9 November 2018

FEAR, THREATS, and INTIMIDATION?

The disquiet about broad hints of Internet Censorship of Catholic writers which emerged from the 'Synod' is only just dying down, and now the admirable Fr Zuhlsdorf and other usually reliable sources have reported that there are two congruous stories circulating about the kindly and paternal interest which Bergoglian Rome is taking in two particular bishops.

(1) Cardinal Burke. The rumour apparently is that the Nuncio has told American Bishops not to invite Cardinal Burke to their dioceses and, if he turns up, not to attend events which he addresses.

Cardinals are entitled to go anywhere without the permission of local Ordinaries; in fact, Cardinal Burke, with his punctilious courtesy, always informs Ordinaries when he plans to visit their dioceses.

So no-one can actually keep him out. But you know how the world works. Timorous bishops who don't want a black mark against their name will put pressure on clergy and organisations within their jurisdictions not to invite him. And because the Inferior Clergy too can be timorous and might not want to  ... er ... get a black mark against their names, they will think twice ... thrice? ... multiplicius? before getting involved. You might call it Drip Down Malevolence.

Perhaps PF should, before sacking cardinals, give some thought as to how a jobless Eminence is likely to spend his time.

(2) Bishop Schneider has been made aware that 'Rome' takes an interest in how many days he spends outside his diocese. Rumours about this have in fact been circulating for some weeks. But, so they say, this has been done orally so as to leave no paper trail ... see (a) below.

                                                         SO WHAT?

 I find it difficult to keep my temper and to moderate my language as I write about all this. So I suppose the first point to be made is that much of it is rumour. It would be uncharitable to assume, without solid evidence, the certain truth of stories which, if true, would redound so very profoundly to the discredit of those involved. That being said ...

(a) This business supplies a remarkably exact example of what I wrote only last Monday about how the Bergoglian Church works (vide my piece about the sacking of Bishop Holley).
(b) FEAR. The Bergoglian regime has no scruples about making FEAR its main instrument of control, not only in Urbe but throughout the Catholic world. This corresponds closely with what workers in the Curia have been reporting for some years now. What an amazingly nasty ...
(c) THREATS. Bishops are supposed to be Successors of the Apostles, addressed by popes since time immemorial as Venerable Brethren. It is unbecoming that they should be informed, like naughty little schoolboys, which of their fellow bishops they should discourage from speaking in their dioceses, and whom they should themselves not go and hear.  ("Well, Bloggs minor, you would be wise to give some thought as to what your School File might record about the sort of company you kept while you were here ...")
(d) INTIMIDATION. The apparent use of Nuncios as hostile spies and as agents of intimidation is deplorable. Or do I mean Stalinist? Should we address them as Comrade Commissar?

9 comments:

Catechist Kev said...

So all are (not really) welcome after all, right? Unless Big Brother says so.

But we knew this all along, yes? No accompanying for Cd. Burke and Bp. Schneider. No-no. Cannot have that.

No walking together for them, nor allowing them to get the smell of the sheep, nor any hint of mercy for them, either. No.

No CEO, clap-trap, honey language for them. The Animal Farm/barn-yard has no welcome mat for them.

With apologies to Canadian musical artists Rush: "Conform or be cast out!" (from their album "Subdivisions")

GOR said...

Albeit these are ‘rumors’ and there is no paper trail, it is not hard to believe with this administration. Examples abound of the heavy-handedness of the Vatican during this pontificate – the FFI’s being a prime example, among others.

One would hope that some bishops ‘with chests’ would warmly welcome Cardinal Burke and Archbishop Schneider into their dioceses. But will even one of them be found? I’m not holding my breath.

Donna Bethell said...

Spot on.

Mick Jagger Gathers No Mosque said...

Dear Father. This intimidation will only work with epicene ecclesiastics.

All it takes to defeat this tactic of fear and intimidation is for a Cardinal to faithfully actualise his duties as per his status and standing in the Church.

If The Bishop of Rome tries to impede his liberty, the Cardinal must ignore him and go about his business and if the Bishop of Rome sends this or that flunky lackey to threaten him, the Cardinal must laugh at him and dismiss him from his presence.

The last thing a bully can tolerate is laughter at his threats .

Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke promised the Church that if the Dubia was not answered, he'd act.

He hasn't and so the Bishop of Rome will try and circumscribe his liberty and continue to emasculate him.

Words will not work with The Bishop of Rome.

Action will.

umblepie said...


Father how true your words are. Thank you for them.

Ignatius, Cornwall said...

Father, is "Stalinist" a typo when you actually meant to write "Satanist"? Oh, no - surely not!!

Ben of the Bayou said...

Father,

Would you like to add to your list of those suffering this kind of treatment from the current regime the Little Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Redeemer, in France. A large group of them is now asking to be dispensed from their vows because of the disruption to their religious life caused by a seemingly interminable visitation from PF. Their crime? It seems, at least by their own account, it is their love for the Tradition of the Church.

Perhaps you would like to read the article yourself, but, my!, the screws are tightening much: .

Lepanto said...

I recall reading a blog comment by the mother of a little Down's Syndrome girl. The girl was a great 'fan' of Pope Benedict and was upset when he resigned but was looking forward to another Pope to love. She waited with great excitement to see the new Pope come out on the balcony but her face dropped and she burst into tears saying 'But I don't like him'. What judgement! It's a pity that we can't ask this wise, pure, little innocent to choose the next one.

Howard said...

Remember the coup that arrested Gorbachev as the Soviet Union was crumbling? There were those who said that it was very brave of Yeltsin to climb atop those tanks, that it would have been safer for him to have gone into hiding. Well, it might have been brave for him to do what he did, but it certainly would not have been safer for him to disappear. If he had disappeared and never reappeared, there would have been rumors and displeasure, but nothing to compare with the outrage that would have been unleashed had the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR been gunned down by troops on national and international television. The spotlight actually protected him.

The same is true for Cardinal Burke. The spotlight means that there will always be someone willing to give him a chance to get his message out, to say nothing of providing for his material needs. The only way to really get at him would be to discredit him through a serious scandal (whether genuine or created). The same is NOT generally true of parish priests. They are the ones really at risk.