E-mail from Bishop Williamson

A few days ago I wrote an e-mail to Bishop Williamson, and was surprised to receive a reply from him, since I know he's very busy right now. It was the second time I'd written to him on this subject; my first e-mail was pretty wordy, and I'm guessing he just didn't have time to respond to it. Probably didn't even have the time to read it!

Anyway, both e-mails were in response to one of his recent E. C.s, the one about the possibility of invalid Newchurch episcopal consecrations. Below are my query and his response:

From me:

Your Grace,

Mrs. Anderson suggested I write to you.

Please, if the new episcopal consecration rite turns out to be invalid, and priests ordained by invalid bishops, or priests who do not believe what the Church teaches, perform weddings and hear confessions, would those marriages and confessions be valid?

Thank you for your valuable time.

Yours in Christ,

David Kaftal

The Response from H. E. :

Dear Mr Kaftal,

There are several questions here.

1 Weddings performed by non-priests will be valid, because it is basically the couple that administer the sacrament to one another. Catholics do need to marry in front of a parish priest normally, but in today's chaos in the Church that need will hardly apply today where the couple truly meant to marry one another at the moment when they married. (Later moments do not count.)

2 Absolutions from a non-priest will not be valid, but God sees all hearts and can give grace as he wishes to a truly penitent heart, even if the priest was no priest.

3 A valid priest who has lost the Faith can still administer sacraments validly if he means to do what the Church does , or what he sincerely thinks the Church does, even if he is mistaken and even if he has lost the faith. (Water flows down a leaden pipe as well as down a golden pipe.)

4 A decent SSPX theologian who has closely studied the new rite of episcopal consecration says that it is "very probably" valid. His opinion can be taken to mean that the problem of priests being invalidly ordained by an invalid bishop is not one to worry about very much for the moment until the Church, back on its feet, declares solemnly that that rite is invalid.

E-mail from Bishop Williamson

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