Bp. Fellay and Francis' Jubilee of Mercy

— The Circular from Menzingen —

A circular was sent from Menzingen to all the priests in the Fraternitas Sacerdotalis Sancti Pii X (FSSPX) by Fr. Bouchacourt inviting them (or requiring them depending on one's point of view) to participate in Francis' Jubilee of Mercy.  This document was six pages plus an additional page in the form of an introductory letter.  It states that one can take advantage of the extraordinary jubilee of Pope Francis to win the indulgence and be sanctified but as a Roman Catholic, one cannot participate in the official ceremonies which are organized around the New Mass (Novus Ordo Missae).  Rightly or wrongly, it cites the participation of Abp. Lefebvre as well as the FSSPX in the 1975 Jubilee of Blessed Paul VI even though the '75 Jubilee referenced Vatican II and ten years having passed since its close.  The '75 Jubilee decree also said that celebration of the jubilee year was intrinsically linked to the spiritual line of Vatican II especially in the healthy renovation work which has been undertaken in the pastoral ministry of penance and liturgy.  The document them goes on to mention the 2000 Jubilee of Saint John Paul II, stating that the FSSPX participated even though Saint John Paul II referenced a false conception of the Incarnation of Christ in his promulgation of the jubilee year.  Don't worry though according to the circular, The Council of Trent & the 1917 Code of Canon Law say that the participation of the FSSPX at both the 1975 & 2000 Jubilees is a-OK!  Just remember, be like Abp. Lefebvre and the FSSPX and don't participate in the Novus Ordo ceremonies.  Next the Fatima card is played.  The FSSPX's General House will not be organizing a pilgrimage to St. Peter's in order to participate in the Jubilee of Mercy because they had already scheduled a pilgrimage to Fatima, Portugal for the 100th anniversary of the apparitions. Don't let this stop one from fulfilling the requirements of the indulgence by going to the Vatican!


Here's what Francis said in Misericordiae Vultus:

4. I have chosen the date of 8 December because of its rich meaning in the recent history of the Church. In fact, I will open the Holy Door on the fiftieth anniversary of the closing of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council. The Church feels a great need to keep this event alive. With the Council, the Church entered a new phase of her history. The Council Fathers strongly perceived, as a true breath of the Holy Spirit, a need to talk about God to men and women of their time in a more accessible way. The walls which for too long had made the Church a kind of fortress were torn down and the time had come to proclaim the Gospel in a new way. It was a new phase of the same evangelization that had existed from the beginning. It was a fresh undertaking for all Christians to bear witness to their faith with greater enthusiasm and conviction. The Church sensed a responsibility to be a living sign of the Father’s love in the world. 

[...] 

23. There is an aspect of mercy that goes beyond the confines of the Church. It relates us to Judaism and Islam, both of which consider mercy to be one of God’s most important attributes. Israel was the first to receive this revelation which continues in history as the source of an inexhaustible  richness meant to be shared with all mankind. As we have seen, the pages of the Old Testament are steeped in mercy, because they narrate the works that the Lord performed in favour of his people at the most trying moments of their history. Among the privileged names that Islam attributes to the Creator are “Merciful and Kind”. This invocation is often on the lips of faithful Muslims who feel themselves accompanied and sustained by mercy in their daily weakness. They too believe that no one can place a limit on divine mercy because its doors are always open.  

I trust that this Jubilee year celebrating the mercy of God will foster an encounter with these religions and with other noble religious traditions; may it open us to even more fervent dialogue so that we might know and understand one another better; may it eliminate every form of closed-mindedness and disrespect, and drive out every form of violence and discrimination.

Of note is the day chosen by Francis to open the Jubilee Year of Mercy — 8 December 2015.  The 8th of December is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.  Contrast that feast day to the 50th anniversary of the closing of the Vatican II which hid away the church's Marian devotions at this Council in order to please the Protestants.  What is this if not a slap in the face?

Will the FSSPX participate in dialogue with Moslem and Talmudic religions?  We at Call Me Jorge... will not be holding out breathes waiting for this to happen, unless taking the Rothschild-Guttman monies counts as dialogue.

For the FSSPX, Francis is the pope when they want him to be the pope but when they don't want Francis (or Benedict XVI, Saint John Paul II, John Paul, Blessed Paul VI, or Saint John XIII for that matter) to be the pope...they ignore him.  Dear readers, could you imagine acting like this toward Pope Saint Pius X?

Fellay, "today the relation between Rome & the SSPX..."

— Bp. Fellay in the interview

"Our relations are I may say getting better in the sense that more and more they accept that what we propose err... can be some say should be uh... the way to get out of this terrible crisis which is not only liturgical but uh... many heresies, discipline, well a lot of things go in a really bad way today."

Related:

• Is the FSPPX going to celebrate the Jubilee of Mercy?

FSSPX Document:

Circulaire de Menzingen à tous les prêtres (in French)