The following letter was written by a traditional priest.
Dear Bishop X,
Pope Francis during his visit last week to Canada participated in a pagan ritual in which some Indian leader asked “the western grandmother” to grant “access to the sacred circle of spirits.” This participation is a fitting expression of Pope Francis’ss interpretation of Vatican II, which according to him teaches that God wills the diversity of religions and that non-Catholic religions are not evil, but good.
This same Pope, as you know, intends first to restrict, and then to suppress the ancient rites of the Church. He states his purpose in carrying out this program: to combat what he calls “divisiveness” and ensure that all Catholics are “united” in “accepting Vatican II.”
Because of these circumstances, a priest who complies with any order to stop using the ancient rites is, by the very fact, assenting to a certain interpretation of Vatican II. This is the interpretation of Pope Francis as explained above.
If Pope Francis’s interpretation of Vatican II is correct, then the teaching of Pope Paul VI is important: Vatican II did not intend to teach anything infallibly. Because of this, I would have to conclude that the council was in error in this teaching. I reject it.
If, however, Pope Francis’s interpretation is incorrect, and Vatican II teaches that God wills only one religion and that all other religions are evil, then I accept the Council and reject Pope Francis’s interpretation of it.
In either case, I am divided from Pope Francis, at least at this time. Unless he makes it clear that his actions were evil, and that non-Christian religions are evil, I’m divided from him.
Again, because obedience to orders suppressing the ancient rites becomes an exterior profession of belief which is incompatible with the true faith, I could never obey such a request.
Said in a different way: the ancient mass is divisive. It is a symbol of those who accept the faith of all ages and who reject a certain interpretation of Vatican II. It is an external sign of an internal belief that Christ and Christ alone is the Savior of all men. The Novus Ordo is not such a symbol. Rather, it is a symbol which is ambiguous (and was intentionally constructed to be so). While it can be used by Catholics, it can also be used by those who profess to be Catholics while invoking the western grandmother and the sacred circle of spirits.
Jesus Christ, we should remember, is also divisive. He will come again and place all men either on his right hand or his left. The goats and the sheep will be separated with an impassible abyss. There is no middle ground.
On that day, I don’t want to be standing next to the people who invoked the sacred circle of spirits. I want to be standing next to those who for centuries upon centuries worshiped the one true God using sacred rites historically rooted in the apostles. The ancient rites, like Christ, are divisive. This is why I cannot abandon them.
If in the future Pope Francis were to totally suppress the ancient rites, I would not obey him. I would obey God.
In Christ,
Fr. X
