Becoming Traditional Catholic Part II

JMJ

In my last post I discussed some of the differences between the Trad world and ... basically everything else.

But that wasn't really about 'becoming Traditional Catholic'.

For those who weren't 'born TCatholics' there seems to be a common thread.

Something happened the 'opened their eyes' to what happened or was happening. In some cases it was an intellectual realization, for others it was traumatic ... or a combination thereof.

Then there is suffering during the transition.

In the case of my family, the trauma started when one of my brothers started having an uneasy feeling about our new parish priest. He went back to our old parish and ... started asking questions.

Questions that upset the parish priest to the extent that my brother was featured (under a pseudonym) in a Sunday sermon.

My brother has that quality.

Eventually, he realized that there was something before the Novus Ordo Missae ... and found it.

This was the advent of major arguments in my otherwise quiet family.

In the end, my Dad sat down and read the Encyclopedia Britannica article on Luther and the reformation. When he finished reading the article, he looked up at my mother and said:

We've been tricked.

They had a meeting with our parish priest and the discussion culminated with them asking the priest a simple question. The priest gave the wrong answer. At that point we began Church hopping, while my brother went to the Tridentine Mass when it was offered (by Fr. Yves Normandin once every few weeks at that time ) we returned to our old parish with its very ultra-conservative priest (RIP).

Fr. Yves Normandin

My brother started to notice that there were vestiges of the Tridentine Mass hidden in plain sight throughout the Church. Candle sticks, statues, side altars etc.

Eventually, we switched to the Ukranian Rite (still Traditional at that time) and then a Sunday Tridentine Mass became available.

That was the rubicon moment.

We started to go 100% Tridentine.

This glosses over the arguments and sufferings that went along with our transition.

Not all of my family remained TCatholics, some reverted to being nTCatholics. Personally, my first day was less than stellar. However, my understanding of what was going on grew fairly quickly.

Achieving a good balanced perspective did take a number of years - but 2 years of education in St. Mary's Kansas did help!

So - what the lesson?

When the 'eye opening' moment occurs - it is a moment of grace. Seize it and profit from that moment.
Be ready for sufferings, but that is how we will merit the grace for others.

P^3

Comments

Count Capponi - RIP

+ JMJ I had heard of Count Capponi over the years and was happy to hear a voice crying in the wilderness. I suspect that his conscience was clearer than many. This part of the article caught my attention: Capponi defended the right of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre to continue his work without the label “schismatic,” which term Capponi rejected, saying: “You cannot apply the standards of the new code of canon law and the mentality of the old code. According to the new code, Lefebvre could do what he did with a Catholic intention, and he did what he did in ‘sincerity’ and invoked the ‘state of emergency’ argument, which the new code permits. You might not like the new code, but it’s what governs the Church.” I know a few people who tried to stir up a fuss when the SSPX cited the New Code in one of the documents with Rome. Yet, the truth is what it is --- the New Code was promulgated by a reigning Pope and flawed as it is ... there are some benefits to its liberality. ...

Is it sinful to attend the Novus Ordo (New Mass) - Is it Sinful to Not Attend the Novus Ordo on Sunday?

+ JMJ A non-SSPX Catholic is upset over the SSPX statements on not attending the Novus Ordo Missae. Ladies and gentlemen, what the SSPX, or at least its website editor, is advocating is a mortal sin against the Third Commandment. Unless the priest deviates from the language of the Sacramentary, the consecration, and thus the rest of Mass is to be considered valid. No one may elect not to attend Mass simply because abuses are occurring therein. Might I suggest that such absenteeism is its own abuse? The Third Commandment binds under mortal sin. Father So-And-So from the SSPX has no authority whatsoever to excuse attendance at Mass, be that Mass ever so unpalatable. Source:Restore DC Catholicism Well, this is interesting. First why does the SSPX issue this statement? Because it is sinful to put your faith in danger by attending a protestant service. It is likewise dangerous to put your faith in danger by attending a protestantized ma...

Those who return to the past are not outside the Church - Rorate Caeli

+ JMJ I had been thinking about putting together a post explaining some of the history of how the SSPX has arrived at its current position. Now I see that Rorate has posted a translated editorial that shows the roots of the SSPX principles. In reading these words, I see patterns and themes that were put forward by Archbishop Lefebvre decades ago. Perhaps his sight was clearer than most. P^3

Fr. Burfitt on Fr. Pfeiffer's Attempted Consecration

+ JMJ Amidst the shadows cast by the publication of Traditionis Custodes, I am working on a map of the 'resistance' splinters to put their reaction in contrast with that of the SSPX. In the midst of this, I just came across Fr. Burfitt letter on the attempted consecration. Breaking it down (see below) items 2 and 3 are key. Just as the consecrating bishop is 'doubtful', even if he hadn't muffed the first attempt, Fr. Pfeiffer remain doubtful and therefore this impacts those men is attempts to 'ordain'. There were rumours that Fr. Pfeiffer was seeking episcopal consecration for years as he cast about for various bishops (also doubtful) to help him achieve this goal. I wonder how he convinced the 'doubtful' bishop to provide (twice) the doubtful consecration. What a mess! This creates a danger to the souls of his followers and wonder where it will end. Will he go full sede and have himself 'elected' pontiff as others have done before him...

SSPX Transfers

+ JMJ Eponymous flow posted the following list of transfers etc. Source: http://eponymousflower.blogspot.com/2020/04/castling-of-leadership-at-sspx.html The departures Bishop Bernard Fellay, the third Superior General until 2018, leaves the General House in Menzingen and moves to the Seminary of St. Thomas Aquinas in the USA. Bishop Bernard Tissier de Mallerais, suffering from ill health, is being referred to the Seminary of St. Pius X in Ecene as a retreat. Fr. Christian Thouvenot, until now Secretary General of the General House, becomes a professor at the seminary in Ecene. Fr. Franz Schmidberger, until now Rector at the Seminary of the Heart of Jesus in Zaitzkofen, moves to the district of Germany. Fr. Jürgen Wegner, until now district superior of the DISTRICT USA, moves to the district of Austria. Fr. Philippe Brunet, until now Superior of the Autonomous House of Spain-Portugal, becomes professor at the Seminary U.L.F. and co-saviour of La Reja in...

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