Restoring Catholic Tradition. 2. + Athanasius Schneider, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of St. Mary in Astana. Correction: It has been brought to our attention that their is a disputed (though not disproven) quote from Pope Emeritus Benedict in this piece: the one in which he is alleged to have said “The pope is one; it is Francis.” An investigative story appeared on this quote in July, 2019, and was unable to verify if this is something Benedict actually said. 1. Cardinals take an oath not to divulge details of a conclave and Ivereigh based his account on background interviews with cardinals who took part. On the contrary, they have reaffirmed their allegiance to Pope Francis despite any disagreements they may have. Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI, of all people, would certainly intervene in some way if he too suspected an anti-pope took his place. During a conversation with a journalist from the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, the former Pope Benedict XVI said: “The Pope is one, he is Francis.” These words of Benedict XVI were reported in the written edition of Corriere della Sera, June 28, 2019 and anticipated in the Italian version of Vatican News on June 27, 2019. Polling hours on Election Day: Varies by state/locality. It is a, “Rise of the Benevacantists: Who is Pope?”. Declaring Pope Francis to be an invalid pope, either because of his heresies or because of an invalid election (for reasons of alleged violations of the Conclave norms or for the reason that Pope Benedict XVI is still the pope because of his invalid renunciation) are desperate and subjectively taken actions aimed at remedying the current unprecedented crisis of the papacy. But he has consistently reaffirmed his solidarity with Francis and the absolute validity of his resignation. The Church is in the hands of God, even in this most dark time. In keeping with conclave rules, they did not ask Bergoglio if he would be willing to be a candidate. Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, issued a statement saying the cardinals cited “have expressly denied this description of events, both in terms of the demand for a prior consent by Cardinal Bergoglio and with regard to the conduct of a campaign for his election.”. That is part of the discernment that happens in a papal election.”, Ivereigh said he will be changing the wording of one paragraph in future editions of the book to clarify Bergoglio’s role. In the first place, there is the sensus fidelium, the supernatural sense of the faith (sensus fidei). Even if one supports the opinion of the automatic loss of the papal office for heresy, in the case of Pope Francis, the College of Cardinals or of a representative group of bishops has not issued a declaration regarding the automatic loss of papal office, specifying the concrete heretical pronouncements and the date when they happened. “That never happened and I am sorry that I gave the impression that’s what happened,” Ivereigh told Religion News Service. The definition of the First Vatican Council (1869–70), established amid considerable controversy, states the conditions under which a pope may be said to have spoken infallibly, or ex cathedra (“from his chair” as supreme teacher). Faithful Catholics can morally (but not canonically) distance themselves from erroneous or evil teachings and acts of a pope. The furor stems from a behind-the-scenes account of the March 2013 conclave, presented in a new book about Francis titled “The Great Reformer: Francis and the Making of a Radical Pope.”. But Ivereigh said he regretted phrasing the episode to make it seem that Bergoglio had been approached about being a candidate and gave his backers encouragement. The Church is ultimately not a human but a divine-human reality. The following affirmations of the former Pope Benedict XVI eliminate any reasonable doubts about the validity of his abdication, and his recognition of Pope Francis as the only true pope: “Among you, in the College of Cardinals, there is also the future pope to whom today I promise my unconditional reverence and obedience” (Farewell address to the Cardinals, 28 February 2013). Visit your state election office website to find out if you can vote by mail. click on the banner below to subscribe. The eventual condemnation of a pope in the case of heresy by a so-called imperfect Council of bishops corresponds to the thesis of mitigated Conciliarism. Even if — according to the opinion of the automatic loss of the papacy for heresy —  the judgment of the loss of the papal office is pronounced by the heretical pope upon himself, and he automatically falls from office without any judgment by the Church, such an opinion contains a contradiction and reveals a hint of crypto-conciliarism. Therefore, what was essential for the fulfillment of Benedict XVI’s resignation was not his possible internal thought but what he externally declared, for the Church does not judge about internal intentions (de internis non iudicat Ecclesia). For he supported this thesis in his book The Triumph of the Holy See and the Church Against the Attacks of the Innovators before he became pope, hence not in his papal Magisterium. Others see the accounts of conclave machinations as further evidence that Pope Francis is, for them, a far more manipulative and autocratic figure than the public believes. For your voice to be heard, in most states you must register before you can vote. All rights reserved. The Church is strong enough and possesses sufficient means to protect the faithful from the spiritual damage of a heretical pope. It is your right and your responsibility. They first secured Bergoglio’s assent. We would like to thank Bishop Schneider for offering, as an apostolic successor, a voice of clarity on these matters, and LifeSiteNews for allowing us to reprint it here for our audience. “And indeed that is exactly what happens. Each state has its own rules for mail-in absentee voting. Most notably, he examines the question of whether a pope can lose his office automatically via heresy, and addresses the thesis that Benedict XVI is still the true pope. But they believed this time that the crisis in the Church would make it hard for him to refuse if elected. Bless you, and thank you. Your email will not be shared with anyone. Even if one does not agree with this conclusion, the matter remains at least doubtful. Such questions might sound like plot twists to a new Vatican thriller by Dan Brown, but they are actually the latest talking points promoted by some Catholic conservatives upset with the direction that Francis is leading the church. The answer has become one of the pontiff's most famous statements. The pope as pope cannot fall into formal heresy in the sense that he would pronounce a heresy ex cathedra. The canons that address the automatic loss of an ecclesiastical office for heresy in the 1917 Code of Canon Law (canon 188 §4) and in the 1983 Code of Canon Law (canon 194 §2) are not applicable to the pope, because the Church deliberately eliminated from the Code of Canon Law the following formulation taken from the previous Corpus Iuris Canonici: “unless the pope is caught deviating from the faith (nisi deprehendatur a fide devius).” By this act, the Church manifested her understanding, the mens ecclesiae, regarding this crucial issue. A member of the prominent and wealthy Borgia family, he bought his way into St. Peter's. XL, cap. It is the gift of the Holy Spirit, by which the members of the Church possess the true sense of the faith. (NOTE: See text of the wording change at the end of this story.) Consequently, even if a single bishop or priest is convinced that Pope Francis has committed the crime of heresy, he has no authority to eliminate his name from the Canon of the Mass. “I think the whole chapter makes clear that he never had any role at all in his own election.”, Ivereigh said he was trying to show that as opposed to the 2005 conclave, Bergoglio’s supporters in 2013 “were convinced he wouldn’t resist his election.”, “The conclave rules do not prevent cardinals from urging other cardinals to vote for a particular person,” he added. But what all true sons and daughters of the Church ought to do now is launch a serious world-wide crusade of prayer and penance to implore a divine intervention. 6. President Trump on Wednesday praised Carlo Vigano, the controversial former papal nuncio to the United States who once said that Pope Francis should resign. The cardinals who participate in a papal conclave take an oath of secrecy under pain of excommunication. Murphy-O’Connor’s press secretary wrote a letter to a British newspaper saying that no approach had been made to Bergoglio seeking his assent. A protest banner that says in Spanish, "Yes, Francis, here there is proof," hangs outside the cathedral in Lima, Peru, Jan. 21. In response to an interviewer's question in July 2013 about gay priests, Pope Francis responded, "Who am I to judge a gay person of goodwill who seeks the Lord?" Many of his demonstrable and unequivocal words and actions after his resignation also confirm that he considers Pope Francis, and not himself, to be the pope. the clergy, tried to do and we did not succeed, you for sure, will not succeed.” Paraphrasing these words one could say: “Even a heretical pope cannot destroy the Church.” The Pope and the Church are indeed not totally identical. Pope Nicholas II died two years after issuing the decree, so the Papal Election of 1061 was the firs time that it was used in practice. Attempts to resolve the current crisis of the papacy which favor the opinion of St. Robert Bellarmine with its concrete solution, or take refuge in the unproven theory of Benedict XVI still being the only true pope, are doomed to fail from the start. It is prerequisite that the pope intend to demand irrevocable assent from the entire church in some aspect of faith or morals. The former Pope Benedict XVI is no longer the pope. “Do not eat meat if it causes your brother to sin,” exhorted St. Paul. Even some interventions of individual Fathers of the First Vatican Council, which seem to support the opinion of the automatic loss of the papacy for heresy, remain their personal opinion, but not a formal teaching of the First Vatican Council. Even if this small group desired a certain man to be elected, there were 115 cardinals who voted that day, far outnumbering the handful of those who loosely formed this “mafia.” To suggest that these other cardinals were haplessly influenced like impressionable children without a mind of their own, is insulting to there intelligence and a judgement of their faithfulness to Christ and His Church. However, this should always be done with due respect for the papal office and the person of the Pope. Gallen group” or “mafia” (as some of them called themselves) lobbied for Francis in an unlawful manner before the conclave, was clarified by the biographers of Cardinal Godfried Danneels (one of the group’s members) who initially implied this. The automatic loss of the papal office by a heretical pope touches not only on the practical or juridical aspects of the life of the Church, but also on the Church’s doctrine — in this case, on ecclesiology.