A Major Event in Tradition
A text available on gloria.tv aptly analyses certain consequences of the granting of an ordinary jurisdiction to the Society of St. Pius X by Pope Francis for the duration of the “Holy Yearâ€. We quote here some extracts from it.
5) The forms of the concession are atypical: the jurisdiction is awarded to priests of the Society according to an unusual procedure, moreover it is very limited and temporary in nature. The act of September 1st 2015 is nevertheless a “canonical normalization†in the sense of the decision of the Chapter of July 2012, which did not make any distinctions between partial, complete, unilateral, consensual, temporary or final normalization etc… Furthermore, the six “preconditions†imposed by this Chapter no longer have any reason to exist now that the papal measure has been accepted by the Superior General.
6) On analysis, this “mini-normalization†( two sacraments for one year) appears to be a first experiment in co-existence between the Society and its “conciliar†environment, and a test of its docility towards the holders of legitimate power in the Church. […]
7) Last autumn, the risks of this process could not have eluded the General Council of Menzingen, thus making even more imperative the meeting of the Chapter foreseen in the communiqué of July 14th 2012. And yet the Superior General did not convene this extraordinary Chapter. So the procedure for authorization instituted by the supreme authority of the Society with the aim of its protection was not applied: and the reason for this omission has not been given.
8) Having accepted alone and without the authorization of the Chapter this preliminary act of the Pope, will Mgr. Fellay be able to oppose the complementary normalization measures already envisaged (cf. his sermon at the French pilgrimage of Le Puy on April 10th, 2016) or a more complete canonical recognition? Will he be able to refuse to ratify the “fundamental accord†on “the value of the Councilâ€, as the pope requires for the erection of a personal prelature for the Society (cf. interview in the French newspaper La Croix of May 16th). On considering the evolution of events, we are not able to affirm this.
9) The desire to remedy a canonical situation deemed “irregular†has led the Society to defer endlessly decisive confrontation on doctrine. Not having demanded Rome’s renunciation of conciliar errors before consenting to receive the ordinary jurisdiction granted by the act of September 1st, the Society has fallen into a trap: it will not be able to invoke the state of necessity and take, if necessary, without the agreement of the authorities, the measures needed to safeguard the faith and the priesthood, put in danger by Vatican II and its reforms.