SSPX Bishop Fellay arrives at Vatican 5pm Italy June 13th
SSPX Bishop Fellay arrives at Vatican
VATICAN CITY — Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior general of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X, arrived at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at 5 p.m. this evening for a meeting with U.S. Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the doctrinal congregation.
News reports earlier said Cardinal Levada would relay to Bishop Fellay Pope Benedict XVI’s response to his latest suggestions regarding a “doctrinal preamble” the Vatican wants him to sign in order to reconcile the SSPX with the rest of the church.
At this point, the meeting is still going on and we have no idea what is being said.
Bishop Fellay arrives June 13 at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. (CNS/Carol Glatz)
Bishop Fellay pulled up to the “Holy Office,” as the building housing the congregation is known, in a red, four-door Peugeot 260 with French license plates. There were two other people in the car with him. A French colleague asked Bishop Fellay if, after the meeting, he would speak to the handful of journalists gathered outside. The bishop responded, “We’ll see.”
Interestingly, on his way into the building, Bishop Fellay crossed paths with Swiss Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews.
In May, Cardinal Koch had given a major address in Rome on “Nostra Aetate,” the Second Vatican Council’s declaration on relations with non-Christian religions. The Society of St. Pius X has voiced serious reservations about the teachings in that document, including Nostra Aetate’s recognition of the special place of the Jewish people in salvation history and it’s condemnation of anti-Semitism.
Views: 257
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Dawn Marie on
-
From Rorate update:
[In the final text of the preamble] there remained however formulations judged non-acceptable by Rome, notably the mention of the "errors of the council": to put it clearly, the Society may have reservation on this or that point of Vatican II (freedom of conscience, interreligious dialogue, ecumenism), but they cannot speak of the "errors of the council". This preamble should be made public once the final agreement of Bp. Fellay is given. On the other hand, the original version proposed by Rome, around which the discussion revolved, will not be known
-
-
Catholic News Svc
@CatholicNewsSvcVatican meeting w/ +Fellay reported over after 2.5 hours. He went other direction to avoid press. No word yet on if anything resolved.
-
-
Catholic News Svc
@CatholicNewsSvcFew min. later Abp Ladaria (CDF secy) left in another car, probably meaning he was there too as it was reported he would be.
-
-
06/13/2012
The Pope’s decision is now in Fellay’s hands
Tweet
St. Peter's
St. Peter's
The Lefebvrian Superior has received the preamble text which has been read by Benedict XVI
Andrea Tornielli
vatican city
As Vatican Insider reported this morning, the dialogue between the Holy See and the Lefebvrians has reached a crucial point. Having carefully studied the content of the doctrinal preamble with the added modifications requested by the Superior of the Society of St. Pius X, Benedict XVI took his final decision and communicated it to the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal William Levada and the Secretary of the dicastery, Archbishop Luis Ladaria Ferrer, during an Audience with them last Saturday.
Cardinal Levada delivered the text of the doctrinal declaration to Mgr. Fellay this afternoon, in the offices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in Rome. The Lefevrian Superior arrived at the Society of St. Pius X’s house in Albano Laziale, near Rome. The content of the preamble is still top secret but as has been promised from the beginning, it will be published if a formal agreement is reached between the Holy See and the Society founded by Mgr. Lefebvre. The final decision is therefore now in the hands of Mgr. Fellay: if he decides to accept the returned text, the agreement will be officially announced and the Society of St. Pius X will be given personal prelature status and will answer directly to the Holy See.
Given the history of stormy relations between the Holy See and the Fraternity, developments should be viewed with caution: in 1988 Lefebvre had signed a doctrinal agreement but decided to end negotiations at the last minute, claiming he did not trust Vatican authorities and proceeded to illegally consecrate four new bishops, including Fellay, without a papal mandate. Many things have changed since then. Today, the Superior of the Society of St. Pius X - who reiterated his views last 7 June, in an interview published in the Fraternity’s official bulletin – is well aware that Benedict XVI wants a reconciliation to heal the wound opened twenty four years ago. If, after receiving the Vatican’s reply, Fellay signs the doctrinal declaration, the agreement will be announced officially.
The question regarding the other three Lefebvrian bishops, Tissier de Mallerays, de Gallareta and Williamson will, however, remain open. The three bishops contested Fellay’s wish for reconciliation with the Church in a harsh letter which was later published on the web. Even if the Fraternity’s Superior signs the doctrinal declaration, the positions of the three bishops will be examined individually by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
-
-
From Rorate-Caeli:
[1950 Rome time - Update] "The response of Benedict XVI to the '####s'[SSPX] not to be known before the weekend." "Bp. Fellay will have some days to put his signature on the text" (SSPX spokesman Fr. Lorans, to Agence France Presse - LB2S Twitter feed (La Croix religion journalist) Lorans added that "it will be a week-10 days before further moves, today was just a step in the process" (A.Speciale Twitter feed)
-
-
In light of all that is taking place recently and especially what MAY take place in the next week or 10 days, I've temprarily moved the discussions board to the center on the homepage for ease of reference.
-
Permalink Reply by Birgitta on
-
What does that last sentence mean? Even if the agreement is signed the 3 Bishops will be? Excommunicated?
-
-
http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1202500.htm
Vatican presents SSPX leader draft proposal for personal prelature
By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Vatican presented Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior general of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X, its evaluation of the society's position on a series of doctrinal questions as well as a draft document proposing the society become a personal prelature.
"The ball is in the society's court" to accept the Vatican's response and clarifications made during a two-and-a-half hour meeting with Vatican officials in Rome June 13, said Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman.
Bishop Fellay, who was accompanied by an assistant, met with U.S. Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Archbishop Luis Ladaria, congregation secretary, and Msgr. Guido Pozzo, secretary of the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei."
During the meeting, Bishop Fellay was given the Holy See's evaluation -- including the opinion of Pope Benedict XVI -- of the society's April response to a "doctrinal preamble" that the bishop would need to sign in order to reconcile the society with the rest of the church, the Vatican said in a written statement released June 14.
"The subsequent discussion offered an opportunity to provide the appropriate explanations and clarifications" on both sides, it said. "Bishop Fellay illustrated the current situation" of the society and promised to give the Vatican a response "within a reasonable lapse of time," the statement said.
Also, Bishop Fellay was given a draft document "proposing a personal prelature as the most appropriate instrument for any future canonical recognition of the society," it said.
A personal prelature is a church jurisdiction without geographical boundaries designed to carry out particular pastoral initiatives. It is headed by a prelate, who is appointed by the pope; currently the church's only personal prelature is Opus Dei.
When asked whether giving Bishop Fellay a formal proposal of a prelature was a sign the Vatican had approved the bishop's response to the doctrinal preamble, Father Lombardi told journalists that all doctrinal differences had to be resolved before any formal recognition could be made.
"However, evidently (the prelature proposal) was presented so that if the doctrinal issue is resolved, the canonical part is ready," he said.
The discussion process is "still open," the Vatican spokesman said, but it seems the Vatican and the SSPX are "drawing closer to agreement in the formulation and presentation of the doctrinal questions" at hand.
The Vatican statement said, "The hope was expressed that this additional opportunity for reflection would also contribute to reaching full communion between the Society of St. Pius X and the Apostolic See."
Father Lombardi said the Vatican is showing its willingness and availability to reach an agreement, but that now it is up to Bishop Fellay to respond to the Vatican's position.
The Vatican spokesman said the society would be holding its general chapter in July, which would be "an occasion for reflection and exchange" of ideas concerning its next step.
The statement reiterated that the Vatican would be dealing with the society's three other bishops "separately and singularly," and Father Lombardi confirmed that only Bishop Fellay was actively engaged in discussions with the Vatican.
While Bishop Fellay has been generally positive about the possibility of reconciliation with Rome, leaked letters show that the society's three other bishops have had strong objections to such a move.
Pope Benedict's recent efforts to bring about reconciliation with the traditionalist group began when he lifted the excommunications incurred by Bishop Fellay and the three other SSPX bishops after they were ordained without papal permission. The pope also established a Vatican committee for doctrinal talks with society representatives in 2009. In September, the Vatican gave Bishop Fellay the "doctrinal preamble" to explain the "minimal, essential" elements on which the society would have to agree for full reconciliation, Father Lombardi had said.
When the Vatican's doctrinal discussions with the society began in 2009, both sides said the key issues to be discussed included the concept of tradition in general, as well as the Second Vatican Council's teaching on the liturgy, the unity of the church, ecumenism, interreligious dialogue and religious freedom.
The society's founder, the late French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who rejected some teachings of the Second Vatican Council and the modernizing reforms instituted in its wake, was excommunicated for ordaining Bishop Fellay and the three other bishops without papal permission in 1988.
In April, Bishop Fellay submitted to the Vatican his second official response to the "doctrinal preamble" outlining what the Vatican said were "some doctrinal principles and criteria for the interpretation of Catholic doctrine necessary to guarantee fidelity" to the formal teaching of the church, presumably including the teachings of the Second Vatican Council.
The bishop's reply was studied by the cardinal-members of the doctrinal congregation and, ultimately, by Pope Benedict.
The cardinals and the pope had said Bishop Fellay's first response, which was submitted in January, was "not sufficient to overcome the doctrinal problems that are at the basis of the fracture between the Holy See and the society."
-
-
The Vatican has confirmed that Pope Benedict XVI has made an offer of reconciliation to the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), and the Vatican has prepared a document that would establish a personal prelature for the traditionalist group.
Bishop Bernard Fellay, the superior general of the SSPX, will now weigh the Pope's offer, and has promised a prompt response.
Father Federico Lombardi, the director of the Holy See Press Office, told reporters that a June 13 meeting between Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior general of the SSPX, and officials of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is a “step in a process that is still ongoing.”
Last September, the Vatican submitted to the SSPX a “doctrinal preamble” whose acceptance is a prerequisite for full communion between the Society and Holy See. The traditionalist group’s first response, in January, was considered “not sufficient” by the Vatican and the Pope, and Bishop Fellay delivered a second one in April, which has been reviewed by the Vatican’s doctrinal office and then forwarded to Pope Benedict.
The "doctrinal preamble" will be made public only after an agreement has been reached, the Vatican has indicated. The document would presumably be the preamble to a canonical document establishing an ecclesiastical structure for the SSPX. The Vatican has now confirmed the speculation that a new personal prelature would be formed, making the SSPX the 2nd body--following Opus Dei--to have that status within the Church.
During the June 13 meeting, which lasted for more than two hours, Cardinal William Levada, the Congregation’s prefect, submitted to Bishop Fellay a final offer from the Pope, according journalist Andrea Tornielli.
Father Alain Lorans, spokesman for the Society of St. Pius X, concurred with Father Lombardi, describing the meeting as a “just a step.” Father Lorains said that Bishop Fellay will decide “in a few days” whether to accept the Pope’s proposal.
During the June 13 meeting, a Vatican statement noted, Bishop Fellay "illustrated the current situation of the Society of St. Pius X." That statement appeared to be a reference to the friction within the traditionalist group, which has now become public knowledge. While Bishop Fellay appears anxious to achieve a reconciliation with the Holy See, the three other bishops of the SSPX have expressed severe misgivings about the prospect of an agreement. The Vatican's official release after the June 13 meeting addressed those disagreements directly by repeating an earlier statement that "the situation of the other three bishops of the Society of St. Pius X will be dealt with separately and singularly."
CWN
© 2025 Created by Dawn Marie.
Powered by
