Who Are You To Judge The Pope?: False Charges of Private Interpretation Against Traditionalists

One of the most frequent arguments against sedevacantism by followers of the Second Vatican Council sect (hereinafter "Conciliarists", i.e. followers of the false Vatican II), is that we Traditionalists are "judging the Pope by using private interpretation, just like the Protestants." Well, what about this indictment? Does the charge hold? Are we modern day Martin Luthers, using Sacred Tradition as the sole rule of Faith instead of Scripture? As I will not demonstrate, we are "not guilty" on all counts!

The Roman Catholic Church Can Not Give That Which Is Evil

The Dogma of the Indefectibility of the Church guarantees that nothing evil/false can be given by the Church in Her teachings on Faith and morals, as well as Her universal disciplinary laws.(See, e.g.theologian Ludwig Ott, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, pg. 296). Yet Vatican II has taught and given evil (e.g. the novel teaching that the Holy Ghost uses false sects as a "means of salvation", that the Church of Christ "subsists in"--not IS--the Catholic Church, and the impious and invalid Novus Ordo "mass", etc.). How do we reconcile this with Indefectibility? There are really only two ways to do this:

(1) The contradictions are only apparent not real. This argument claims that the teachings of Vatican II, do not really contradict past teaching. They merely present old teachings in new ways ("subsists in" is another way of expressing "is"), or develop past teachings more fully (the Magisterium pre-Vatican II taught that non-catholics could be saved, so false sects can be a means of salvation). Unfortunately, this argument does not hold water. Vatican II-speak talks of "full" and "partial" communion with the Church depending on how many "elements of truth" a false sect possesses. This is novel. You are either Catholic or not. No one can be a little bit Catholic anymore than one could be a little bit dead or a little bit pregnant. Any talk of "partial communion" contradicts the express teaching on the Mystical Body of Christ (Mystici Corporis) of Pope Pius XII, and all prior Catholic teaching. Likewise, the teaching that non-Catholics can be saved applied only to individuals, not the false sects!! A Protestant can be saved in spite of his external membership with a false sect, not because of it. He is saved by virtue of his Baptism of Desire which unites him with the True Church. The contradictions, by force of logic and evidence are REAL.

(2) The hierarchy defected from the Faith by profession of heresy--even the Pope can fall from office; hence the Church did not give us the new teachings--they were given by men who, despite all external appearances to the contrary--were heretics and therefore NOT Catholic. There are scores of canonists and theologians who have always taught this with full approbation of the Magisterium. I will give but one quote in today's entry. The eminent canonist Coronata wrote of the possibility of the pope professing heresy as a private theologian and falling from ecclesiastical office: "If indeed such a situation would happen, he (the Roman Pontiff) would by divine law, fall from office without any sentence, indeed, without even a declaratory one. He who openly professes heresy places himself outside the Church, and it is not likely that Christ would preserve the Primacy of His Church in one so unworthy. wherefore, if the Roman Pontiff were to profess heresy, before any condemnatory sentence (which would be impossible anyway) he would lose his authority." (See Coronatta, Institutiones Canonici [1950] Volume I, pgs. 312,316). This is precisely why I am a Traditionalist. I long ago concluded by force of reason that the teachings of Vatican II contradict prior Magisterial teachings which makes them erroneous, heretical and evil. No true pope could have promulgated these evils. The conclusion is therefore inescapable: The post-Vatican II popes (Paul VI, JP I, JP II, Benedict XVI) were not true popes. The evil teachings were not the cause of the loss of papal authority, but rather evidence that such a loss had already taken place by profession of heresy as a private theologian to even a few other individuals.

You Can't Judge The Pope

Often, Traditionalists hear the cry, "Who are you to judge the pope? No one can do that!" These people confuse two things:

(1) A formal legal declaration that Joseph Ratzinger is a heretic and not a pope and (2) acknowledgement of the reality that such is the case. The former can not be done except by a true pope in the future who will posthumously condemn Ratzinger. That latter can and should be done by all thinking Catholics. No court of law has convicted Osama bin Laden as a terrorist, but would you want to get on a plane if he were the pilot? In the practical order you'd act not according to any legal declaration that doesn't yet exist, but according to the reality that does so exist. You're not going to wait for the legal authorities to catch up with bin Laden; you see the turban, acknowledge the reality, and keep off/get off the plane.

Traditionalists are not in the business of judging popes and making legal declarations with private interpretations. We look at reality (contradictions of Vatican II with prior teaching as defined by the Church and Her appointed theologians and canonists),tries to explain it (true authority can't give evil/errors), and acts accordingly (stay out/get out of Ratzinger's man-made sect and join the Traditionalist Movement as the Remnant Church). No private interpretations, just public determinations.