Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. I fell asleep at your book talk . . .There's much more to this article, which Guy Noir - Private Eye, had the courtesy of calling my attention to via a message sent again by carrier pigeon. I suppose that was somehow à propos.
Were Fr. James Martin, SJ to appear opposite me in the confessional, I would be tempted to make this frivolous admission—and if his agenda prevails in the Church, I will have reason to make it. Catholics distinguish between violations of manners and of the moral law. Fr. Martin, in ways trivial and grave, does not. In his account of the faith, the sin that Christians once called sodomy is no more serious than my nodding off as he spoke gentle words at the Church of St. Francis Xavier on a warm June afternoon.
In the early part of the twentieth century there were prominent Protestant theologians like Reinhold Seeberg of Berlin and Wilhelm Braun of Heidelberg who lamented the bitter fruits of the Reformation. Fr. Joseph Husselein, S.J., writing in "What, Then, Remains of Luther?" in America, Vol. IX, No. 14 (July 12, 1913), p. 320, suggests that nowhere is this Protestant chagrin over the bitter fruit of the Reformation more faithfully reflected than in an article written by the Protestant theologian Braun for Evangelische Kirchenzeitung, March 30, 1913. 
Braun, upon reading the historical and theological exposés of Luther by Father Heinrich Denifle, O.P. [photo below left], in Luther und Luthertum and by Fr. Hartmann Grisar, S.J., in Luther, asked "What, then remains of Luther?" After candidly admitting the superior facilities possessed by the Dominican and Jesuit authors over Protestant theologians and historians in the field of Luther research (p. 169), Braun draws up the following remarkable summary of his impressions:The reading of Grisar should afford food for reflection to us Evangelical theologians. With strips cut from our own skin the Catholic author has pieced together his 'Luther.' How small the Reformer has become according to the Luther studies of our own Protestant investigators! How his merits have shrivelled up!Considering the bitter legacy of the Reformation -- a Christendom shattered into a thousand pieces -- these eminent Protestant scholars considered that it would be more appropriate for Protestants, rather than celebrate the fourth centenary of Luther's Ninety-Five Theses, should do penance in sack-cloth and ashes. But then, that was a century ago.We believed that we owed to him the spirit of toleration and liberty of conscience. Not in the least! We recognized in his translation of the Bible a masterpiece stamped with the impress of originality -- we may be happy now if it is not plainly called a 'plagiarism'! ... Looking upon the 'results' of their work thus gathered together, we cannot help asking the question: What, then, remains of Luther?
Claire Chretien, "Prominent Jesuit priest tweets support for transgender bathrooms to 100k followers" (LifeSiteNews, February 23, 2017).
In a telling review of an article by Jesuit theologian, Thomas Rausch, S.J., which appeared in Civiltà Cattolica, entitled "Doctrine at the service of the pastoral mission of the Church," the irrepressible Christopher A. Ferrara writes:In typical Modernist fashion, Rausch affirms a Catholic truth in order to deny it throughout the rest of the article. He quotes Saint Vincent of Lerins for the fundamental Catholic truth that legitimate development of Catholic doctrine leaves intact “the same doctrine, the same meaning and the same import” — precisely as the First Vatican Council affirmed — and that in the course of its legitimate development, meaning only its fuller expression, doctrine “becom[es] firmer over the years, more ample in the course of time, more exalted as it advances in age.” That is, there is no change in doctrine, either in content or understanding, but only strengthening and growth of expression. Hence St. Vincent’s famous formula: “We hold that faith which has been believed everywhere, always, by all.” There is no “God of surprises” in the thought of St. Vincent nor in the tradition of the Church.Ferrara goes on to point out that Rausch's references to slavery and the death penalty are red herrings, and the Church's nuanced positions on these issues do not represent any 'change' in the 'understanding' of doctrine. "The very essence of Modernism, he says, "is to deny what the Modernist appears to be affirming. Doubletalk is the language of Modernist theology."
Having affirmed this truth, however, Rausch promptly denies it, quoting his fellow Modernist Jesuit, Fr. Spadaro, for the following proposition:
"St. Vincent of Lèrins makes a comparison between the biological development of man and the transmission from one era to another of the depositum fidei [deposit of faith], which grows and is strengthened with time. Here, human self-understanding changes with time and, so too is human consciousness deepened. In this regard we could think of the time when slavery was considered acceptable, or the death penalty was applied without question. So, too, this is how we grow in the understanding of the truth. Exegetes and theologians help the Church to mature in her own judgment. The other sciences and their development also help the Church in its growth in understanding. There are secondary ecclesiastical rules and precepts that at one time were effective, but now they have lost their value and meaning. The view that the Church’s teaching is a monolith to defend without nuance or different understandings is wrong."
Note the stealthy non-sequitur smuggled in via the italicized phrases: from St. Vincent’s biological analogy regarding the growth and development of the same, unchanging doctrine in the Church, Rausch (citing only his fellow Modernist for authority) leaps to the conclusion that just as “human self-understanding changes with time” so the Church’s teaching is subject over time to “different understandings.” Of course, that is exactly the opposite of what Rausch affirmed only a few lines earlier: i.e., St. Vincent’s insistence on “the same doctrine, the same meaning and the same import” down through the ages. God does not change His understanding of the truth, and neither does the Church change her understanding of faith and morals.
Dorothy Cummings McLean, "Two Year Among the Liberal Theologians" (Catholic World Report, October 31, 2015):... "Own your heresy" tweeted Douthat, and Father James Martin, SJ seemed to throw up his hands in holy horror. Oh, how irresponsible! Oh, how potentially damaging to a career! Oh, how the CDF will swoop down like a wolf upon the fold. Except it won't, and it almost never does—and they're too busy packing up Monsignor Charamsa's office right now anyway.
The brain-blowing combination of asserting that what is not Catholic teaching is somehow Catholic teaching and then shrieking like a frightened schoolgirl when the word "heresy" is uttered is what the American Catholic/Jesuit theological academy is all about, and I should know. I was in it for two of the most miserable years of my life....
Summary: Italian journalist Marco Tosatti reveals that A SECRET PARALLEL SYNOD has been established in Rome, a cabal composed almost exclusively by Jesuits, with the occasional Argentinian presence (easy to guess who), to draft the necessary post-synodal documents to implement whatever the Pope wants to implement. And they will implement it, no matter what, as the secret committee to draft the Annulment reforms has shown; what everyone supposed was true in fact is true: the Synodal process is a sham.
A fascinating article about Pope Francis, prior to him being made Pope, by Mervyn F. Bendle may be read at Quadrant Online. PopeWatch was struck by this passage:Combox comments follow of this sort, among others:Nevertheless, such problems were substantial and the criticism he faces has been emphatic. For example, a presently serving provincial of another Latin American country and one of the most senior figures in the Society of Jesus confided his negative views in an e-mail quoted by Paul Vallely, in his new biography, Pope Francis: Untying the Knots (2013):It is remarkable to PopeWatch how little analysis there has been of the life of Pope Francis prior to his being elected Pope. The type of polarizing personality mentioned in the passage above seems to be demonstrated in the current papacy. Here is the full [article].Yes, I know Bergoglio. He’s a person who’s caused a lot of problems in the Society and is highly controversial in his own country ... As Provincial he generated divided loyalties: some groups almost worshipped him, while others would have nothing to do with him ... He left the Society of Jesus in Argentina destroyed [and] we have spent two decades trying to fix the chaos that the man left us ... It will be a catastrophe for the Church to have someone like him in the Apostolic See.As Vallely observes, “this constituted an extraordinary counterblast” to the acclaim that otherwise met the election of Pope Francis, but it was “far from a lone voice” from within the Jesuit order to which Bergoglio had dedicated a major part of his adult life.
Many more articles like this one would be a great resource in attempting to understand Pope Francis and where he is likely to lead the Church.
"These soldiers are different: they have to be intelligent, lateral thinkers, superbly fit and have the mindset that keeps them going when others would give up."One part of the story concerns the Jesuits as the "special forces" of the Pope, at least historically:
Who are the Jesuits? One revealing description states them to be "what was effectively an elite force of intellectual missionary priests... always at the service of the universal Church."The other part of the story concerns "the media launch of a certain Felix Koerner on the BBC who "is a prime mover in the Turkish secularist establishment's latest attack on Islam." Read on.
John Ralston Saul, in his book Voltaire's Bastards, describes the Jesuits as "intellectual mercenaries", whose intellectual talents were placed at the Church's disposal to achieve whatever ends the Church required. He argues that they are the originators of the "tyranny of Reason" - the modern day trap of horrible outcomes (the Holocaust, the nuclear bomb, the global arms industry) which arise from perfectly sound logical thought processes.
Jesuits election of their new superior general and discussion of the reasons for their decline. Vatican authorities have already said what they expect from the order: more obedience to the pope, and more fidelity to doctrine. In his homily for the Mass that opened the session on January 7, the non-Jesuit Cardinal Franc Rodé, prefect of the congregation for institutes of consecrated life, spoke bluntly. Here are excerpts:It is with sorrow and anxiety that I see that the 'sentire cum ecclesia' of which your founder St Ignatius frequently spoke is diminishing in some members of religious families....As Magistro observes, it is hardly a mystery that of the last seven theologians scrutinized by the congregation for the doctrine of the faith, four belong to the Jesuits: Jon Sobrino, Roger Haight, Jacques Dupuis, and Anthony De Mello. Let us pray, with St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. Francis Xavier and St. Edmund Campion, for the salvation of the Society of Jesus.
With sadness and anxiety I also see a growing distancing from the hierarchy. The Ignatian spirituality of apostolic service 'under the Roman Pontiff' does not allow for this separation....
The doctrinal diversity of those who at all levels, by vocation and mission are called to announce the Kingdom of truth and love, disorients the faithful and leads to a relativism without limits.
