Heresy – The Heart of Sedevacantism - True or False Pope

JMJ

I have been asked to contribute some articles to the http://www.trueorfalsepope.com/.

Reproduced below is my first article that I wrote discussing the core issue behind the sedevacantist theory: Heresy.

I have to admit that I have not yet had to opportunity to read the book, but rest assured I will once it appears on the shelves of my chapel's bookstore!

My article appears with others under the Sedevacantist Watch link.

P^3

Heresy – The Heart of Sedevacantism

Heresy is the heart which pumps life into all sedevacantist theories. Without a Pope that has either lost or never held the office of the Vicar of Christ the entire sedevacantist structure crumbles to dust.

This makes understanding what the Church means by the word heresy key to evaluating the arguments and opinions proferred by sedevacantists.

The Church has summarized its teaching concerning heresy in canon law, according to which heresy is:

... an error in judgement in consequence of which a baptized person obstinately denies or doubts a truth revealed by God and proposed by the Church for belief. (Canon 1325 1917)
... the obstinate denial or obstinate doubt after the reception of baptism of some truth which is to be believed by divine and Catholic faith;... (Canon 751 1982)

The critical elements that constitute heresy are summarized in the illustration below. If any of these elements are missing, then the accusation of heresy evaporates.

Illustration 1: Critical Elements of Heresy

Criteria #1: The person must be baptized. It is normally a foregone conclusion that Priests, Bishops, Cardinals and Popes have been baptized.

Criteria #2: The person must either doubt or deny a teaching of the Church. To be acted upon, this doubt or denial must have been done externally.

Criteria #3: The teaching of the Church must be a Dogma of the Catholic Church. Meaning that it is a teaching that Catholics must believe with Divine Faith as having been revealed by God. In short, no dogma, no heresy.

Criteria #4: The final criteria is that, in the face of correction by Church authorities, the person must be obstinate in their doubt / denial.

These criteria form the basis for examining most agruments put forward by Sedevacantists.

In my next article, I'll discuss the Sedevacantism Kill Chain.

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