In a statement, the Archdiocese of Managua announced the recent ban on processions in the city of Masaya.
(Managua) "For reasons of public security" processions in honor of Saint Jerome have been banned by the Nicaraguan National Police. He is the patron saint of the city of Masaya. As the socialist regime intensifies its persecution of the Church, it is backed by Pope Francis.
On Saturday, the Archdiocese of Managua announced in a statement:
"The National Police of the city of Masaya has informed the religious communities and parish priests of the parishes of Masaya, San Miguel Arcángel and San Jerónimo that, for reasons of public safety, no processions are allowed on the respective feast days in this city."
The city of Masaya is 28 kilometers southwest of the capital and traditionally celebrates the longest patronal festival in Nicaragua, perhaps in the world, from September to December, in honor of Church Father Jerome.
In its statement, the Archdiocese of Managua invited parishioners “and those who devote themselves to the patron saint to remember that faith and devotion are treasures that we carry in our hearts and from there we cherish with them by virtue of ancestral heritage in our communities."
According to the archdiocese, the Masses, novenas, and liturgical celebrations will take place as planned. At the same time, the Archdiocese invoked the intercession of the Archangel Michael, St. Jerome "and the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church and Queen of Peace", "to heal us from all evil with the medicine of God."
Masaya is a former Sandinista stronghold that revolted in April 2018 in the wake of anti-government protests against President Daniel Ortega's Sandinista regime. In the city, the demand for the resignation of Ortega and his government was raised for the first time after they used violence to put down the demonstrations.
Since then, the bishops have been called "putschists" and "terrorists" by the Sandinistas, and the Church has been opposed by the regime. Three bishops critical of the government had to resign, go into exile, or were arrested. On August 19, Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa was arrested after having been effectively under house arrest since August 4. Several priests and seminarians were arrested with him and taken to the infamous El nuevo Chipote prison brought to opponents of the regime. Pope Francis has not yet commented on the bishop's arrest. Sandinista circles had already interceded with the Holy See in the days when the bishop was besieged by the police in the episcopal Curia to have Francis appoint the bishop to the Roman Curia. The negotiations about a "deal" have not yet led to a result. According to this, the bishop will be released on condition that he leaves Nicaragua.
The anti-Church reprisals also included the ban on nine Catholic radio stations. Three Catholic television stations were removed from the service by the state media authority.
Processions have been banned in the past because the socialist rulers fear they could become a visible expression of criticism of the regime. Priests were besieged in their churches and the faithful were prevented from entering the church for Mass.
With the support of the USA, the Central American country was ruled by the Somoza family for 43 years. 43 years ago, the Sandinistas overthrew the Somoza regime and seized power for the first time. After the collapse of the communist bloc, they were removed from it but returned to the government in 2006. Relations between the Church and the Sandinistas have been strained for 43 years. The reason for this is not least church circles which, as followers of Marxist liberation theology such as the three priests Ernesto Cardenal, Fernando Cardenal, and Miguel d'Escoto, allied themselves with the Sandinistas.
Before the Sandinista Revolution, 96 percent of Nicaraguans professed the Catholic faith. According to the latest government information, it should now be only 56 percent. The number of non-denominational rose to 16 percent, and the proportion of Protestant free churches to 25 percent - a phenomenon that Pope Francis, who is described by dictator Ortega as a "friend", seems just as unconcerned as the persecution of the church. Not everything that the government is doing is good, Francis said last Thursday on the return flight from Nur-Sultan to Rome. At the same time, however, he announced that, according to his assessment, it was "not correct" to describe the totalitarian communist regime of the People's Republic of China as "undemocratic".
Text: Giuseppe Nardi Image : Archdiocese of Managua/Facebook (Screenshot)
Cardinal Walter Brandmüller laments Pope Francis' gag order for the cardinals who are supposed to advise him.
By Roberto de Mattei*
There is a relationship between grace and nature analogous to that between faith and reason. There is an imbalance when there is faith without reason or grace without nature and vice versa, but the perfect balance is not in putting these realities on an equal footing. On the contrary, it consists in bringing them into their legitimate order, subordinating nature to grace, of which the former is the premise, just as the premise of faith is the reason, but which is subordinate to faith.
This helps us understand what "spirit of faith" or "supernatural spirit" means, depending on whether we are referring to the primacy of faith over reason or grace over nature. It means not renouncing the indispensable role of reason and nature, but seeing everything through the eyes of faith and expecting even the impossible from the work of grace.
Today that spirit of faith has been lost in the Christian people, beginning with their church leaders. The spirit of faith and the supernatural has been replaced by the political spirit with which Christians claim to understand and intervene in reality through reason alone, without resorting to the decisive action of grace.
Pope Francis has repeatedly recalled that the true reformers of the Church are the saints, yet his approach to the world's great issues always appears political and therefore "worldly" rather than "supernatural" and moved by a spirit of faith. This “political” approach dominated the recent consistory, held August 29-30th in the Vatican in the presence of some 180 cardinals, which missed a great opportunity to address the serious problems afflicting the Church today. The focus of the meeting of the cardinals was officially the reform of the Curia, which is contained in the new Apostolic Constitution Praedicate Evangelium being proposed, but the Pope has prevented the cardinals from expressing themselves in joint session on this and other subjects, as it were, he muzzled them.
The consistory is a meeting of the pope with the cardinals, who according to the code of canon law (canons 349-359) are his first advisers. For at least seven years, Pope Francis has not allowed the cardinals to speak and express their opinions at this solemn gathering. Everyone had expected this to happen at the end of the August meeting, but the consistory was fragmented into language groups at the behest of the pope, paralyzing the cardinals and preventing the open and direct dialogue that last took place in February 2014.
We are reminded of this truth by an important cardinal and great historian, Cardinal Walter Brandmüller, whose voice, which was not allowed to be heard in the consistory hall, echoes outside the hall. The Vaticanist Sandro Magister has allowed us to get to know them by publishing the speech that the cardinal had prepared but was not allowed to deliver.
Cardinal Brandmüller recalls in his document the function of cardinals anchored in canon law, which in ancient times found its symbolic expression in the rite of the "aperitio oris", the opening of the mouth. A rite, the cardinal explained, which “meant the duty to speak openly one's convictions, one's advice, especially in consistory. This openness – Pope Francis speaks of 'parrhesía' – was particularly important to the Apostle Paul. At the moment, unfortunately, that openness has been replaced by a strange silence. The other ceremony of closing the mouth, which followed the 'aperitio oris', referred not to truths of faith and morals, but to official secrets”.
"Today, however," Cardinal Brandmüller added, "we should emphasize the right, indeed the duty, of cardinals to speak clearly and frankly, especially when dealing with the truths of faith and morals, the 'bonum commune' of the Church. The experiences of the last few years have been very different. In the consistories - which were convened almost exclusively for the canonization processes - cards were distributed to ask for the floor and of course spontaneous interventions followed on any subject, and that was it. There was never a debate, an exchange of arguments on any particular subject. Apparently a completely useless procedure", although the primacy of the Successor of Peter in no way "precludes a fraternal dialogue with the cardinals, who are obliged to cooperate conscientiously with the pope” (can. 356). The more serious and urgent the problems of pastoral leadership, the more necessary is the involvement of the College of Cardinals”.
The cardinal, who is a Church historian, continues:
“When Celestine V wanted to renounce the papacy in 1294, recognizing the special circumstances of his election, he did so after intensive discussions and with the consent of his electors. A completely different view of the relationship between pope and cardinals was represented by Benedict XVI, who - a unique case in history - renounced the papal office for personal reasons without the knowledge of the college of cardinals that elected him. There were only 70 electors until Paul VI, who increased the number of electors to 120. This increase in the size of the electoral college, almost doubling it, was motivated by an intention to conform to the hierarchy of lands far from Rome and to honor those churches with the Roman purple. The inevitable consequence was that cardinals were installed who had no experience with the Roman Curia and thus with the problems of the pastoral leadership of the universal Church. All of this has serious consequences when these cardinals from the periphery are called to elect a new pope.”
Currently, it is like this:
“(...) many, if not the majority, of the voters do not know each other. Yet they are there to elect the Pope, one of them. It is obvious that this situation makes it easier for operations of cardinal groups or classes to favor one of their candidates. In this situation one cannot rule out the danger of simony in its various forms.”
The Cardinal's document concludes with a suggestion:
"Finally, it seems to me that the idea of restricting voting rights in the conclave, for example, to cardinals resident in Rome deserves serious consideration, while the other cardinals could share the 'status' of cardinals above octogenarian."
These are clear, unmistakable words that should make the entire College of Cardinals think.
Pope Francis' refusal to give the floor to the cardinals stems from the political and secular perspective of his pontificate. He fears that free and open discussion will weaken the exercise of his power, unaware that the truth can never harm the Church and the souls subject to Her. The spirit of faith, which is opposed to the spirit of politics, consists precisely in seeking in all things what is highest and most sublime, what is best for the glory of God and the good of souls, always looking to the commandments of the Gospel.
The alternative is between the truth of the Gospel and the power of the world. Proclaiming the truth of the Gospel does not mean talking about immigration or the climate emergency, but about the novissima- Death, Judgment, Heaven and Hell - and the divine providence that governs all events of the created universe. Preaching the Gospel means using the voice of the Church to condemn sin, especially public sin, foremostly abortion and LGBT doctrines, which the world considers “civil rights achievements”. It means speaking of holiness and not of synodality, because it is from holiness and not from political mechanisms that the necessary reform (renewal) proceeds within the Church: a renewal of the people who form Her and not of Her divine ones and immutable constitution.
A cloak of silence has now fallen over the consistory. And the silence of those who should speak is the greatest punishment our Lord can inflict on His Church.
* Roberto de Mattei , historian, father of five children, professor of modern history and history of Christianity at the European University of Rome, chairman of the Lepanto Foundation, author of numerous books, most recently in German [Possibly English] translation: Defense of Tradition: The Insurmountable Truth of Christ, with a foreword by Martin Mosebach, Altötting 2017 and The Second Vatican Council. A Hitherto Unwritten Story, 2nd ext. Edition, Bobingen 2011.
There are many remote villages on the Apennines. Monsignor Visioli has now been transferred there from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
(Rome) The Undersecretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith becomes pastor in the mountains of the Diocese of Parma. An appointed Chief Officer must resign immediately upon a nod from the Apostolic Nunciature in the United States. Purges are taking place again at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in Rome.
The local Parma edition of the daily newspaper La Repubblica, which Pope Francis is known to read, reported on August 16 the appointments and forthcoming transfers in the diocesan clergy. Bishop Enrico Solmi of Parma traditionally announces this on August 15th. The most recent changes have now been published on the diocese 's website. They also concern Monsignor Matteo Visioli.
Msgr Matteo Visioli
Visioli obtained a doctorate in canon law after studying fundamental theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University. He then became episcopal vicar in his home diocese, took on tasks for the Italian Bishops' Conference, was director of the Interdiocesan College for Religious Studies and taught canon law at the Marcianum in Venice. In 2017, Pope Francis summoned him to Rome and appointed him Undersecretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
Now he was appointed by the Bishop of Parma to be the pastor of three parishes and moderator of a fourth in the mountains of the Apennines. What happened?
Collective punishment
"Our sources at the highest level confirm," according to the traditional site Messa in Latino, that Monsignor Visioli was dismissed because he was associated with Monsignor Giacomo Morandi, who was also promoted from Rome.
Monsignor Morandi was appointed secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 2017, at the same time as Visioli. Last January, he was abruptly deported from Rome when Pope Francis appointed him the new Archbishop of Reggio Emilia and Guastalla.
His position was not filled because Francis reformed the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in February by merging it into two sections and appointing a separate secretary for each.
Archbishop Morandi had been dismissed on charges of having written the famous response against the blessing of gay couples of March 15, 2021. In it, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith stated the impossibility of blessing a form of sin. With this negative answer, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith opposed the homo- heresy (Dariusz Oko), which is mainly run by homophile priests from the German-speaking area, supported by some bishops.Pope Francis then left his own Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith out in the rain so as not to deal with the German Bishops' Conference and to create the gay lobby. Santa Marta distanced itself from the responsum immediately after its publication, and Monsignor Morandi was just as quickly named as a possible candidate for the Bishop's See of Turin. His days in Rome were numbered.
Because Msgr. Morandi had dared to thwart the papal plans - in other words, had not intuitively grasped what Pope Francis does not say but wants - he was removed from Rome a few months later - and now, with a delay, also Msgr. Visioli. Messa in Latino writes:
"The climate of South American dictatorship prevailing at the Roman Curia is becoming ever clearer: suspicion or proximity to someone who has fallen from grace is enough to be dismissed without explanation."
The traditional Rite as a Career Ender
Rev Tait C Schroeder
In this context, Messa in Latino mentions another personality of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which since the curial reform has officially been called the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. The American priest Tait Cameron Schroeder, who has been working at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith since 2018, was appointed chief of the second section of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the DisciplinaryDepartment, on May 7th.
Tait C. Schroeder is a priest of the Diocese of Madison. He first studied sacramental theology in Rome at the Pontifical Athenaeum Sant'Anselmo and then received his doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical University of Santa Croce. Since then, he has gained a reputation as a well-established lawyer. At the beginning of August, Schroeder was still speaking with Cardinal Raymond Burke at a lawyers' conference in Wisconsin, USA - a proximity that was probably not welcomed in Santa Marta either.
The Apostolic Nunciature in the USA, where Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò is no longer nuncio but his successor Archbishop Christophe Pierre, hastened to inform Rome that, according to Messa in Latino, that Schroeder, the priest from the USA, was in fact “guilty of the horrific crime of celebrating in the traditional Rite for visiting groups of pilgrims, forcing Don Schroeder to resign from the office he had just received."
Pope Francis called Cuba "a symbol" in an interview. A symbol? But for what? This question was asked by John Horvat, the vice-chairman of Tradition, Family, Private Property in the USA.
On July 12, Pope Francis gave an interview to Televisa Univision's streaming service ViX. "The Pope's remarks have caused consternation among the people suffering in this communist island prison."
Francis said:
"I love the Cuban people very much. I also confess that I have a human relationship with Raúl Castro."
Raúl Castro, Fidel Castro's brother, was his successor until 2018 as head of state and government of Cuba and until 2021 as chairman of the Central Committee of theCommunist Party of Cuba(PCC).
According to John Horvat, this is like saying that the Pope "loves the inmates of this prison but gets along well with the prison director who is responsible for their suffering."
To add to the confusion, the Pope called Cuba a "symbol" and a country with "a great history." But what is Cuba "a symbol" of or for, and what "great story" does Francis mean? It could not be the brutal communist dictatorship of the past 63 years.
"The remarks come just over a year after the largest anti-government protests the country has seen in decades to demand liberation from communism. The protests were so fierce that many thought the end of the regime might be in sight. However, the communist regime brutally suppressed the peaceful demonstrations. Many protesters were arbitrarily arrested, tortured and sentenced to draconian prison terms. The Vatican and the West let this anniversary pass uncommented."
In the meantime, the misery continues, and it shows "how indifferent the West is to the suffering of Cuba."
The recent outbreak of dengue fever revealed shortages, supply shortages, poor organization, and a precarious public health situation, even though Cuba boasts of making entire medical trains available to foreign states. Patients must bring their own bedding if they need to go to the hospital.
"Many hospitals lack running water and basic supplies. There is a shortage of medicines that are readily available in any pharmacy in other countries. The lack of fuel affects the emergency services when transporting patients. The situation is exacerbated by the power outages lasting several hours per day. The authorities blame a 'power generation deficit', which means that several power plants do not work because, like most of the country's other infrastructure, they are not maintained or repaired. Chronic food shortages and civil unrest also contribute to the disaster."
Cuba, according to John Horvat, is "clearly a country in distress and in need of help." Although this precarious state of affairs has lasted for decades, Horvat said, "the communist rulers insist that the country does not need help."
"Even worse, liberation theologians and Western leftists call Cuba a model, even a paradise, for the world. They spread the myth that Cuba has one of the best health systems in the world. Meanwhile, the population is dying because of the shortcomings of the health care system."
The supposedly generous awarding of medical trains to foreign countries initially says nothing about their quality, but above all even less about the quality of the Cuban health care system. On the contrary, it rather reveals its precarious condition, because only through the loan to foreign countries do these doctors receive a regular wage. The situation is comparable to absolutist monarchies in the early modern period, which leased troops abroad in order to gain revenue for the state coffers and thus ensure the salary for the soldiers, which they themselves could hardly have paid.
"Cuba is indeed a symbol," Horvat said. "On the one hand, it symbolizes the continuation of communist tyranny, misery and brutality. Moreover, for the West, it is a painful symbol of its own indifference and hypocrisy. And those who are still resisting in Cuba are a symbol of Christian courage and perseverance that anticipates the day when they will be free to write the 'great story' that awaits them."
Text: Giuseppe Nardi Image: Vatican.va (Screenshot)
The cardinal creation of Jean-Claude Hollerich SJ, Archbishop of Luxembourg and President of COMECE.
Pope Francis wants to set the course for his successor so closely that the conclave cannot help but elect one of his crown princes. There are several of them, since the Argentine Pope is clear and unequivocal in his objectives, but also erratic and capricious due to his character. That's why new names keep popping up in his favor, while others don't resign because of it. Despite all the imponderables of a conclave, he not only wants to expand the circle of those who are committed to him but apparently also increase the chances of success. The Vaticanist Sandro Magister recently drew attention to a new name in papal favor.
“On the list of cardinals Francis would like to see succeed him, a new name has quickly jumped to the top. It is Jesuit Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, Archbishop of Luxembourg.”
Cardinal Hollerich would combine characteristics of the two very different recent popes in a remarkable way. He comes like Benedict XVI. from the German-speaking area and, like Francis, is a Jesuit.
However, the latter is also the main obstacle, which a priori speaks more against than for him as a promising candidate. While Magister considers this hurdle “not necessarily insurmountable”, it is very unlikely that the papal electors will put two Jesuits in a row on the throne of Peter. Overall, Magister's assessment seems a bit too benevolent, but the punchline follows at the end. Let's hear the Vaticanist himself.
The Missionary from Japan
Hollerich's "only limitations would be his relatively young age, 64, and that he is a Jesuit. But these limitations are not necessarily insurmountable."
"In terms of age, Hollerich is just a year away from the other frontrunner dear to Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, Prefect of Propaganda Fide, and six years, so not much, from the most recognized of the alternative candidates, the Hungarian Cardinal Peter Erdö, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest. And as for his membership of the Society of Jesus, he has hitherto shown the best and least partisan sides of it, the most fascinating, especially for those twenty-seven years of missionary work in Japan, at the very frontiers of the faith.
Magister attests Cardinal Hollerich to speak “with a seriousness and depth that distinguishes him from the mediocre depth of most of the cardinals appointed by Pope Francis”.
The Luxembourger studied at the Jesuit University in Frankfurt am Main and in Munich, speaks several languages, including Japanese, and taught for a long time at the renowned Sophia University in Tokyo. According to Magister, this university has nothing to do with the university of the same name, founded in 2008 by Chiara Lubich and her Focolare Movement in Loppiano, according to Hollerich's official biography on the Vatican website, which is incorrectly stated.
The Jesuit worked in Japan until Pope Benedict XVI. returned to Europe in 2011 by appointing him archbishop of his homeland. As the seat of various EU institutions and as a mediator between the two core countries of the EU, the Federal Republic of Germany and France or the corresponding language areas, the small Grand Duchy of Luxembourg plays an important hinge function, which is usually exercised discreetly and in the interests of the supranational unification process.
Hollerich's rise
This was also taken into account in the Church by electing Hollerich in 2018 to chair the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Community ( COMECE), which is composed of the delegated bishops of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Union. The Church has little weight in the current EU and seems to have largely resigned itself to playing an extra role. A rather rare exception was Hollerich's criticism against French President Emmanuel Macron's proposal to include a "right to abortion" in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. Macron made the corresponding move on January 19 in his speech to the EU Parliament in Strasbourg, with which he took over the French EU presidency.
Macron's initiative, which can hardly be surpassed in terms of cruelty and impudence, illustrated the state of affairs in the EU. With the icy coolness of the technocrat, who had never stood for election until the time when he was nominated in backrooms as a presidential candidate, he openly and publicly demanded that the killing of innocent people be made a "fundamental right" and "European value". Even more outrageous is the fact that MEPs sat idly by and listened to this incredible blunder.
Hollerich's objection came late and quietly, but it came nonetheless. He accused the Frenchman of "ideological guidelines" and expressed his "deep concern". As COMECE President, the cardinal spoke of an "unjust law without any ethical basis, which would lead to constant conflicts between the citizens of the EU". Human dignity is a core value of the EU. We are aware of the "tragedy and complexity" of the situation of women who are considering having an abortion. “Women in need should not be left alone, nor should the unborn child’s right to life be disregarded. Both must be given all the help and support they need.”
The Leap Forward
Hollerich stepped into the front row in the church when Pope Francis created him a cardinal in 2019. Since Francis follows idiosyncratic criteria when selecting those who wear purple, Hollerich's elevation to the rank of cardinal is to be seen as a special sign of favor. The Luxemburger is one of four Jesuits who were appointed to the Church senate by the Jesuit on the papal throne.
Cardinal Hollerich (*1958)
Hollerich had first taken over the leadership of the church in his homeland, then a leading position at the EU level, and now he has stepped onto the global stage. An apparently unstoppable rise. On July 8, 2021, Francis appointed him General Rapporteur of the multi-year Synod of Bishops on Synodality. The concept of synodality plays a central role for the reigning pope, and he made Hollerich the standard-bearer of this synodality, under the auspices of which Francis wants to transform the Church.
The role of the reporter general does not have to be given as much weight as Magister does, but Hollerich's appointment is nevertheless a signal: "Compared to Francis, who always remains indecipherable even when he opens up space for new solutions, Hollerich stands out with greater clarity.”
What is essential about Magister's analysis is that it shows Hollerich's positions, which he has made in several recent interviews. Magister writes:
“In recent weeks he has given lengthy interviews in which, apparently with intuitive approval from above, he has made clear directions that the pope does not wish to articulate in his own words, which is certainly linked to the wave of extreme demands now being poured out by the almost schismatic synodal path in Germany.”
Magister evaluated the three interviews that Cardinal Hollerich gave to the daily newspaper of the French bishops La Croix, the Herder Correspondence, and the Catholic News Agency (KNA ). Its statements on the nine "challenges" of our time explain his meteoric rise.
1) Married priests
“I used to be a big advocate of celibacy for all priests, but today I wish there were 'viri probati' [Hapless old boomers, short on orthodoxy and long on professional accomplishments.]It's a deep desire. And yet it is a difficult path for the Church because it can be felt like a rupture. After the Synod on Amazonia, one of the reasons why the Pope did not allow viri probati could be that they were too strongly demanded and the Synod was too reduced to this issue. But I think we have to go in that direction, otherwise, we'll soon run out of priests. [BS, dioceses that promote the Catholic Faith don't have a shortage of priests.] In the long term, I can also imagine the path of orthodoxy, in which only the monks are obliged to be celibate.”
2) Priestesses
“It seems to me that the first problem is not whether or not women should become priests, but more importantly whether women have any real weight in the priesthood, which is common to all baptized and confirmed members of the people of God, and whether they in this way exercise the associated authority. Would that also mean preaching at Mass? I would say yes.
3) Deaconesses
"I wouldn't mind. But the reforms must be based on a stable foundation. If the Pope were to suddenly allow 'viri probati' and deaconesses, there would be a great danger of division. There is not only the situation in Germany, where maybe only a small part would break away. In Africa or in countries like France, many bishops would probably not participate.”
4) German Synod
“Sometimes I have the impression that the German bishops do not understand the Pope. The Pope is not liberal, he is radical. It is the radical nature of the Gospel that brings about change. I share Tomás Halik's attitude: we can't just talk about structural reforms, spirituality must also grow again. If it just reforms as a result of a conflict, things can quickly turn around. In this case, everything depends only on the greater influence of one group or another. That way we don’t get out of the vicious circle.”
5) Sexuality and abuse
“We need to change the way we look at sexuality. So far we have had a rather repressed view of it. Of course, it's not about telling people they can do anything, or getting rid of morality, but I think we have to say that sex is a gift from God. We know that, but are we saying it? I'm not sure. Some people attribute the increase in abuse to the sexual revolution. I think just the opposite: in my opinion, the most horrible things happened before the 1970s.”
6) homosexuality
“The Church's position that homosexual relationships are sinful is wrong. I believe that the sociological and scientific basis of this doctrine is no longer correct. It is time for a fundamental revision of the Church's teaching, and the way Pope Francis has spoken about homosexuality may lead to a doctrinal change. In the meantime, in our archdiocese in Luxembourg, no one is dismissed for being homosexual or for being divorced and remarried. I can't throw them out, they would be out of a job, and how can something like that be Christian? As for homosexual priests, there are many of them and it would be good if they could talk about it with their bishop without his condemning them.”
7) Intercommunion
“In Tokyo, I gave communion to everyone who came to Mass. I have never refused Communion to anyone. I have assumed that when a Protestant comes to Communion, he knows at least as well what Catholics mean by Communion as do other Catholics who go to Mass. But I would not concelebrate with an evangelical pastor. In Tokyo I got to know and appreciate Protestantism very well. But I attended one of their evening meals and was horrified when the remaining wine and bread were thrown away. That shook me a lot because as a Catholic I believe in the Real Presence.”
8) Latin Mass
“I like the Latin Mass, I find the texts very beautiful, especially the first canon. When I celebrate Mass in the chapel of my home, I sometimes choose a Latin prayer. But I wouldn't do that in a church. I know that the people there don't understand Latin and can't do anything with it. I have been asked to celebrate a Latin Mass in Antwerp according to the current rite. I will, but I wouldn't celebrate the old rite. That doesn't mean that others might not be able to do it in a good way. But I can not. In our language and in our imagination, the past is behind us and the future is ahead of us. In ancient Egypt, it was the other way around. The past was seen as something that lies ahead because we know and see it, while the future lies behind us because we do not know it. The Catholic Church still seems to me to have an Egyptian touch. But it doesn't work anymore. God opens up for the future. Some say that the fair used to be much nicer. But what form do they refer to? Mostly they imagine a certain past that is 'stylized' into a tradition. This is where Egyptian civilization ultimately failed. She was no longer able to change herself.” God opens up for the future. Some say that the Mass used to be much nicer. But what form do they refer to? Mostly they imagine a certain past that is 'stylized' into a tradition. This is where Egyptian civilization ultimately failed.”
9) abortion
“I know men and women, including those on the left, who identify as committed Christians fighting climate change, but vote in the European Parliament to make abortion a fundamental right and restrict doctors' freedom of conscience. They tend to confine their religious preferences to the private sphere. But in this case, it is no longer a religion but a personal belief. Religion needs a public space in which to express itself. For example, I am absolutely against abortion. And as a Christian, I cannot take any other position. But I also understand that it is about the dignity of women and that what we used to say against the abortion law is no longer audible today. What other actions can we take at this time? At this point, what else can we do to protect life? If discourse is no longer followed, you shouldn’t bite your teeth, but look for other ways.”
Smooth and progressive. Francis likes his politically correct brother Hollerich. Does that make him suitable for the papacy?
Magister's Notes
Aside from the fact that Hollerich says deaconesses but means female deacons, it would be interesting to know what he is referring to when he says that the "most horrible things" of sexual abuse happened before 1970, which his age and his choice of words make him not seem to have what I know from my own experience that the positions of the Jesuit cardinal are frighteningly clear. He proves to be a more liberal spirit – despite the fact that he is the same as Francis in terms of content. However, this does not predestine him as a candidate for the Petrine ministry.
On another point, the liturgical blessing of homosexual couples, "on which the German synod got into an uproar and Pope Francis himself showed signs of giving in", Hollerich, according to Magister, made "short work":
"I don't agree with marriage blessings, because we see marriage only as a bond between a man and a woman."
However, Hollerich distances himself from something that is not (yet) demanded in this form even by the Church homosexual lobby. The man who, according to the Magister, formulates "with greater clarity" than Francis, also uses veiling means of dialectics.
According to the Vaticanist, Hollerich's vision of the Church also differs from the "hyper-democratic" view that the Limburg bishop and chairman of the German Bishops' Conference, Georg Bätzing, recently confirmed in an interview. But that doesn't seem so sure.
Magister doesn't mention it, but it fits the picture: Hollerich advised Cardinal Rainer Woelki, Archbishop of Cologne, in early February to resign. Such "advice" could already be heard from Munich. With Hollerich, Santa Marta is not far away.
“However, one unknown factor remains open. How long will Hollerich's reform guidelines, which consist of many yeses but also some nos, last if the disturbing proposals of the German synod in Rome meet the synod of the whole Church on synodality?
At a press conference on February 3, Bätzing said that after meeting Hollerich and Maltese Cardinal Mario Grech, general secretary of the synod of bishops, in Luxembourg, he was received in audience by Pope Francis, who advocated the establishment of a working group to reconcile the German synod with of the Synod of the Universal Church.
In the summary, Magister sounds devastating criticism:
“Hollerich as a reform candidate for the papacy seems to promise a more straightforward and coherent path than the current shaky and contradictory pontificate. However, he is a banal echo of Bergoglio, even if he repeats the litany so important to the incumbent Pope: 'Even the shepherd does not always know the way and knows where to go. Sometimes it is the sheep who find the way and the shepherd who laboriously follows, step by step'.”
Not to mention, according to Magister, the ruthless mockery of the Aristotelian principle of non-contradiction, in which Hollerich does not shy away from turning it into its opposite "with a touch of coloring à la japonaise" - like Pope Francis:
“I am a bishop who is from Japan and I think these experiences have given me a different perspective of thinking and judgement. Unlike the Europeans, the Japanese do not think in terms of the logic of opposites. When we say something is black, it means it's not white. The Japanese, on the other hand, say: 'It's white, but maybe also black'. In Japan, you can combine opposites without changing your point of view.”
Text: Giuseppe Nardi Image : Vatican.va/MiL/La Croix (Screenshots)
