Archbishop Fernando Capalla’s reply to SSPX Open Letter

[Renel B. Peña]

Archbishop Fernando Capalla’s reply to  SSPX Open Letter 

Dear Fathers and Friends,

Pax Christi!I write in reply to your “Open Letter to Archbishop Fernando R. Capalla and all the Catholic of goodwill in Davao City”. It bears the title “Fidelity to the Catholic Church”. It appeared in SunStar Davao of 02 October 2011.

Ironically the five (5) paragraphs of your letter contain serious half-truths which do not support that “Fidelity”. Yes, the letter runs counter to it. Let me show you why.

 

1. You wrote that “the traditional Mass has always been the heart of the life of the Church”. By “Traditional Mass” is meant here “the Tridentine Mass”, wrongly called “The Latin Mass” implying also that this is what made saints in the past. This form of the mass originated in the 16th centuy afterthe Council of Trent. So, what and where was the “heart of the Church” before 16th century after Vatican Council II of 1965? If you are correct, there were no saints before the Council of Trent andafter the Vatican Council II. The truth is, the essence of the Holy Mass has never changed (EcclesiaDei, No. 7), only the form underwent changes.

 

2. To justify the Traditional Mass you quoted from Benedict XVI’s Summorum Pontifi cum but you omitted, perhaps deliberately, the portion where the Pope recognizes two forms of the Mass- “the forma Extraordinaria and forma ordinaria (Summorum Pontifi cum no. 1 and Ecclesia Dei no.6) The latter came after Vatican II.

 

3. Your third paragraph, and perhaps maliciously, compares priests who do not say, or allow the traditional Mass, to insensitive and unfeeling Levites while you proudly consider yourselves as “Good Samaritans” helping the people who are denied this mass because you see them as “victims”. You analogies are wrong and inappropriate and your allusion to the “victimizers” is uncalled for.

 

4. You misunderstood “canonical jurisdiction” and the popular norm or the principle “salus animarum suprema lex” which you correctly translate as “The Supreme law is the salvation of souls”. You failed to show that, because we are a Church, governed, and regulated by law. Canonically, as an excommunicated group you are outside the Church, and therefore cannot licitly or legally minister inside it without permission or jurisdiction. The popular norm cannot grant ordinary jurisdiction except in emergency cases where a regular ordained priest is not around. Pope Benedict stated this very clearly in his “Papal Letter on Society of St. Pius X, Vatican City March 12, 2009” which is cited in my Circular Letter No. 19.

 

5. More importantly you failed to mention that the fundamental basis for your society to be fully recognized with the Apostolic See or the Roman Catholic Church is for your Superior Bishop Bernard Fellay to accept and sign the text of the Doctrinal Preamble which our Cardinal William Levada, headof the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, presented to him last 14 September 2011. We hope he will accept and sign it. We are not sure.

 

Dear Fathers and Brothers, we bishops are not going in the opposite direction to the dialogue between your Superior and the officials in the Vatican. You here in Davao are pushing yourselves forcibly in the direction of our communities confusing our people, especially the ignorant and the young, with half-truths and selective quotes from Church documents taken out of the context.

 

As outsiders, you are really intruding and disturbing flock who are not yours. Elementary good manners dictate that you respect us and our people.

 

Since there is already an offer of reconciliation, you have to wait for the offi cial guidelines from the Holy See. We do not condemn you. We know your good intentions. We hope and pray that you understand our position.

 

May the Spirit of the Risen Lord enlighten you and keep your hearts patiently at peace.

 

Sincerely yours in Christ,

(Sgd.) Fernando R. Capalla,Archbishop of Davao

[John-mary chijioke mbah]

He did respond like the others placing obedience above the faith. Whether we use the TLM or LATIN MASS, or a pre Council of Trent mass we simply mean that mass that teach basic truths of christianity which is Catholicism.

Extraordinary & ordinary form:
Do they teach the same thing?
We want that that doesn't tend to please the world and people, (no compromise) just like christ taught, Or He is simply saying disobey christ and obey the pope .

Outsiders and insiders:
The church has always taught that the 'innovators' are the outsiders.

Saints before Trent and after VT2:
Saints before and after Trent taught the same faith, and VT2 'blessed' and 'saints' taught us to make a better world when christ taught us to think about the heavenly.

[Renel B. Peña]

"We are what you once were.We believe what you once believed.We worship as you once worshipped.
If you were right then, we are right now.If we are wrong now, you were wrong then."

You are right John.

We ought to obey GOD rather than men. As what Pope Leo XIII wrote and I quote, "And there is no reason why those who obey God rather than men should be accused of refusing obedience; for if the will of rulers is opposed to the will and the laws of God, these rulers exceed the bounds of their own power and pervert justice, nor can their authority then be valid, which, when there is no justice, is null."

Catholic obedience must always be to the Faith.