pertinacity is manifest, the Church issues a declaratory sentence of the crime and informs the faithful that, according to divine law, he is to be avoided. Now, since a person cannot effectively govern the Church as its head while simultaneously being avoided by those he is to govern, the Pope is effectively rendered impotent by this declaration. John of St. Thomas explains it this way:

“The Church is able to declare the crime of a Pontiff and, according to divine law, propose him to the faithful as a heretic that must be avoided. The Pontiff, however, by the fact of having to be avoided, is necessarily rendered impotent by the force of such a declaration, since a Pope who is to be avoided is unable to influence the Church as its head.”

Being incapable of effectively ruling the Church due to his manifest heresy, God himself severs the bond that unites the man to the office, and he falls ipso facto from the Pontificate - even before being formally declared deprived of the Pontificate by the Church.

It should also be noted, as Fr. Wernz S.J. observed, that the declaratory sentence of the crime “does not have the effect of judging a heretical pope, but of demonstrating that he has already been judged.” (Eight) Pope Innocent III made this same point, which highlights a distinction made by the canonists between judging the Pope, and declaring him judged. Commenting on the verse “if the salt lose its savor, it is good for nothing,” Pope Innocent wrote:

“[T]he Roman Pontiff … should not mistakenly flatter himself about his power, nor rashly glory in his eminence or honor, for the less he is judged by man, the more he is judged by God. I say ‘less’ because he can be judged by men, or rather shown to be judged, if he clearly loses his savor to heresy, since he ‘who does not believe is already judged’ (John 3:18)…” (9)

John of St. Thomas goes on to explain how the Church plays a ministerial part in the deposition, rather than an authoritative part, since the Church has no authority over a Pontiff - even in the case of heresy. He employs the Thomistic concepts of form and matter to explain how the union between the man and the pontificate is dissolved. A distinction is made between the man (the matter), the Pontificate (the form), and the bond that unites the two. He explains that the Church plays a ministerial part in the deposition of a Pope, just as she plays a ministerial part in the election. During the election of a Pope, the Church designates the man (the matter), who is to receive the pontificate (the form) immediately from God. Something similar happens when a Pope loses his office due to heresy. Since “the Pope is constituted Pope by the power of jurisdiction alone” (10) (which he is unable to effectively exercise if he must be avoided) when the Church issues the declaratory sentence and presents him to the faithful as one that must be avoided, the Church thereby introduces a disposition into the matter (the man) that renders him incapable of sustaining the form (the Pontificate). God responds to this legitimate act of the Church (which it has a right do to in accord with divine law) by withdrawing the form from the matter, thereby causing the man to fall from the Pontificate.

John of St. Thomas delves deeper into this point by clarifying that the Church acts directly on the matter, but only indirectly on the form (the Pontificate). He describes this point using the analogy of man. He explains that just as the generative act of man does not produce the form (the soul), neither does that which corrupts and destroys the matter (disease, etc) directly touch the form - nor does the corrupting element directly cause the separation of the form from the matter (but only renders the matter incapable of sustaining the form) - so too is it with the election and deposition of the Pope. In both cases the actions of the Church are directed to the matter (the man) and only indirectly and ministerially to the form (the Pontificate). In the election, the Church designates the man (matter) who is to receive the form (Pontificate). In the deposition, the Church juridically declares the man to be judged and therefore to be avoided, and God Himself severs the bond that unites the form to the matter, causing the man to fall from the Pontificate.

Having fallen from the pontificate due to his heresy being manifest and declared to all, the former pope can then “be judged and punished by the Church”, as Bellarmine himself said. At this point, a Council would declare the see vacant (Sede Vacante) so that the Cardinals could proceed to the election of a new Pope.

Of course, none of this has occurred with the post-conciliar Popes, who, faced with a public and solemn warning, may very well have renounced their errors and claimed they never intended teach other than what the Church herself teaches.

Yet Sedevacantists, based on a hasty and superficial reading of Bellarmine, skip over all this and take matters into their own hands. Imagining that a manifest heretic is one they personally judge to be a heretic, they conclude that if they themselves become “morally certain” that the man is guilty of heresy it must mean he is not the pope. They then write articles explaining to others how they too can “detect” heresy in the pope in the hope that they will also become “morally certain” the man is a heretic and adopt the Sedevacantist position. This is one of their means of proselytism.

The Church is a visible society; who is and who is not a member of the hierarchy is not a matter of personal opinion. John of St. Thomas addresses this point directly, when he said a pope who is a manifest heretic, according to private judgment, remains pope. He wrote:

“So long as he has not been declared to us juridically as an infidel or heretic, be he ever so manifestly heretical according to private judgment, he remains, as far as we are concerned, a member of the Church, and consequently its head. The Church’s judgment is required, whereby he is proposed [to the faithful] as a non-Christian, and therefore to be avoided. It is only then that he ceases to be pope as far as we are concerned.”

John of St. Thomas also discusses at length why only a General Council (an “imperfect council”) can declare the See vacant. We find the same teaching in Manuale Theologiae Dogmaticae, which states that, in the case of a Pope who is a notorious heretic, only a Council would have the right to declare his See vacant:

“Given that, as a private person, the Pontiff could indeed become a public, notorious, and obstinate heretic… only a Council would have the right to declare his see vacant so that the usual electors could safely proceed to an election.” (11)

This teaching is in perfect harmony with the following from St. Bellarmine himself. He begins by explaining how the faithful can distinguish a true prophet (12) from a false prophet, namely, by “watching carefully to see if the one preaching says the contrary of his predecessors”. Then, a paragraph later he adds:

“We must point out, besides, that the faithful can certainly distinguish a true prophet from a false one, by the rule that we have laid down, but for all that, if the pastor is a bishop, they cannot depose him and put another in his place. For Our Lord and the Apostles only lay down that false prophets are not to be listened to by the people, and not that they depose them. And it is certain that the practice of the Church has always been that heretical bishops be deposed by bishop's councils, or by the Sovereign Pontiff.” (13)

Here we see Bellarmine’s true thinking on this point. He doesn’t say that if an individual personally judges the Bishop to be a heretic, they can declare him a “manifest heretic” and then proclaim that he has lost his office. No. A heretic can be spotted, as he explains, but if the heretic is a bishop he is only to be deposed (or declared deprived) by the proper authorities. Also notice Bellarmine’s implicit endorsement of the “recognize and resist” (R&R) position, when he says (quoting our Lord) that “false prophets (heretical Bishops) are not to be listened to by the people”. Not listening to them is one thing; declaring them deposed is another. The former is commanded by Our Lord; the latter forbidden by Tradition.

Objection Answered

At this point an objection needs to be addressed. Fr. Cekada has attempted to counter a number of articles against Sedevacantism by claiming that these were referring to the crime of heresy, while, according to him, the loss of office is caused by the sin of heresy. Here is one such example:

“Like many who have written against sedevacantism, one fundamental flaw runs through Mr. Sparks’ article (…) Heresy is both a crime (delictum) against canon law and a sin (peccatum) against divine law. … It is by violating the divine law through the sin (peccatum) of heresy that a heretical pope loses his authority – ‘having become an unbeliever,’ as Cardinal Billot says, ‘he would by his own will be cast outside the body of the Church’.” (14)

Notice that Fr. Cekada quotes Cardinal Billot in support of his position. What he doesn’t tell his readers (or even indicate by an “ellipses”) is that he is only quoting half of a sentence. If you read the entire sentence you see that the Cardinal is not speaking merely of the sin of heresy, as Fr. Cekada would have his readers believe, but of notorious heresy, which is a crime. (15) Here is the complete sentence:

“Given, therefore, the hypothesis of a pope who would become notoriously heretical, one must concede without hesitation that he would by that very fact lose the pontifical power, insofar as, having become an unbeliever, he would by his own will be cast outside the body of the Church.” (15)

What the half sentence giveth, the complete sentence taketh away. If it was the sin of heresy alone that caused the loss of office, a pope who fell into occult (secret) heresy would also cease to be pope. Yet, as Bellarmine teaches (citing the authority of Melchor Cano): “the Pope who is an occult heretic is still Pope.” (17)

Fr. Cekada’s position is also contradicted by John of St. Thomas who, no less than twelve times, states that it is the crime of heresy that causes the Pope to lose his office. Numerous examples have already been cited in this article. One more will suffice: John of St. Thomas speaks of “the deposition itself, which must be done after the declarative judgment of the crime.”

Another authority that contradicts Fr. Cekada is the highly respected commentary on canon law by Wernz-Vidal. Speaking of the case of a manifestly heretical pope, Wernz-Vidal says “the General Council declares the fact of the crime by which the heretical pope has separated himself from the Church and deprived himself of his dignity." (18)

Now Fr. Cekada himself quotes Wernz-Vidal when it supports his position. Is he also willing to accept its weighty authority when it contradicts his personal opinion? If so, he will be forced to revise many of his arguments in favor of Sedevacantism, and address many others than he simply dismissed.

Unfortunately, a number of unsuspecting laymen have fallen for and embraced this particular teaching of Fr. Cekada, and then used it to defend the Sedevacantist position. One such person is Jerry Ming, who wrote an “Open Letter to John Vennari”, in response to an article he ran several years ago in Catholic Family News. Here is an excerpt from the “Open Letter”. See if it sounds familiar:

“So, it should be clear to all, that heresy is a crime against canon law and a sin against the divine law. ‘It is by violating the divine law through the sin of heresy that a heretical pope loses his authority – “having become an unbeliever…” as Cardinal Billot says, “he would by his own will be cast outside the body of the Church”.’” (19)

Notice that Mr. Ming not only parrots Fr Cekada, but he even quotes the same half sentence from Cardinal Billot (out of context) to make his point. Here we see the danger of following Sedevacantist priests without double-checking their sources and verifying the accuracy of their teachings.

Conclusion

As we have seen, a juridical warning is an integral part of the process for a Pope to lose his office due to manifest heresy, since it serves as a means of establishing pertinacity, which is a necessary element of heresy. Once pertinacity is established, the Pope’s heresy must be manifest to all by a declaratory sentence of the crime issued by the proper authorities. Without this intervention by the proper authorities, a Pope who appears externally to be a heretic retains his office.

This explains why Fr. Paul Laymann, S.J., (d. 1635), “one of the greatest moralists and canonists of his time” (20) said that a Pope who fell into heresy, but was nevertheless being tolerated by the Church, would remain Pope.

“It is more probable that the Supreme Pontiff, as a person, might be able to fall into heresy and even a notorious one, by reason of which he would merit to be deposed by the Church, or rather declared to be separated from her. (…) Observe, however, that, though we affirm that the Supreme Pontiff, as a private person, might be able to become a heretic and therefore cease to be a true member of the Church, (…) still, while he was tolerated by the Church, and publicly recognized as the universal pastor, he would really enjoy the pontifical power, in such a way that all his decrees would have no less force and authority than they would if he were truly faithful.” (21)

Billuart explain the same point, when he said "Christ by a particular providence, for the common good and the tranquility of the Church, continues to give jurisdiction to an even manifestly heretical pontiff until such time as he should be declared a manifest heretic by the Church” (Billuart, De Fide, Diss. V, A. III No. 3, Obj. 2).

As bad as one may think the post-Vatican II Popes have been, they have not been publicly warned or declared guilty of heresy by the proper authorities, and therefore have retained their office. And since “it is absolutely necessary for the salvation of every human creature that he be subject to the Roman Pontiff,” (22) those who follow Fr. Cekada into Sedevacantism place their souls in mortal danger.

This shows the wisdom of the decree from the Fourth Council of Constantinople, which forbade anyone to separate himself from communion with his patriarch before a careful enquiry and judgment in synod, attaching the grave penalty of excommunication to any laymen or monk who dared to do otherwise.

“As divine scripture clearly proclaims, ‘Do not find fault before you investigate, and understand first and then find fault’. And does our law judge a person without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does? Consequently this holy and universal synod justly and fittingly declares and lays down that no lay person or monk or cleric should separate himself from communion with his own patriarch before a careful inquiry and judgment in synod, even if he alleges that he knows of some crime perpetrated by his patriarch, and he must not refuse to include his patriarch's name during the divine mysteries or offices. (…) If anyone shall be found defying this holy synod, he is to be debarred from all priestly functions and status if he is a bishop or cleric; if a monk or lay person, he must be excluded from all communion and meetings of the church [i.e. excommunicated] until he is converted by repentance and reconciled” (The Fourth Council of Constantinople, Canon 10).

The Council decreed what it did for a reason. Fr. Cekada ignores this decree and attempts to persuade the faithful, who are scandalized by the crisis in the Church, that they must do precisely what the council punishes with an excommunication. “There is a way that seemeth right to man, but the end thereof is death”.

Fr. Cekada may honestly believe that the last 6 or 7 men elected pope, and recognized as Pope by virtually the entire world (Catholic or not), were, in fact, not real Popes. In fact, he may be just as certain of this point as he is that the papacy is lost due to the sin of heresy. Caveat Emptor!

Footnotes

1 Catholic Family News, R. Siscoe, April, 2014
2 Elements of Ecclesiastical Law, Rev. SB Smith DD (Benzinger Br., New York, 1881), 3rd ed., p. 210
3 Ibid. Preface
4 A syllogism is an argument containing three propositions: two premises (a minor and a major) and a conclusion.
5 This point is discussed at length by Rev. Augustine, OSB, DD, Professor of Canon Law, in his book A Commentary on Canon Law, Vol VIII, Bk 4, (Herder Book Co, 1922), pp 278-80.
6 De Potestate Eecclesiastica, Ballerini (Monasterii Westphalorum, Deiters 1847) ch. 6, sec. 2, p. 124-25
7 Ibid.
8 Ius Decretalium (1913) II.615
9 Between God and Man: Sermons of Pope Innocent III, Sermon IVp. 48-49
10 De Comparatione Cuctoritatis Papae et Conciliin, by Cardinal Cajetan, English Translation in Conciliarism & Papalism, by Burns & Izbicki (Cambridge University Press, New York, NY 1997) p 76
11 Manuale Theologiae Dogmaticae, J.M. Herve, 1943, I.501
12 “Prophet” in this sense refers to a teacher of heavenly things, and not necessarily one who foretells the future (see Summa II-II Q171, A3
13 De Membris Ecclesiae, Lib. I De Clericis, cap. 7. Opera Omnia, Paris: Vives, 1870 p. 428-429
14 Sedevacantism Refuted?, Fr. Cekada
15 See Canons 2197.2 & 2197.3 of the 1917 Code
16 De Ecclesia, 1927, 5th ed. 632
17 De Romano Pontifice, lib. II, cap. 30
18 Wernz-Vidal, Jus Canonicum (Rome, 1943), II, 518
19 Open Letter to John Vennari. www.novusordowatch.org/open_letter_to_John_Vennari.htm
20 Catholic Encyclopedia, 1913, Vol. IX, p. 95
21 Laymann, Theol. Mor., Lib, tact I, cap, VII, Cited in “Hypothesis of a Heretical Pope”, p. 196
22 Unam Sanctam, Pope Boniface VIII
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Post  George Brenner Tue Dec 30, 2014 3:20 pm

MRyan,

Did I think that I would ever post here again?.... Probably not but here I am moved by the subject and timing of this thread.

Sedevacanist are for the most part are a very spiritually wounded group of individuals for whom I wholeheartedly disagree but feel that I understand their pain. They need to embrace the Church by praying and fighting for the reverence and truth that has been severely damaged in recent times.

As this thread clearly demonstrates the Church must take the action of removing a Pope under guidelines that Holy Mother Church can only undertake and apply. Those that think that Pope Francis has gone too far must pray with great intensity that he may come to see the errors of his loose cannon ways and much more importantly agendas that clearly are not in keeping with Church teachings and tradition. I feel that far too many Catholics who do not like what is going on during this pontificate fail to realize that the times we live in are clearly a punishment for our sins and not living our faith in truth and reverence.

Look at a few poles on what Catholics think on many of the major issues of our faith and you will see that God has given us exactly what we deserve in our Vicar of Christ. But by not being a papist we are both a traitor and not a true Catholic. Just as the commandment says to 'Honor thy father and mother ' the explanation goes on to instruct us to obey in all things that are not sinful. That same logic also applies to our Pope but it is the Church and only the Church that can or will act in censure or removal. We can question the Pope and if so moved must do so but in keeping with the utmost respect for the office of the papacy. We must follow and take comfort in princes of the Church like Cardinal Burke and follow his words and actions closely. We are never expected to support, agree or condone that which is sinful whether it be Pope or pauper.

The two audio links below give the best explanation, council, admonishments and comfort on grasping today's church that I have ever listened to:


http://www.audiosancto.org/auweb/20131027-The-Vicar-of-Christ-the-King-True-Devotion-to-the-Pope.mp3







http://files.audiosancto.org/20131027-Spiritual-Contraception.mp3

Out of love for our One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church,

George

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Post  MRyan Tue Dec 30, 2014 5:30 pm

Hi George. Actually, I didn't think about posting until I read the subject article which brought back all those memorable exchanges with some of our resident sedevacantists and/or their sympathizers.

Just thought I'd see if anyone was still out there.

The article demonstrates conclusively the true mind and teaching of the theologians (to include Bellarmine) and the Church, and confirms what every Catholic knows (or should know) instinctively, that no one individual can remove a Pope from his Chair/Primacy of Office by suggesting that a pope's alleged sin(s) of heresy can be declared pertinacious without benefit of a juridical warning (or two) by the Church, followed by the Church's formal declaration of a an ipso facto excommunication and fall from office.  

Perhaps a more appropriate title for the post would have been "Game. Set. Match."

Game over!
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Post  Jehanne Fri Jan 02, 2015 6:39 pm

Hi Everyone!

Seems like the forum is only active around Christmastime (except for Lionel, of course.)  So, Mike, do you accept public adulterers and/or public sodomites receiving the Blessed Sacrament?
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Post  MRyan Fri Jan 02, 2015 6:50 pm

Jehanne wrote:Hi Everyone!

Seems like the forum is only active around Christmastime (except for Lionel, of course.)  So, Mike, do you accept public adulterers and/or public sodomites receiving the Blessed Sacrament?
Say what? No more than I "accept" mortal sin and sacrilege.

Are you asking me if I believe that canon 915 should be enforced? Of course I do!

Something on your mind?
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Post  tornpage Sat Feb 28, 2015 11:57 am

MRyan wrote:It's all over but the crying!

Robert Siscoe and John of St. Thomas Respond to Fr. Cekada

(From September 2014 issue of Catholic Family News)

By Robert J. Siscoe

. . . 


This point was explained by the canonist S.B. Smith. In his classic work, Elements of Ecclesiastical Law (1881), we find the following:

“Question: Is a Pope who falls into heresy deprived, ipso jure, of the Pontificate?

"Answer: There are two opinions: one holds that he is by virtue of divine appointment, divested ipso facto, of the Pontificate; the other, that he is, jure divino, only removable. Both opinions agree that he must at least be declared guilty of heresy by the Church - i.e., by an ecumenical council or the College of Cardinals.” (2)

Notice that Fr. Smith addresses both opinions regarding the question of how a pope loses his office (which relates to point #4 above), and then notes that “both opinions agree that he must at least be declared guilty of heresy by the Church.” (point #2).

And it should be noted that Fr. Smith’s book was carefully examined by two canonists in Rome following its initial publication. The Preface of the Third Edition explains that Cardinal Simeoni, Prefect of the Propaganda Fide, “appointed two Consultors, doctors in canon law, to examine the ‘Elements’ and report to him. The Consultors, after examining the book for several months, made each a lengthy report to the Cardinal-Prefect”. (3) Their detailed reports noted five inaccuracies or errors that required revision. The above quotation was not cited as an error, or even a slight inaccuracy. Hence it remained in the Third revised Edition from which the above quotation was taken. If the statement was in incorrect, it would have been noted by the canonist and revised. The fact that it was not revised shows that the statement is correct.

It only makes sense that a Pope would not lose his office without the Church performing the ministerial function necessary to establish the crime, since if a pope were to lose his office without the Church knowing about, or in any way being involved in the process, Catholics would never have absolute certainty that a pope who defined a dogma, or ratified a council, was a true pope, or an antipope, since they would never have absolute certainty that he had not previously fallen into heresy and thereby lost his office. Everything would be in a state of uncertainty and left to the private judgment of each individual to decide. The scrupulous would be paralyzed by doubt, and the instable would fall into the most outrageous conclusions.

And we can see where it leads when individual Catholics in the pew begin to decide for themselves who is, and who is not, a true Pope, when we consider that we now have a Sedevacantist author who claims that all the popes since Innocent (d. 1143) have been anti-popes. 

. . . 

Yah . . .  bingo. Smile
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Post  Catholic_Truth Sun Oct 22, 2017 7:45 pm

MRyan wrote:Perhaps a more appropriate title for the post would have been "Game. Set. Match."

Game over!

Not so fast MRyan.....

St. Robert Bellarmine and John of St. Thomas Versus John Salza and Robert Siscoe  
January 23, 2016 by Steven Speray


Robert Siscoe and John Salza have repeated in their articles and interviews (we’ll see it again in their book) that St. Robert Bellarmine taught warnings are necessary to establish that one is a manifest heretic. For instance, Siscoe quotes the fourth opinion of Bellarmine and writes:

So according to St. Bellarmine, who bases his opinion on St. Paul, a heretic is considered to be manifestly obstinate after receiving two warnings. [1]

Again, in his reply to Cekada, Siscoe insists that Bellarmine taught that two warnings were necessary.

I’ve written several rebuttals to this assertion. [2] However, in another article against me, Siscoe tries to use John of St. Thomas as witness to his argument with Bellarmine. Siscoe writes:

According to John of St. Thomas, who studied Bellarmine at length regarding this question, and who spoke Latin fluently, Bellarmine was in agreement with Suarez that the pope must be declared incorrigible (declaratory sentence) by the Church before he loses his office. John of St. Thomas addressed this point in his treatise on the deposition of a heretical pope. He wrote:

“without qualification, the Lord Christ is the only superior with respect to the pope. And for that reason, Bellarmine and Suarez judge that the pope, by the very fact that he is a manifest heretic and has been declared incorrigible, is deposed immediately by the Lord Christ, not by some other authority of the Church.” [20]

So John of St. Thomas, who himself was a young contemporary of both Bellarmine and Suarez, and who wasn’t limited to reading a few quotations from Bellarmine posted on sedevacantist websites, states that Bellarmine agrees with Suarez in holding that a manifestly heretical pope must be “declared incorrigible” before being deposed immediately by Christ. [3]


What Siscoe doesn’t tell his readers is that John of St. Thomas criticizes Bellarmine for rejecting the need for two warnings. That’s right, the very person Siscoe (and Salza) uses as the primary source against sedevacantists, supports sedevacantists on Bellarmine.

John of St. Thomas wrote:

“Bellarmine objected that the Apostle [St Paul] says that we must avoid the heretic after two admonitions, that is to say, after he clearly appears pertinacious, before any excommunication and sentence of a judge, as St. Jerome says in his commentary, for heretics separate themselves by the heresy itself (per se) from the Body of Christ.

And here is his reasoning:

• A non-Christian cannot be Pope, for he who is not a member [of the Church] cannot be the head; now, a heretic is not a Christian, as commonly say the Fathers; thus, a manifest heretic cannot be Pope….


I answer [to Bellarmine] that the heretic should be avoided after two admonitions legally made and with the Church’s authority, and not according to private judgment. [4]

According to John of St. Thomas, Siscoe is wrong about Bellarmine.

John of St. Thomas got his information from Bellarmine’s De Romano Pontifice. If Bellarmine taught that the heretical pope needed to be declared incorrigible, then Siscoe would have cited Bellarmine, not John of St. Thomas. John of St. Thomas probably just lumped Suarez’s opinion with Bellarmine’s, because you won’t find Bellarmine saying a declaration is needed before the pope loses office.

John of St. Thomas is also saying that Bellamine’s position requires private judgment for which Salza/Siscoe condemn sedevacantists. How does private judgment fit in Bellarmine’s position if he taught that a declaration by the Church happens first?

Siscoe continues to mislead his readers when he quotes Wernz/Vidal as support for his argument against sedevacantism. Siscoe writes:

“It should also be noted, as Fr. Wernz S.J. observed, that the declaratory sentence of the crime “does not have the effect of judging a heretical pope, but of demonstrating that he has already been judged.” [5]

What Siscoe doesn’t tell his readers is that Wernz/Vidal taught that the opinion of Suarez, Cajetan, and John of St. Thomas is indefensible according to Bellarmine and Wernz/Vidal agree with Bellarmine. Wernz/Vidal write:

The fourth opinion, with Suarez, Cajetan and others [John of St. Thomas], contends that a Pope is not automatically deposed even for manifest heresy, but that he can and must be deposed by at least a declaratory sentence of the crime. “Which opinion in my judgment is indefensible” as Bellarmine teaches.

Finally, there is the fifth opinion – that of Bellarmine himself – which was expressed initially and is rightly defended by Tanner and others as the best proven and the most common. For he who is no longer a member of the body of the Church, i.e. the Church as a visible society, cannot be the head of the Universal Church. But a Pope who fell into public heresy would cease by that very fact to be a member of the Church. Therefore he would also cease by that very fact to be the head of the Church. [6]


The fifth and true opinion is utterly rejected by Siscoe and Salza who continue to misrepresent the popes, saints, and canonists on the issue.

Because the next quote is confused by Salza/Siscoe, a closer look at Pope Innocent III’s teaching is in order:

“The pope should not flatter himself about his power, nor should he rashly glory in his honour and high estate, because the less he is judged by man, the more he is judged by God. Still the less can the Roman Pontiff glory, because he can be judged by men, or rather, can be shown to be already judged, if for example he should wither away into heresy, because he who does not believe is already judged. In such a case it should be said of him: ‘If salt should lose its savour, it is good for nothing but to be cast out and trampled under foot by men.’” [7]

Notice that he qualifies his statement by saying “or rather, can be shown to be already judged.”

A pope who is already judged is not pope, that’s why he can be judged. Bellarmine said just that:

Therefore, the true opinion is the fifth, according to which the Pope who is manifestly a heretic ceases by himself to be Pope and head, in the same way as he ceases to be a Christian and a member of the body of the Church; and for this reason he can be judged and punished by the Church.
When does Bellarmine say the pope loses office: This is the opinion of all the ancient Fathers, who teach that manifest heretics immediately lose all jurisdiction… NOT AFTER WARNINGS OR DECLARATION BECAUSE heretics already before being excommunicated are outside the Church and deprived of all jurisdiction. For they have already been condemned by their own sentence, as the Apostle teaches (Tit. 3:10-11), that is, they have been cut off from the body of the Church without excommunication, as St. Jerome affirms… [8]


Salza/Siscoe actually reject what Bellarmine really says, and they reject “the opinion of all the ancient Fathers” all the while leading their readers to believe their private heretical opinion is shared by St. Robert Bellarmine and Wernz/Vidal. What’s funny is that Salza/Siscoe don’t even get John of St. Thomas right. Rather than admitting their errors, they will continue to attack sedevacantism and sedevacantists. What’s worse, they will continue to attack the Catholic papacy and undermine Christ’s promise to Peter!
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Post  Lionel L. Andrades Mon Oct 23, 2017 7:07 am

Even Pope Benedict XVI interprets Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus, the Nicene Creed and Vatican Council II with a false premise to elicit a non traditional and heretical conclusion. So where does the heresy change end ? Or begin?
Even Salza and Siscoe like Cekada make the same error
.

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Robert Siscoe and John of St. Thomas Respond to Fr. Cekada Empty If Pope Francis is in heresy what about Pope Benedict?

Post  Lionel L. Andrades Mon Oct 23, 2017 9:25 am

May 2, 2017
Fr.John Zuhlsdorf contradicts the Athanasius Creed with visible for us baptism of desire .For Pope Benedict too there is a development with Vatican Council II
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2017/05/frjohn-zuhlsdorf-contradicts-athanasius.html
April 19, 2017


Pope Benedict XVI could have interpreted Vatican Council II and the dogma extra ecclesiam nulla salus in March 2016 with Feeneyism instead of Cushingism: he chose heresy and the hermeneutic of rupture
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2017/04/pope-benedict-xvi-could-have.html


March 15, 2017
Pope Benedict XVI means there is known salvation outside the Church when he states 'when they can be saved even without it?” '. He is a Cushingite. He assumes invisible cases are visible
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2017/03/pope-benedict-xvi-means-there-is-known.html

April 18, 2017
Pope Benedict XVI during his liturgy contradicts the Oath Against Modernism.
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2017/04/pope-benedict-xvi-during-his-liturgy.html

March 27, 2017
The Catholic Church today contradicts the Catholic Church of for example in the 16th century. The error was assuming invisible for us baptism of desire is an exception to the dogma Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus.Pope Benedict confirmed this last March 2016
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2017/03/the-catholic-church-today-contradicts.html

February 22, 2017
Pope Benedict has negated the SSPX doctrinal position in the General Chapter Statement and still does not affirm Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus ( Feeneyite) : Chair of St.Peter error
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2017/02/pope-benedict-has-negated-sspx.html

June 23, 2016
With these factual and objective mistakes in Vatican Council II any Catholic could be tempted to reject it and revert to the Council of Trent
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2016/06/with-these-factual-and-object-mistakes.html

September 15, 2016
Pope Benedict approved the mistake of the International Theological Commission, a magisterial error on a faith issue which contradicted the ex cathedra teaching of three Church Councils and popes
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2016/09/pope-benedict-approved-mistake-of.html

June 22, 2016
Objectively heretical writings of Pope Benedict XVI ?
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2016/06/objectively-heretical-writings-of-pope.html

September 14, 2016
International Theological Commission made a mistake
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2016/09/international-theological-commission.html

Friday, July 15, 2011
OUR POPE IS A CUSHINGITE
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2011/07/our-pope-is-cushingite.html#links

Wednesday, May 18, 2011
THE HOLY FATHER POPE BENEDICT XVI IS A CUSHINGITE
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2011/05/holy-father-pope-benedict-xvi-is.html#links

Friday, February 22, 2013
MAJOR THEOLOGICAL ERROR WILL MARK THE PONTIFICATE OF POPE BENEDICT XVI
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2013/02/major-theological-error-will-mark.html#links

July 5, 2012
IF THE CDF CHOOSES THE ANTI-SEMITIC INTERPRETATION OF VATICAN COUNCIL II- SSPX WILL BE IN THE CHURCH AND DI NOIA, LADARIA AND KOCH COULD BE OUTSIDE
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/07/if-cdf-chooses-anti-semitic.html

APRIL 7, 2014
Cardinal Luiz Ladaria S.J and Pope Benedict XVI made a factual error : Analysis
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2014/04/cardinal-luiz-ladaria-sj-and-pope.html

September 1, 2012
POPE BENEDICT XVI MAKES THE RICHARD CUSHING ERROR AND ASSUMES VATICAN COUNCIL II CONTRADICTS THE SYLLABUS OF ERRORS
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/09/pope-benedict-xvi-makes-richard-cushing.html

October 27, 2013
Archbishop Lefebvre was correct in rejecting Vatican Council II(Cushingism version): the Magisterium was not aware of the false premise during the excommunication
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2013/10/archbishop-lefebvre-was-correct-in.html

June 19, 2013
Even Pope Benedict XVI made the Richard Cushing Error
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/search/label/Pope%20Benedict%20XVI?updated-max=2014-04-07T10:32:00%2B01:00&max-results=20&start=12&by-date=false

INTERNATIONAL THEOLOGICAL COMMISSION USES PREMISE THAT IS FACTUALLY INCORRECT : LIMBO
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/03/international-theological-commission_29.html

The International Theological Commission's position paper Christianity and the World Religions 1997 has an objective factual error and is approved by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger : invincible ignorance is not an exception to the dogma extra ecclesiam nulla salus
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/03/international-theological-commissions.html

INTERNATIONAL THEOLOGICAL COMMISSION ASSUMES ‘SEEDS OF THE WORD’ (VATICAN COUNCIL II ) IN OTHER RELIGIONS ARE KNOWN TO US AND THIS IS AN EXPLICIT EXCEPTION TO THE DOGMA EXTRA ECCLESIAM NULLA SALUS
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/03/international-theological-commission.html

VATICAN'S INTERNATIONAL THEOLOGICAL COMMISSION MAKES AN ERROR IN ITS POSITION PAPER CHRISTIANITY AND THE WORLD RELIGIONS
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/03/vaticans-international-theological.html

VATICAN COUNCIL II(Feeneyite) REJECTS THE THEOLOGY OF RELIGIONS

http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/03/vatican-council-ii-rejects-theology-of.html

Former Secretary of the International Theological Commission holds that those saved with the baptism of desire and in invincible ignorance are known to us and so an exception to the dogma extra ecclesiam nulla salushttp://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/02/secretary-of-international-theological.html#links


BISHOP GERHARD MULLER MADE TWO FUNDAMENTAL MISTAKES ON VATICAN COUNCIL II: HE ASSUMED LG 16 CONTRADICTS EXTRA ECCLESIAM NULLA SALUS AND HE DID NOT KNOW AG 7 SUPPORTS THE DOGMA

http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/07/bishop-gerhard-muller-made-two.html#links

Archbishop Augustine Di Noia says the Holy Spirit preserves the Church from error including the interpretation of Vatican Council II- we now know there are two interpretations of Vatican Council II, which one is guided by the Holy Spirit ?http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/07/archbishop-augustine-di-noia-says-that.html#links  

Factual error approved by popes
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2014/04/factual-error-approved-by-popes.html#links

Popes approved a factual error and so Vatican Council II is a break with the past http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2014/04/popes-approved-faual-err-and-so.html

Wednesday, July 4, 2012
CDF THERE ARE TWO INTERPRETATIONS OF VATICAN COUNCIL II - YOURS IS THE FALSE ONE
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/07/cdf-there-are-two-intrpretations-of.html#links

REPORT IS AN EXPOSE OF APOSTASY AT THE HIGHEST LEVELS OF THE CHURCH-ROBERT SUNGENIS
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2011/02/report-is-expose-of-apostasy-at-highest.html

DID THE POPE REALLY DENY THE FAITH ON THE NEED FOR JEWS TO CONVERT ?http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/04/did-pope-really-deny-faith-on-need-for.html#links

CDF CLARIFIES COMMENT ON CONDOMS BUT NOT JEWS : POPE CONTRADICTS BIBLEhttp://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2010/12/cdf-clarifies-comment-on-condoms-but.html#links

POPE SAYS REVISED GOOD FRIDAY PRAYER IS NOT FOR THE CONVERSION OF THE JEWS ? EARTHQUAKE SHIFT IN CATHOLIC TEACHING ? http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.com/2010/12/pope-says-revised-good-friday-prayer-is.html

Pope Benedict XVI’s objective,factual error in Light of the World(Ignatius) p.107 is contributing to widespread liberalism and dissent in the Catholic Church.http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/search/label/Light%20of%20the%20World

HOLY FATHER ASSUMES THOSE SAVED IN INVINCIBLE IGNORANCE ARE KNOWN TO US: CONTRADICTS VATICAN COUNCIL I AND II http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/04/holy-father-assumes-those-saved-in.html

HOLY FATHER MAKES AN OBJECTIVE ERROR IN WRITING http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/04/holy-father-makes-objective-error-in.html
 
ANIVERSARY OF THE DENIAL OF THE FAITH BY THE MAGISTERIUM ? http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/04/aniversary-of-denial-of-faith-by.html

July 15, 2011
POPE CONTRADICTS BIBLE : NO CONTRADICTION FROM CDF http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2011/07/pope-contradicts-bible-no-contradiction.html

February 4, 2011
DOES THE POPE REALLY SAY IN LIGHT OF THE WORLD THAT JEWS DO NOT HAVE TO CONVERT IN THE PRESENT TIMES ? http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2011/02/does-pope-really-say-in-light-of-world.html

July 21, 2011
CATHOLIC PRIESTS CORRECT POPE BENEDICT'S MISTAKE : WE DO NOT KNOW ANY CASE OF A NON CATHOLIC SAVED IMPLICITLY BY JESUS AND THE CHURCH SO IT DOES NOT CONTRADICT CANTATE DOMINO,COUNCIL OF FLORENCE
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2011/07/catholic-priests-correct-pope-benedicts.html

HOLY FATHER MAKES AN OBJECTIVE ERROR IN WRITING
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/04/holy-father-makes-objective-error-in.html

Franciscans of the Immaculate are being forced to accept the papal error  
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2014/04/franciscans-of-immaculate-are-being.html#links

Pope Benedict XVI’s objective,factual error in Light of the World(Ignatius) p.107 is contributing to widespread liberalism and dissent in the Catholic Church
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/search/label/Light%20of%20the%20World

Msgr. Guido Pozzo could announce Vatican Council II agrees with literal interpretation of dogma extra ecclesiam nulla salus while Nostra Aetate says Catholics are the ‘new people of God’ : pope made an error in Light of the World- all this is relevant to the Vatican-SSPX differences http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/04/msgr-guido-pozzo-could-announce-vatican.html
   
CATHOLIC NEWS BLACK OUT ON BAGNASCO-RABBI DEALhttp://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2009/09/catholic-news-black-out-on-bagnasco.html#links

RABBIS WHO MET WITH CARDINAL ANGELO BAGNASCO ORIENTED TO HELL INDICATES VATICAN COUNCIL II
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2009/10/rabbis-who-met-with-cardinal-angelo.html#links

CARDINAL BAGNASCO DENIES JESUS AND THE CHURCH
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/search/label/Cardinal%20Angelo%20Bagnasco

CATHOLIC PRIESTS CORRECT POPE BENEDICT'S MISTAKE : WE DO NOT KNOW ANY CASE OF A NON CATHOLIC SAVED IMPLICITLY BY JESUS AND THE CHURCH SO IT DOES NOT CONTRADICT CANTATE DOMINO,COUNCIL OF FLORENCE
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/search?q=Pope+Benedict+XVI+contradicts+the+Bible

April 18, 2012
POPE CONTRADICTS BIBLE, CARDINAL LEVADA ISSUES NO CLARIFICATION. EXPECTS OFFICAL CLARIFICATION FROM BISHOP FELLAY http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/04/pope-contradicts-bible-cardinal-levada.html

_____________________________________

Archbishop Thomas E.Gullickson says Vatican Council II does not contradict the dogma extra ecclesiam nulla salus and the Syllabus of Errors
http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2012/11/archbishop-thomas-egullickson-says.html#links


DEAN OF THEOLOGY AT ST. ANSELM SAYS THERE ARE NO KNOWN EXCEPTIONS TO THE DOGMA EXTRA ECCLESIAM NULLA SALUS http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2013/10/dean-of-theology-at-st-anselm-says.html#links


CANTATE DOMINO, COUNCIL OF FLORENCE ON EXTRA ECCLESIAM NULLA SALUS IS DE FIDE AND NOT CONTRADICTED BY VATICAN COUNCIL II- Fr. Nevus Marcello O.P http://eucharistandmission.blogspot.it/2011/07/cantate-domino-council-of-florence-on.html

Lionel L. Andrades

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