Bishop Williamson, again
February 1, 2010, 2:01 pm
Posted by Joseph A. Komonchak
Spiegel today has an article on the Lefebvrite Bishop Williamson who shows no indication that he is either going to disappear from sight and hearing or to change his views on the Holocaust. An interesting point in the piece is the fear that if the Society of Pius X is reconciled to Rome, Williamson might lead a group of Lefebvrites into schism. That a split would occur in the ranks of the Lefebvrites is apparent from websites such as these:
http://www.novusordowatch.org/quo_vadis_sspx.htm
http://www.traditioninaction.org/HotTopics/f029ht_SSPXRanks.htm
http://www.traditioninaction.org/HotTopics/f030ht_OpenLetterSSPX.htm
And you thought The Wanderer represents the right wing in the Church!
It is interesting, in fact, that the SSPX has come to represent the entire Traditionalist “brand” when in fact there are, I’m told, a number of Trad factions out there, most at odds with each other. And, notably, the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter is in communion with Rome. Being declared a “schismatic” or “heretic” can be the best possible p.r., perhaps.
Character also seems to be destiny with schismatics, in that the preferential option for splintering tends to spread them to thin for the cause to succeed.
It’s a microcosm of what happens in Protestantism, no? Once you make the first break, it’s easier to start cutting the hairs pretty finely and going off in huff rather than trying to keep things together.
Whole other topic, but it might be interesting to talk sometime about the difference between lapsed Catholics and those who take up a new denomination. A long-time friend lapsed after a priest abused her brothers years ago. She has a very complicated relationship with the Church. Criticizes it freely, but views Protestant denominations as morally ambiguous and little more than “social clubs.”
I’d imagine that anytime an ecclesial group reunites, or even seriously contemplates reuniting, with the Catholic Church there won’t be 100% “compliance” with the reunification – that a certain subset, perhaps large, perhaps small, will choose to remain separate. In that sense, reuniting with Rome means less unity within the other church (or perhaps surfaces underlying forces of disunity). I’d imagine this to be the case whether the group in question is the Anglican Communion or the Orthodox or even the SSPX.
This is probably exactly what BXVI was hoping for – that the rad/anti-Semite/integrists would split off in disgust, leaving those who want their Tridentine liturgy and rites – we can only hope.
Williamson should be shipped off to join the iranian leadership.
SSPX and, yes, the Wanderer represent the right in Catholiscism. and others too.
So the CDF is sitting down in discussions on reunion with the SSPX. I hope they are also looking at the sort of rants linked to above.
What is still being taught in the seminaries and schools of this group? Fellay seems to speak of Williamson as some sort of delicately calibrated explosive mechanism he fears may go off at any time. Are there more like him in the ranks ready to move up?
“Tell me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you what you are.”
“Birds of a feather flock together.”