Cyprian wrote:Sedevacantism merely offers a slightly more "traditional" Papism, i.e. a pre-Vatican II Papism. Did Roman Catholicism become heretical only subsequent to Vatican II? Of course not. The holy Orthodox saints have identified the Latin West as heretical for several centuries, not just a handful of decades.
So, why "MUST" anyone "become sedevacantist or convert to Orthodoxy," as you put it, as if there could be TWO Churches of Christ? What do we confess in the Creed? One Church or two?
Sedevacantism is not the Church, but simply a schism within heretical Catholicism.
This is very true, Cyprian.
Nevertheless, some Roman Catholics have become Orthodox after seeing that the "Holy See" is vacant. In fact, some of these Catholic converts to Orthodoxy now view themselves as "Catholic Refugees" within Orthodoxy. They even secretly or overtly desire that the Ecumenical Patriarch will join with the Pope so that both may become one church. It is only upon realizing that the Ecumenical Patriarch is no friend of Holy Tradition, that some of these "Catholic Refugees" look into True Orthodoxy and shun any such union between the Pope and the Ecumenical Patriarch. Besides, why would anyone who thinks that the current Roman See is vacant want to encourage a Papal-EP Ecumenistic reunion?
Others upon realizing that the current Pope is heretical, if they have any love of history, will soon realize that John-Paul II was not saintly as he kissed the Quran and worshiped at Assisi with the heterodox, which included the Protestants, the Ecumenical Patriarch, the Jews, the Muslims, Buddhists, etc. Looking further back, John-Paul I only lived a month, but Paul VI helped usher the smoke of Satan into the St. Peter's through his introduction of the Lutheran Liturgy as the Novus Ordo. This Lutheran Liturgy came almost verbatim from the Lutheran Hymnal of 1904, which used to be considered heretical as Luther was condemned by the Council of Trent.
Reviewing history, these sedevacantists might begin to realize that the papacy of John XXIII allowed a New Spirit into the Church, but this was not the Holy Spirit in any sense of the word. The Mass was already changing back in the late 1950s, in 1962, and in 1963 as the people were reading or singing responses in English and in Latin while the priest read or sang the Mass in Latin. This was a revised form of "dialog" Mass, which prepared the laity for the Novus Ordo.
Catholics have been taught for decades, ever since Vatican I and especially since Vatican II, that all Papal encyclicals must be given religious assent. Not known to most Catholics is the fact that Pius XII's encyclical, Mystici Corporis Christi, established Diocesan Liturgical Committees which not only paved the way for liturgical changes, but also paved the way for Vatican II.
In fact, it is well known that it was Pius XII who allowed the Mass in the German vernacular during World War II. The Jesuits in France and in English also experimented using the vernacular in the Liturgy during World War II and afterwards. This is why the Novus Ordo swept through the church immediately after Vatican II. While the laity were surprised, the clergy and hierarchy had been laying the groundwork for decades thanks to the Diocesan Liturgical committees established by Pius XII in Mystici Corporis Christi.
Prior to being his being raised to the papacy, Pius XII was a canon lawyer who had led a team of canon lawyers in revising all the Ancient Holy Canons, which had anathemas, so that those who would dare change these ancient canons would be anathematized. This important work was called the Code of Canon Law of 1917, the purpose of which was to include not only the new teachings of Papal Infallibility and Papal Supremacy, but also those of the Council of Trent, which condemned Martin Luther, and all the other post-schism councils of Rome. In other words, this heretical Code of Canon Law contains the fruit of Vatican I and all the other post-schism councils of Rome. With the 1983 revision, which included the teachings of Vatican II, the New Code of Canon Law has become even more heretical.
Upon realizing that this New Code of Canon Law is heretical, a few Catholic laity and Catholic sedevacantists gradually realize that this important document has anathematized all Roman Catholics. Only one conclusion can be reached: one must find the True Church, if it exists, and indeed, it does exist in the faithful remnant called True Orthodoxy.
One must also ponder why the Roman Catholic Church has had to hold all these councils, and why the Orthodox Churches did not need to hold one council after another. Indeed, the Vatican and the lay catechists at Catholic Answers continue to boast that a sign of the true Catholic Church was that only it could hold Ecumenical Councils like Vatican I and Vatican II, and that the Orthodox Church lacked this authority. By the way, this argument kept me within Catholicism for yet another year.
I finally realized that it was Roman Catholicism which was constantly developing strange new doctrines leading first to the Anglican break and then the Protestant Reformation with its fragmentation into about 2500 sects. In addition, Roman Catholicism was constantly revising and developing the Mass, so that council after council needed to be called to standardize what was left of the Roman Latin Liturgy, which had up to 350 variants. These Latin Masses varied not only from country to country, but from city to city, and from religious order to religious order. In fact, today the Novus Ordo is still in the process of change.
If one thing is certain, it is that Roman Catholicism continually changes, while True Orthodox holds the One Holy, Apostolic, and Unchanging Catholic faith which was once given by Christ to His Apostles for all peoples and for all times.
As I mentioned above, the Council of Trent was called to condemn the teachings of Protestantism, especially Martin Luther. With this Lutheran-Catholic dialog, what is to be done with the Council of Trent? Has it already been relegated to the Trash Bin of History? Trent is probably already moot since Catholic and Lutherans are planning a Common Prayer in 2017. However when Catholics, Protestants, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and the rest of the world religions join with the Pope and the EP in establishing a New One World Religion, the Council of Trent will be only a historical relic of the past, nothing more.
In conclusion, I pose these questions:
- How can a sedevacantist "Catholic" remain in the Catholic Church when he acknowledges that the Roman Papal See has been vacant for decades?
- How does he still consider himself a Catholic?
- How can a sedevacantist Catholic join with World Orthodoxy, when World Orthodoxy seeks union with Rome and all the heterodox religions of the world?
- Since Christ promised us that His Holy Spirit would be with us always (Matt. 28: 19-20), and since the Genuine Orthodox Church alone remains faithful to Christ's teachings, doesn't it behoove all men to look into this True Church which has preserved the Holy Faith undefiled?
References:
The Dialog Mass - http://www.traditioninaction.org/Questi ... eMass.html
Mystici Corporis Christi - http://w2.vatican.va/content/pius-xii/e ... risti.html
The New Code of Canon Law, 1983 - http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/_INDEX.HTM
