Archbishop Lefebvre's Response to the Nine, 1982 & 1983
Dec 19, 2023 9:32:19 GMT -5
John Lewis likes this
Post by Pacelli on Dec 19, 2023 9:32:19 GMT -5
The following is very useful collection of documents which give the response of Archbishop Lefebvre to the nine priests during the controversy in 1982 and 1983. This is a treasure trove, as many websites have excepts of the Archbishop's response, but not everything he said at five separate conferences dealing with the matter and explaining his side of the story.
(comment: I will say up front that regarding sedevacantism, that the Archbishop by not clearly defining what he meant by the term "sedevacantist," unfortunately conflated those who hold the opinion of sedevacantism, from sedevacantists who are sectarian, which is what he was actually addressing. Since he did not qualify this, the reader may come away thinking he was against sedevacantism itself, which is clearly false, as he was reacting to sectarian sedevacantism and the context of the talks clearly indicate that.
Secondly, the Archbishop, who by the way was a first hand witness to the liturgical changes under Pius XII and John XXIII, stated clearly that the 1962 missal was all developed during the time of Pius XII, not John XXIII, and even states that John XXIII removed Bugnini from taking part in it. He states that it was John XXIII signing off to this work done under the direction of Pius XII.
He also very clearly states that the 1962 missal is Catholic and Traditional and is not against the Faith. Therefore this is the missal to be used and there is no justification for refusing obedience.
The Archbishop's parting words in his last conference on this matter, April 28th should stand as a warning to all who hold the sedevacantist position to maintain it as an opinion, not pretend it is a legal fact, and secondly to not go beyond what is necessary in judging the crisis. +Lefebvre was not forcing them to change their position to be against sedevacantism itself, only not to make it public, and asked for and received signatures from all involved to that effect in 1980.
The clear message he is giving is a warning to be very careful who you follow as they may be leading you into a schismatic sect and there is no doubt that the Archbishop recognized this grave danger when he said these words which almost seem prophetic.
Speaking about these priests refusal to obey the liturgical laws of Pius XII and John XXIII, he said:
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The documents included are the following transcribed conferences:
April, 1982: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
April 24, 1983: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
April 25, 1983: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
April 26, 1983: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
April 28, 1983: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
The documents are all available for free at archive.org linked HERE
(comment: I will say up front that regarding sedevacantism, that the Archbishop by not clearly defining what he meant by the term "sedevacantist," unfortunately conflated those who hold the opinion of sedevacantism, from sedevacantists who are sectarian, which is what he was actually addressing. Since he did not qualify this, the reader may come away thinking he was against sedevacantism itself, which is clearly false, as he was reacting to sectarian sedevacantism and the context of the talks clearly indicate that.
Secondly, the Archbishop, who by the way was a first hand witness to the liturgical changes under Pius XII and John XXIII, stated clearly that the 1962 missal was all developed during the time of Pius XII, not John XXIII, and even states that John XXIII removed Bugnini from taking part in it. He states that it was John XXIII signing off to this work done under the direction of Pius XII.
He also very clearly states that the 1962 missal is Catholic and Traditional and is not against the Faith. Therefore this is the missal to be used and there is no justification for refusing obedience.
The Archbishop's parting words in his last conference on this matter, April 28th should stand as a warning to all who hold the sedevacantist position to maintain it as an opinion, not pretend it is a legal fact, and secondly to not go beyond what is necessary in judging the crisis. +Lefebvre was not forcing them to change their position to be against sedevacantism itself, only not to make it public, and asked for and received signatures from all involved to that effect in 1980.
The clear message he is giving is a warning to be very careful who you follow as they may be leading you into a schismatic sect and there is no doubt that the Archbishop recognized this grave danger when he said these words which almost seem prophetic.
Speaking about these priests refusal to obey the liturgical laws of Pius XII and John XXIII, he said:
Thus slowly, slowly, they put all the people far from Rome....far from the pope...far from the Church. That is very dangerous. Many people now have this tendency....they do a sect, a sect. Slowly, slowly, very slowly they form a sect!! That is a schismatic tendency. I cannot accept that!
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The documents included are the following transcribed conferences:
April, 1982: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
April 24, 1983: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
April 25, 1983: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
April 26, 1983: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
April 28, 1983: Archbishop Lefebvre Conference with the Seminarians given at St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
The documents are all available for free at archive.org linked HERE