I started a timeline a while back but never finished it. Fortunately, here's one that brings us up to 1994!!!
P^3
http://archives.sspx.org/SSPX_FAQs/a_short_history_of_the_sspx-part-1.htm
A short history of the SSPX | ||
A presentation given by Fr. Ramon Angles in Kansas City, MO, on the 25th Anniversary of the founding of the SSPX and reprinted from the January 1996 issue of The Angelus. |
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Part 1 | ||
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A grateful Archbishop Lefebvre often spoke of his great teacher, and we will see how in this historical recollection appear again and again figures of ecclesiastics close to the Society of St. Pius X who studied with our founder under the exemplary guide and example of Fr. Le Floch. |
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The bishop congratulates them but says that the Church is in crisis of vocations and there is no hope for Econe to be saved and used as they would like as a house of formation. During the week that follows, these Catholic gentlemen learn that the businessman intends to build in Econe a complex of nightclub, restaurant and motel. | ||
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In May 1968, in the French Seminary of Rome, the Communist flag hangs from the main balcony in support of the revolutionary students in Paris. A minuscule group of seminarians, still dressed in their cassocks and being shunned by the rest of their comrades and teachers, turn for help to Archbishop Lefebvre. He directs them to the still conservative University of Fribourg in Switzerland, encouraged by the Abbot of Hauterive and the Dominican theologian, Fr. Philippe. The Archbishop told us about this early endeavor:
1970 And then, as a supplementary proof that the Bishop of Lausanne, Geneva, and Fribourg wanted us to exist, on November 1, 1970, he approves and confirms the constitutions and proceeds to the canonical foundation of the International Priestly Society of St. Pius X in his diocese. (See The Angelus, November 1995) |
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The Archbishop expected to wait a long time before the second canonical step, the approval of Rome, was effected. Only 4 months elapse until February 18, 1971, when Cardinal Wright, prefect for the Sacred Congregation for the Clergy, officially approves and encourages the Society. The Roman document recognizes the Society’s international character and the fact that many bishops from the world praise and approve it. The cardinal is happy that the Society will contribute to the distribution of the Catholic clergy in the world. Much to the surprise of our founder, his small work of faith receives a further encouragement. When a few priests from the outside wish to join him in the Society’s work, the Archbishop submits the case to Rome, and the Roman Curia, anticipating his desires, detaches totally these priests from their bishops and even from their religious orders to make them depend exclusively from the Society of St. Pius X. This official act of Rome recognizes the right of the Society of St. Pius X to incardinate its members. In the vicissitudes of the years to come the Modernist Rome will publicly disapprove our Society, its fruits, and its spirit. It matters little when we know that the Rome faithful to tradition approved the Society and sent it in official mission to maintain the Catholic priesthood. Ultimately, this mandate of the Church constitutes the main reason and necessity for the episcopal consecrations of 1988. |
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In 1971, 24 candidates enter the seminary of Econe. 32 more will join them in October 1972. But during the Christmas vacation, trouble starts. The French bishops, eager accomplices of the Modernist conspirators, are watching closely every step of the expansion of the young Society. Cardinal Lefebvre, his cousin, had already warned the Archbishop "the French episcopate will never forgive you for what you did in the Council." Jealous and worried by the unexpected success, they start a campaign of discredit. The Archbishop knew about those jealousies and he had already proposed Cardinal Marty to meet the bishops at the coming episcopal conference at Lourdes to explain to them the situation of Econe. The cardinal insisted that there was going to be no question of Econe at this meeting. But the episcopal conference in Lourdes labels Econe as "the wildcat seminary," as if they didn’t know that its canonical situation was perfectly regular and that the seminary did not depend on their jurisdiction. In 1973, an ephemeral pre-seminary is opened in Fribourg, but only for a few months, to be closed because of the worsening conditions in the university. |
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It is probably at this point that Cardinal Villot persuades Paul VI to believe that our seminarians must take an oath against the pope. Villot will say to Cardinal Etchegaray who repeated it widely, "In six months Econe will not exist." November 11, 1974: After breakfast, the Archbishop assembles the community to announce the arrival the same day of two apostolic visitors from Rome. They speak to the seminarians and professors, maintaining scandalous opinions such as: the ordination of married men will soon be a normal thing, truth changes with the times, and the traditional conception of the Resurrection of our Lord is open to discussion. These remarks prompt Archbishop Lefebvre to write his famous Declaration of November 21st. While Paul VI speaks openly about the auto-demolition of the Church, Archbishop Lefebvre proclaims his adhesion to the eternal Rome and his refusal of the neo-Modernist and neo-Protestant Rome of Vatican II:
1975 starts with a large-scale press campaign against the Archbishop. Vandalism thickens the atmosphere around the seminary; graffiti, nocturnal phone calls, shooting of the windows, night trespassing. On February 13th, 3 cardinals interrogate Archbishop Lefebvre, and one of them, French Cardinal Garrone, calls him "a fool." Against the provisions of canon law, the Society is invalidly suppressed May 6, 1975. |
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Paul VI, in the consistory of May, 1976, denounces the Archbishop as "disobedient to the new liturgy." Cardinal Benelli asks the Archbishop to celebrate the New Mass at least once, promising in the name of the pope that this gesture will suffice to solve the difficulties. The Archbishop refuses and on June 29th, he ordains publicly in the field of Econe 12 priests for the Society. The 23rd of July, a suspensio a divinis forbids him to celebrate the New Mass, as the Archbishop says with humor, and also to ordain priests because the Society doesn’t exist any more. The weeks that follow the condemnation are the opportunity for thousands of faithful to manifest publicly their attachment to Archbishop Lefebvre. More than 10,000 assemble in Lille, in the middle of summer, to show their support. (See The Angelus, November 1995 - Ed.) Instead of the excommunication joyfully announced by the media, on September 11th, Pope Paul VI receives the Archbishop privately at Castel Gandolfo. During this meeting it becomes obvious that the pope is being deliberately misinformed by dishonest collaborators. |
http://archives.sspx.org/SSPX_FAQs/a_short_history_of_the_sspx-part-2.htm
A short history of the SSPX | ||
Part 2 | ||
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Fall 1977 sees 38
new seminarians, despite the condemnations. In October, the Society has 40
priests, 150 seminarians, 20 priories, and 3 seminaries. The sisters of the
Society, founded in 1974, move their novitiate to Albano, and their general
house to St. Michel-en-Brenne under the direction of Mother Mary Gabriel
Lefebvre.
1978 1978 sees the acquisition of 4 priories in France, a property in Long Island, and the priory of Madrid. The German seminary of Weissbad moves to Zaitzkofen. The Jesuit College of St. Mary’s, Kansas, is also bought by the Society. On November 16th, the new Pope John Paul II receives the Archbishop in Rome. After a long conversation the pope is willing enough to remove all restrictions on the traditional Mass, but Cardinal Seper standing back exclaims immediately, "They make a banner of this Mass," a remark which makes a negative impression on the pope. |
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August 15th, the Archbishop is in St. Mary’s, KS, for the first Marian Pilgrimage:
And about France:
The year is crowned on September 23rd by the celebration of the priestly golden jubilee of the Archbishop in Paris, where he calls for a Catholic crusade of restoration:
1980 On the occasion of our 10th anniversary, the Archbishop writes:
In France, the Archbishop announces the opening of Facultes Catholiques Saint Pie X, named soon afterwards Institut Universitaire St. Pie X. He writes:
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Econe sees the arrival of nine seminarians from Argentina who have come to finish their theology, but first need to learn French and Latin. In Ridgefield we have 12 new candidates. Archbishop Lefebvre says:
1981 During an early year visit to the States, Archbishop Lefebvre dedicates the complex of Jesus and Mary in El Paso, Texas. In the afternoon of January 4th, 200 children are confirmed. On January 6th, 4 years after a visa had been denied to Archbishop Lefebvre due to pressure put on the government by the bishops of Mexico, our founder crosses the border for what turns out to be a triumphant tour of the country of the Cristeros [see The Angelus, December 1993]. Followed continuously by the Mexican secret police, the Archbishop visits in the south of the country large areas of very poor Indians who, astonished, received an affirmative answer to their request for a truly Catholic bishop coming to support their fight for the Faith before the Communist clergy, sold to Liberation Theology. |
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In Rome, Cardinal Seper, the pope’s delegate for the dialogue with the Society, writes on February 19th, making allusion to the possibility of sending a cardinal to find a solution to the liturgical problem and the canonical situation of the Society. |
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The same year he travels to Australia to prepare the foundation of the first priory in Sydney:
75 new candidates enter our seminaries. In Rome, Cardinal Seper goes to his reward. His last letter of October does not present any solution. Traditional Catholics are the only victims of tolerance and religious freedom, when in reality they are the ones who defend the truth. 1982 On March 1st, St. Joseph buys for us our first church in London, seating 300 faithful. Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger replaces Cardinal Seper as personal representative of the pope. The Archbishop has a long interview with him in March. Rome wants us to say that even though we may have some reservations about it, the liturgical reform is good and that we just think it is less good than the old liturgy. The Archbishop says:
March 20th: An all-night prayer vigil is held in Martigny, near Econe, inspired by the message of Our Lady of Fatima asking for prayer and penance. 3,000 pilgrims assist at the consecration of the world, and especially of Russia, to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. In anticipation of the present frenzy about the new millennium, Archbishop Lefebvre declares calmly and firmly:
At Easter time, 5 monsignori and 20 diocesan priests of the diocese of Campos in Brazil publish a profession of Catholic faith in the face of the present errors, a splendid document defending the pristine doctrine and traditions of the Church, writing:
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Fr. Franz Schmidberger is elected Vicar General with right of immediate succession as Superior General. In the seminaries, the course of studies is extended from 5 to 6 years. We have 60 new entries in Econe, Ridgefield, Zaitzkofen, and Buenos Aires. |
http://archives.sspx.org/SSPX_FAQs/a_short_history_of_the_sspx-part-3.htm
A short history of the SSPX | ||
Part 3 | ||
1983 This is the year of the publication of the new Code of Canon Law, which expresses in canonical terms the new conciliar conception of the Church. |
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He became spiritual director of the seminary of Econe, where he helped generations of priests inspiring them with his zeal and giving them the key to the Exercises. This priest "with a heart of fire," as the Archbishop said of him, signed his testament: Ludovic Marie Barrielle, slave of Mary and Joseph. On April 5th, the Archbishop writes very openly to the pope:
Those who maintain that the Archbishop spoke against religious freedom only in his last years should read what he wrote in 1983:
During the Spring, some priests in the United States leave us, pretending that the liturgy used by the Society is bad. In this they join the choir of our modernist persecutors in Rome who also say that our liturgy is not authorized. This absurd attitude unfortunately sows confusion within the faithful and seminarians in the States. This situation puts to proof the Germanic endurance of the new Superior General, Fr. Schmidberger. In June, 28 new priests are ordained in Econe. Ireland receives the first priest of the Society. The Archbishop wishes that God will bring many vocations from this island that in the past gave so many priests and missionaries to the Church. Cardinal Ratzinger writes from Rome in July:
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The priests of Campos publish a declaration about the priestly ministry in the present extraordinary period of grave crisis, explaining the canonical doctrine that allows traditional priests to hear confessions and bless marriages. | ||
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On the 21st, he meets with Bishop de Castro Mayer in Rio de Janeiro. Together they prepare an open letter to the pope:
The two faithful bishops present a list outlining the principal errors of the time, including an ecumenical notion of the Church, a democratic orientation, a false notion of the natural rights of man, and a Protestant notion of the Mass and of the sacraments. 1984 The Society of St. Pius X has reached the number of 120 priests, and Econe also counts 120 seminarians. Fr. Schmidberger insists on a stabilization and consolidation with a happy expansion, and to hold on to the motto, "Neither heretics nor schismatic." The pope, to the great scandal of Catholics traditional or not, preaches in the Lutheran temple of Rome in March. On the 10th of May, he bows before a bonze [a pagan priest] in a Buddhist temple in Thailand; at the same time the Vatican abrogates the concordat with Italy. At this point the Archbishop starts to consider seriously the necessity of an episcopal consecration. Also in May, Mother Mary Jude is named Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X Sisters, and in the United States the northeast and southwest districts are reunified. |
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During summer the happy expansion starts with foundations in Mexico, Colombia, South Africa, Holland, and Portugal. Our seminarians spend one month in Rome inaugurating what will become a yearly summer tradition. Directed by a priest, they are exposed during four weeks to the history, the art, and majestic beauty of the eternal city. October 3rd, the Indult. The Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship communicates to the presidents of the episcopal conferences that the diocesan bishops may allow the celebration of the Mass according to the 1962 typical edition of the Roman Missal. Among the draconian conditions, public evidence should exist that the petitioners have no ties with those who deny the doctrinal soundness of the missal promulgated by Paul VI, and that the celebration may take place only on those days and circumstances approved by the bishop. The letter is signed by Archbishop Mayer, afterwards cardinal in charge of the Ecclesia Dei Commission. He indicates that this Indult is to be used without prejudice to the liturgical reform. On October 18th, in the so-called Document of Flavigny, the Society of St. Pius X and 40 priests and laymen leaders of traditional works, refuse the conditions of the Indult and ask for a wider application without compromise regarding the Liturgical Reformation. In November, a Gallup poll requested by traditional Catholics of Vienna, VA, reveals that 40% of American Catholics want the return to traditional Mass, 53% will be happy to attend if it is restored. The Archbishop travels to Chile in November. 400 confirmations are announced in Santiago; 1,200 arrive. During a ceremony of 4 hours the Archbishop proceeds to the longest confirmation session in his life. On December 8th in Econe, all the superiors make the Consecration of the Society of St. Pius X to the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, prepared by an evening of prayers at Martigny attended by more than 4,000 faithful. |
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At the
end of the year, Archbishop Lefebvre visits Cardinal Ratzinger, then
goes to Africa, and at his return to Rome he sees Cardinal Gagnon, who
gives shocking details
of the network of conspiracy and corruption in Rome. The
Archbishop comments:
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http://archives.sspx.org/SSPX_FAQs/a_short_history_of_the_sspx-part-4.htm
A short history of the SSPX | ||
Part 4 / 1985 continued | ||
Fr. Schmidberger writes in February:
In March, Father presents to Cardinal Ratzinger three big packages with the petitions of 129,849 traditional Catholics asking the pope to solve the problem of Tradition. Meanwhile, the Archbishop writes his Open Letter to Confused Catholics. |
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In Ireland, a new church is bought in Dublin seating 700 faithful, and 10 new chapels open in Germany. A world-wide campaign led by the Society of St. Pius X protests against the blasphemous film, Hail Mary. On July 22nd, Lady Kinnoull dies in Carmel, CA. She was the very first providential benefactress of the Society. English countess, very cultivated, knowing profoundly her religion with a solid attachment to tradition, with the character of a crusader, and with a great fortune, she supported financially General Franco during the Spanish War. Restless fighter, in 1964 she flew to Paris to meet Archbishop Lefebvre while he was still Superior General of the Holy Ghost Fathers, to tell him that her fortune and influences would be at his service if he needed help to fight against the subversion within the Church. During the first years of the Society of St. Pius X in Fribourg she covered most of the expenses of that early foundation. At her death, the Archbishop wrote:
On August 31st, Archbishop Lefebvre and Bishop de Castro Mayer write another open letter to the pope, a solemn injunction this time:
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At the end of the month, he talks about the 3 wars of his life:
In our church of Geneva, October 27th, Archbishop Lefebvre asks traditional Catholics to consider our chapels as our parishes:
On November 6th, the Archbishop places before Cardinal Ratzinger our Dubia on religious freedom. We will wait one year for an answer. In La Reja, Argentina, he celebrates his 80th birthday, November 29th. On December 1st, Bishop de Castro Mayer, who came from Brazil for the ordinations by Archbishop Lefebvre, and participates in the rite by imposing his hands with the other priests present on the 8 new ordinands. On the 3rd of December he himself proceeds to confer the tonsure and the minor orders to our seminarians, an unexpected event that makes our Archbishop quip:
1986 The pope visits Togo and India, again scandalizing the faithful by taking public part in ceremonies of a pagan nature. In January, Cardinal Gagnon calls Archbishop Lefebvre to Rome and announces that the Holy Father wants him to be associated to Cardinal Ratzinger in the Society’s case. Our house of Gabon is founded on January 14th, the mission being consecrated to St. Joseph. The president invites Archbishop Lefebvre to visit the country, which he does in February, this time to leave his priests in residence. Regular missionary trips begin to New Guinea, Japan, South Korea, and Hong Kong. The pilgrimage of Chartres brings 15,000 faithful and more than 100 priests; more than 3,000 will also attend the pilgrimage to St. Nicolas de Flue. During the ordinations of June at Econe, 125 priests impose hands on the young men who have come to reinforce the ranks. The priory of Wanganui, New Zealand opens on August 16th. A priory is also founded in Port du France, Martinique. Monthly Masses start in Luxembourg, and in Santiago, Chile, a big church is bought with 500 faithful in attendance. The Castle of Jaidhof is purchased in Austria to become a center of retreats and missionary work. A summer retreat in Lebanon brings 65 men to follow the Exercises. The Society of St. Pius X prepares a foundation for October in Zimbabwe, and starts a timid beginning of the apostolate in India. In the United States, at the beginning of August, the Society of St. Pius X sisters found a novitiate at Armada, MI. The headquarters of the Society moves from Dickinson, TX to St. Louis, MO. The bishops of Gabon, who had been happy to visit with the Archbishop, but not so happy to have his priests among them, instigated by the papal nuncio, write the Archbishop expressing, of course, esteem and gratitude, but telling him also that they would like to see him reconciled with Rome. Their old superior answers on August 9th, scolding them without false charity, using the words of St. Paul, to the Galatians:
And then he says,
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The new academic year sees the opening of the seminary of Flavigny in France for the spirituality and philosophy years with 36 seminarians. After the scandal of the ecumenical meeting of Assisi, Bishop de Castro Mayer exercises a public episcopal ministry along with Archbishop Lefebvre, and on November 29th, he confirms with great solemnity 450 children in our chapel of Buenos Aires. Meanwhile, in the Antilles, Archbishop Lefebvre is received by 250 people in Martinique and 500 in Guadaloupe. The seminarians of Econe restore the Eucharistic Crusade for children, now extended throughout the world. 1987 The Society has 205 priests working in 23 countries and 263 young men filling the seminaries. In Ridgefield, the arrival of 19 new seminarians makes the house burst at the seams, and the General Council determines that it is time to move the seminary elsewhere, and to turn Ridgefield into a retreat house. St. Mary’s has 700 faithful, and in France a new Carmel is founded, the seventh after the foundations started by Mother Marie Christiane Lefebvre in 1977, one Carmel for each seminary. January sees the death of Mother Mary Gabriel. Sister of the Holy Ghost, co-foundress and first General Superior of the Sisters of the Society of St. Pius X, missionary in Cameroon, in Banghi, in the Antilles, and Senegal, she founded the Society of the Daughters of Mary of Cameroon in Yaoundee, and devoted herself as a nurse in the leper hospital of Banghi. Always happy and humble, profoundly religious and exemplary, she was unable to accept the changes in her congregation, to the point that she felt like a stranger. With the permission of her superiors she helped her brother to found a religious congregation of women with identity of goals with the Society of St. Pius X. A simple, happy, and strong soul, she cannot be forgotten by those who had the grace to know her. On January 18th, dies Fr. Raymond du Lac, a renowned canonist who studied at the French Seminary with Archbishop Lefebvre, remaining friends to the end. He proved canonically that the constitution Missale Romanum of Paul VI did not affect the right to celebrate the traditional Mass. Until the last day he remained an energetic defender of the Roman traditions the he learned under Fr. Le Floch. On March 9th, Rome answers to our Dubia: Religious freedom, they say, constitutes a novelty that can very well be put in accord with tradition. While Rome answers in this nonchalant manner, the South American bishops announce that 60 million Catholics have joined Protestant sects, and Cardinal Ratzinger optimistically declares that "we want to assimilate in the Church the best values of 200 years of liberal culture." Archbishop Lefebvre answers with his book, They Have Uncrowned Him. In Gabon, 400 faithful already attend the Society chapel regularly, which makes the Archbishop of Libreville publicly attack our work. He pressures the government, and the Fathers are notified that by the end of the school year they must close the chapel and leave the country. Only a miracle can stop the persecution and the miracle happens. On the feast of the Sacred Heart, the chief of police of Libreville comes in person to tell the astonished community that nothing is going to happen and that they may finally remain. The Society of St. Pius X founds in France the Confraternity for the Deliverance of the Souls in Purgatory, a work that keeps growing every year and that today is in possession of their own chapel in France. |
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After a "dialogue of deaf people" during 20 years that has become an unsuccessful monologue, everything seems to indicate that Rome is just waiting for the death of Archbishop Lefebvre to give the final stroke against traditional works. |
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July 28th, Cardinal Ratzinger writes to the Archbishop offering at last concrete proposals for a
solution, including the possibility of a cardinal visiting the works of the
Society.
Fatima, August 22nd, at the 70th anniversary of the apparitions: 2,000 people gather for a night vigil of prayer and a Pontifical Mass during which Archbishop Lefebvre consecrates the Society of St. Pius X to Our Lady, and inasmuch as it is in his power, he also consecrates Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. During his homily he says that there is an intimate link between the secret of Fatima and the post-conciliar crisis. A group of cardinals and bishops ask the pope in September to find a solution for the Society of St. Pius X. On the 1st of October the Archbishop accepts an Apostolic Visitor to come in the name of the pope to see what Tradition is all about. The Archbishop informs the press of a certain positive change in our relations with Rome. He goes to the Eternal City to continue the negotiations and on October 29th, Cardinal Ratzinger informs the Synod of Bishops that the pope has named Cardinal Gagnon as Apostolic Visitor to the Society of St. Pius X, much to the delight of some bishops and to the worry of others. The great family of Tradition, surrounds Archbishop Lefebvre in Econe for his 40 years of episcopate on October 3rd. Before 80 priests, 150 seminarians, and 4,000 faithful, the Archbishop Lefebvre says in his homily that 2 mottoes have conducted his episcopal ministry, the one of the Society of St. Pius X, "Instaurare omnia in Christo," ["To restore all things in Christ] and "Credidimus Caritati," ["We have believed in Charity"] his own episcopal motto. In November, more involved than ever, Bishop de Castro Mayer goes to our seminary in Buenos Aires to confer the tonsure and give the minor orders, as well as to ordain 3 subdeacons and 4 deacons. The 11th of November, exactly 13 years after the first Apostolic Visit of 1974, Cardinal Gagnon and Msgr. Perl arrive in Econe. In a marathon visit till the 9th of December, they visit the 3 European seminaries, chapels, general house, groups of priests, schools, convents, retreat houses, up and down France, Germany, and Switzerland. In the Book of Honor of the seminary of Econe, Cardinal Gagnon writes a testimony of admiration for the work done in the seminary. On December 8th, Feast of the Immaculate Conception, Cardinal Gagnon assists pontifically at the Mass celebrated by Archbishop Lefebvre during which 27 seminarians make their first engagement in the Society of St. Pius X. Thus, the Holy Father’s hand-picked delegate officially attends a Mass celebrated by a "suspended" bishop who receives members into a "suppressed" society, which "officially" does not exist. |
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http://archives.sspx.org/SSPX_FAQs/a_short_history_of_the_sspx-part-5.htm
Part 5 | ||
1988 On January 5th, Cardinal Gagnon presents to the pope a mysterious 39-page report of which no copy was ever given to us. On February 2nd, the Archbishop announces in Flavigny before television cameras that he will consecrate three bishops on June 30th. Our Australian seminary, Holy Cross, opens with 14 seminarians on the Feast of St. Joseph. Rome is afraid. After a constant coming and going of negotiations, an obscure protocol is signed the 5th of May. The day after, the Archbishop discovers that there are no assurances that the conditions will be promptly fulfilled, and he decides to proceed to the consecrations of auxiliary bishops. It is a survival operation of tradition, absolutely justified by the unjust persecution of faithful Catholics and the betrayal of the faith by Roman authorities. Econe, June 29th: at the priestly ordinations, the 2 faithful bishops, plus 173 priests who come from all over the world, impose hands on the ordinands. That very evening Rome makes a last attempt to avoid the consecrations, sending a beautiful black Mercedes to take the Archbishop on the spot to Rome. |
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On June 30th, 8,000 faithful witness the historical consecration of 4 Catholic bishops to continue the work of Archbishop Lefebvre. This heroic action made of him, Bishop de Castro Mayer, and the 4 young prelates, the first excommunicated of the post-conciliar era. The reasons for which the Church rewarded him greatly until the death of Pius XII were now the cause of his condemnation by the New Church. | ||
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Our bishops do not
have vacation, they go immediately on long confirmation trips.
Bishop Williamson visits England, Ireland, South Africa, Zimbabwe, New Zealand, Australia, and Hawaii in the months following his consecration. |
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Bishop Fellay must take refuge in the house of some Protestants, and finally he is allowed to visit the chapel for a few minutes
escorted by the police. So much for post-conciliar tolerance and freedom of
religion.
The seminary of Winona opens October 8th. In Australia, our sisters open a convent in Sydney. On October 27th, Fr. Marchal, one of our young priests, dies in a car accident in France. During his seminary he devoted himself to the preparation of a booklet The Society of Saint Pius X: A Work of the Church. In London and in Lourdes he exercised his apostolate and he still wrote another book on the Archbishop’s resistance. November 23rd, death of Fr. Joseph Le Boulch, a Benedictine monk and spiritual director at Econe. A great preacher, very well known in religious communities and parishes in France, from 1937 onwards he undertook over 1,000 major preachings (retreats, missions, days of recollection). He joined Archbishop Lefebvre in 1975, leaving with the permission of the superiors his dear Landevennec, an ancient abbey with a history of 15 centuries. Another Benedictine with a different concept of loyalty, Dom Gerard Calvet, prior of Le Barroux, breaks with the Archbishop and condemns the episcopal consecrations at which he was present, turning himself into Rome’s hands "without any doctrinal or liturgical concession." In 1995, Abbot Calvet concelebrates the New Mass with John Paul II in Rome. Rome, December 4th, the 25th anniversary of the liturgical reformation. An apostolic letter of the pope says that the liturgical reform is absolutely traditional and according to the norms of the Holy Fathers. "Ad normam sanctorum patrum!" December 8th: The 6 Catholic bishops consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. 1989 The Society of St. Pius X starts a perpetual Mass in honor of the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, renewing daily its consecration to her. Perpetual Adoration is also begun and the Blessed Sacrament remains exposed at some house of the Society throughout the world every day for the faithful to pray for the following intentions:
In one year our 4 new bishops have ordained 34 new priests. The Archbishop, being asked if he has any doubt, or if he regrets the step of 1988, answers:
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Purified by a long prison term in Czechoslovakia under the Communist KGB, she was not afraid of taking a public stand for Archbishop Lefebvre and his works. A truly saintly soul, she continues to help us from her well-deserved rest in heaven. | ||
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http://archives.sspx.org/SSPX_FAQs/a_short_history_of_the_sspx-part-6.htm
Part 6 | ||
No doubt that it was Madame Tangari who from heaven made possible the beginning of our Eastern European apostolate. On May 23rd, Fr. Schmidberger visits Hungary and celebrates a Mass in a Budapest church for 200 faithful. On April 29th, 20 years of the Society are celebrated before 10,000 faithful in Friedrichshafen, but the earthly crown of the Archbishop is still a crown of thorns. He is accused of racism and calumny by the LICRA (League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism). Cardinal Thiandoum, the African prelate ordained priest by the Archbishop, makes an indignant public declaration against the accusations and in favor of the great missionary Archbishop of Dakar who left in Africa an extraordinary memory. The president of Gabon defends "the good Archbishop who spent 30 years in Africa doing only good." What an irony it is to condemn as racist the only prelate who received from African governments the highest decorations as the Equatorial Star of Gabon and the Grand National Order of Senegal, as well as the Legion of Honor from France for overseas services. At this time he finishes his book, The Spiritual Journey. The Carmelites move to Spokane, WA. In Ridgefield the great number of retreatants make us realize that a new retreat house is needed immediately for the Southwest. Canada, September 10th: A magnificent building in Lauzon, Quebec, houses the big school of the Holy Family starting with 42 students. In Gabon, 3,000 faithful attend the Christmas Mass in our mission. Also at Christmas time, our sisters’ novitiate moves from Armada to Browerville, Minnesota. |
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After the retiring of Bishop de Castro Mayer, his successor Bishop Navarro, had proceeded to the systematic persecution of all the traditional priests in Campos, removing them from their parishes, and forcing in the New Mass and the new religion. The Catholic resistance was centered around the person of Bishop de Castro Mayer. After his death, his priests and thousands of faithful needed a bishop who, without claiming a personal jurisdiction, would use his episcopal faculties to ordain, to confirm, and to sustain the faith among the Catholic people in the present crisis. This year also sees the death of Dom Edouard Guillou, on May 19th. A monk of Solesmes, a specialist in liturgy and in art, writer in history and literature, he was one the early teachers of Econe in 1974. He instilled in the early seminarians the love for the Roman liturgy and for the spirit of Dom Gueranger, author of The Liturgical Year. A man of convictions and sempiternal good humor he used to repeat, "Never hide your flag in your pocket." In the United States district, a property is bought in Los Gatos, CA, in order to make possible a very much-needed new retreat center. 1992 Energetic start of missionary work in Eastern Europe: Prague, Budapest, visits to Poland, Lithuania, the Ukraine, and Russia. Itinerant missionary priests of the Society also visit Kenya, Sri Lanka, and the Dominican Republic. In order to implore the Master of the Vineyard to send laborers into the field, the Society launches a crusade for vocations. January 14th: Fr. Spiq, a Dominican, internationally renowned scriptural scholar, dies in Switzerland. He was also one of the early professors who helped Archbishop Lefebvre to form the first seminarians. USA, May 13th: official opening of the Regina Coeli House. Fr. Schmidberger blesses the new District Headquarters and consecrates the US District to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Cardinal Oddi oddly appears at the seminary of Econe for a sudden visit. After praying before the tomb of the Archbishop he exclaims in his unique Italian flamboyance "Merci, Monseigneur", "Thank you, Your Excellency." Fr. Schmidberger writes him shortly afterwards: |
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Philippines, August 18th, the first priory of the Philippines is founded in Manila. United States, September 3rd: Bishop Williamson blesses the beautiful church of St. Pius X in Cincinnati, OH. Brussels, September 13th: 300 religious leaders, Christian, Buddhist, Jews, Moslems, Hindus, Animists, are invited by Cardinal Daneels to pray for the world’s peace, rejecting that our Lord Jesus Christ is the only one Who can bring peace to the world. Buddha, Krishna, Allah, donate nobis pacem. The Society organizes a concentration of Catholics for a ceremony of reparation for the cardinal’s sin with the public prayer of the Stations of the Cross. Buenos Aires, October 12th: the Congress of the Fifth Centenary of the Discovery of America and its Christianization assembles illustrious speakers who emphasize the need of a re-Christianization of the large continent that Columbus and Queen Isabella offered to Christ the King. |
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The relations with Eastern Europe become more intense. 110 Ukrainians in 3 big buses visit Econe, and 20 Russians spend one week at the seminary of Zaitzkofen. Our priests start to visit Albania, Byelorussia, and the Baltic countries. Fr. Paradis, an old Canadian priest, in Shawinigan since 1985, goes to his eternal reward. On May 21st, our Fr. Henri La Praz consummates his Calvary on earth. 130 surgeries, 80 of them under general anesthesia and a good number of the last ones without any anesthesia at all, mark a life of cheerful suffering which makes of Fr. La Praz priest and victim as our Lord Jesus Christ, an extraordinary and unique soul. During the summer, 400 retreatants attend the 5-day Ignatian Exercises preached in South America. Fr. Schmidberger, indefatigable, repeats his motto again in a letter to the Society members:
And so the work of tradition continues and our priests go to teach all nations. This year they will visit Moscow, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Guatemala on a regular schedule, and, at the same time that the house is bought in Fatima, just behind the Basilica of Our Lady, the General Superior opens an headquarters priory based in Austria to take care of the spiritual needs of all of Eastern Europe, and to co-ordinate our apostolate in this immense region. 1994 |
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August 21st: Fr. Coache, probably the last great figure of the old resistance in France, dies peacefully. A doctor in canon law and parish priest for many years, his bishop expelled him for continuing the traditional procession of Corpus Christi in his parish. With his publications, his pilgrimages to Rome and to Lourdes, Fr. Coache was a great supporter of the traditional cause. 1995 The Old Guard goes and leaves the work to the young soldiers. On May 12th, Fr. Barcelonne dies in France at 94 years of age. He worked for 27 years in China from where he was expelled in 1952 by the Communists. Missionary in Brazil; guess the diocese. Campos, all right. He returned to France and spent his last 10 years at St. Nicolas du Chardonnet, where he was affectionately called "The Patriarch." He finishes his testament by writing:
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While modern Rome descends deeper
and deeper into the darkness of confusion, the Society of St. Pius X calmly,
quietly and securely perseveres in the luminous work of preaching our Lord
crucified and guiding souls to heaven.
In the preface of his Spiritual Journey, the Archbishop wrote a mysterious and unusual paragraph:
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