Vatican spokesman rejects SSPX leader's claim that Jews are 'enemies of the Church'
January 07, 2013
The Vatican has repudiated a statement by Bishop Bernard Fellay, the head of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), that Jews are “enemies of the Church.”
During a December 28 talk in Ontario, Bishop Fellay complained that the Vatican had been inconsistent in its stand regarding reconciliation of the SSPX. The traditionalist leader said that the most active opponents of such a reconciliation were “the enemies of the Church: the Jews, the Masons, the modernists.”
Responding to that comment, the director of the Vatican press office said: “It is impossible to speak of the Jews as enemies of the Church.” Father Federico Lombardi said that the position of the Church regarding relations with Jews is “clear and well known.”
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Further information:
- Vatican rejects rebel bishop's denunciation of Jews (Reuters)
- Bishop Fellay: Jews, Masons and Modernists Are ‘Enemies of the Church’ (CNA)
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Posted by: koinonia -
Jan. 09, 2013 9:04 PM ET USA
"The Church has been and will always be intolerant so far as the rights of God are concerned, for heresy, error, and untruth affect not personal matters on which She may yield, but a Divine Right in which there is no yielding. The truth is divine; the heretic is human. Due reparation made, the Church will admit the heretic back into the treasury of Her souls, but never the heresy into the treasure of Her Wisdom." (Bishop Fulton J. Sheen) The Church is nothing if not charitable in Christ.
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Posted by: jg23753479 -
Jan. 08, 2013 6:34 PM ET USA
The statements and actions of SSPX offer an almost unbroken record of raw antisemitism, statements and actions that lend themselves to antisemitic interpretation, or suspiciously ambiguous attitudes toward Jews. If in fact it is not antisemitic, SSPX does preciously little to dispel that impression. The Church should be in no hurry to welcome these schismatics back into the fold. They're no better than the heretics on the left like Biden and Pelosi.
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Posted by: koinonia -
Jan. 07, 2013 10:54 PM ET USA
“It is impossible to speak of the Jews as enemies of the Church.” This is an interesting statement. It is addressing an interpretation of remarks that is much more expansive than the intent clearly understood in proper context. The context is the fundamental mission of the Catholic Church as identified in the Gospel by her founder. The statement is indeed a loaded statement. The irony of the feastday being celebrated amidst this furor is not insignificant. "Who do you say that I am?"
