Dangers of Latching onto Heroes instead of Principles

JMJ

Here's the pattern:

Knowledgeable person discovers Traditional Catholicism,
They say the 'right' things affirming Traditional Catholic beliefs,
Traditional Catholics latch onto this 'Traditional Catholic Personality',
'Traditional Catholic Personality' deviates in some way,
Traditional Catholics have a variety of responses to the 'deviation'.

Point 5 is where things get interesting in the 'variety' of responses. If the Traditional Catholics don't have a firm basis in their spiritual life and understanding of Catholic Principles - they will be lead by the nose wherever the personality goes.

Examples of this are legion in the history of Traditional Catholicism.

To name a couple we have:

Gerry Matatix,
Michael Voris.

Gerry Matatix made a rainbow transition from protestant to sedevacantist.

Michael Voris made a transition from fallen away Catholic to staunch protector of irrationality. Case in point is his policies to:

Not criticise the Pope under any circumstances (absurd with Pope Francis).
The SSPX must be in schism because PSJP2 said so (even though the 'schismatic act' was ficticious).

I understand that it is nice to have your point of view affirmed by someone outside the 'club'. Which is why Traditional Catholics will hang on every word uttered by 'conservative' (Read: Cardinal Burke) and 'Traditional' prelates (Read: Bishop Schneider).

But what if they make a misstep?

Are they worth following because of a sentimental attachment?

The answer is no. If a person deviates from Catholic Principles, the path they are following does not lead to God and Heaven, it leads to the Devil and Hell.

So what's the lesson?

Don't get attached to 'personalities', get attached to Catholic Principles and then follow them.

If some Catholic Personality, happens to acting along the same lines, then they're in good company.

P^3

Comments

What the heck is a congregation of "Pontifical Right"

+ JMJ In a discussion with a friend the question occurred to me that I didn't actually know was is involved in being a religious order of 'pontifical right'. I had a vague notion that this meant they reported to Rome as opposed to the local diocese. I'm also aware that, according to the accounts I have heard, the Archbishop received 'praise' and the written direction to incardinate priests directly into the SSPX. This is interesting because it implies that the SSPX priests were no longer required to incardinate in the local diocese but in the SSPX. This is something that belongs to an order of 'pontifical right'. Anyway here's some definitions: Di diritto pontificio is the Italian term for “of pontifical right” . It is given to the ecclesiastical institutions (the religious and secular institutes, societies of apostolic life) either created by the Holy See or approved by it with the formal decree, known by its Latin name, Decretu

The Curious Case of Steve Skojec and the Dangers of Deep Diving into the Crisis Sub-Titled: The Failings of Others

+ JMJ It's been a while now since Steve Skojec sold 1P5 and abandoned the Catholic Faith. I've been a 'Trad' since 1982 and in those 40+ years I seen this death-spiral before with a similar end point. It seems that anyone who jumps into the fray unprepared for the enormous task of righting wrongs will, eventually, become discouraged by not the task but the people who surround them. I remember when Skojec complained of the treatment his family received from a traditional priest. This seems to have been the start of the end for him. So what can we learn from the likes of Steve Skojec, Michael Voris (maybe?), Louie Verrecchio, Gerry Matatix and other celebrity Catholics? Probably quite a lot about what not to do. First, don't burn out on the crisis? When you burn out, on work or anything else, little things assume a more greater importance than they are due. This is one of my 'canary in the coal mine' signals that I've been stretching myself too thin

De Veritate - St. Thomas Aquinas - What is necessary to believe explicitly?

I was recently introduced to a work of St. Thomas De Veritate ( Source ) in the course of an argument concerning the minimum content of explicit faith. When I submitted the following quote as proof: Theological faith, that is, a supernatural faith in Revelation, is necessary, and this is an effect of grace (D 1789); nemini unquam sine ilIa contigit iustificatio (D 1793). As far as the content of this faith is concerned, according to Hebr. 11, 6, at least the existence of God and retribution in the other world must be firmly held, necessitate medii (by the necessity of means) with explicit faith. In regard to the Trinity and the Incarnation, implicit faith suffices. The supernatural faith necessary for justification is attained when God grants to the unbeliever by internal inspiration or external teaching a knowledge of the truths of Revelation, and actual grace to make the supernatural act of faith. Cf. De verite 14, I I.Ott - Fundamentals of Dogma p241 In response my opponent wrot

Morning and Evening and other sundry Prayers

+ JMJ Along the theme of P^3 (Prayer, Penance, Patience), and for my own reference ... here is a collection of Morning and Evening prayers from the Ideal Daily Missal along with some additional prayers. In this crisis of the Church, I do not think it is possible to do too much prayer, penance and have patience. P^3

Gary Campbell - Former SSPX Priest

+ JMJ I've come across Gary Campbell's articles on Where Peter Is and noticed that he seems to have very strong biases, assumptions and reactions to anything that runs against these. Driven by curiosity I have found a copy of his letter to Bishop Fellay explaining his reasons for leaving the SSPX only five years after his ordination in Winona. I was surprised to learn that I was present for his ordination. Given this, I was interested in reviewing his letter to Bishop Fellay. There will be two versions in this post. The unblocked and blocked letter. The unblocked is, obviously the full letter. The block, meaning unnecessary text will be blocked out, is a technique I use to remove ancillary text while focusing on key phrases. After completing my read, I believe that the root of much of what caused the issues with Fr. Campbell could be the seeds of the 'resistance' that, when the same perceptions were challenged by continued negotiations with Rome resulted in the necessa

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