The Holy See announced it this morning: Fr. Paul D. Etienne of the diocese of Indianapolis is now Bishop Paul D. Etienne of Cheyenne. He’s young (49), and from the sound of it, orthodox and likeable. Which is to say, a classic Benedict bishop. Whispers in the Loggia (of course) has the scoop.
Tag: church structure
Is the Pope’s Authority Dependent Upon the Church?
Fr. Greg of the ACCA writes: You equate the Pope speaking “on behalf of the whole Church” with his speaking, as Vatican I states, “in the exercise of his office as shepherd and teacher of all Christians”. Your argument seems to turn on this equation. However, this would imply that Papal infallibility is purely a… Continue reading Is the Pope’s Authority Dependent Upon the Church?
In Essentials, Unity…
Someone* famously said, “In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, charity,” a phrase so famous it’s become known as the Friedensspruch. This mantra has been used by a variety of Christian denominations, most famously with the so-called Christian Irenics after the worst of the Reformation. These people, looking on the relative insignificance of… Continue reading In Essentials, Unity…
Which Traditions Are Authentic?
First things first, if you haven’t read Fr. Andrew’s latest post, or heard his recent homily, they’re very much worth your time. There’s a tag at the bottom of his posts that says “Fr. Andrew,” so if you ever want to skip my stuff and get right to his, I won’t be offended! A blogger… Continue reading Which Traditions Are Authentic?
Protestantism and Relativism: the Conclusion
Addressing the remainder of TurretinFan’s post about this blog, he says that the claim ‘All of Christendom c. 1516 and before, you all misunderstand Christianity!’ is an absolutist claim, and hence, not relativistic. And indeed, he’s right on that. But that’s why I said that the seeds of relativism are found in the Reformation, not… Continue reading Protestantism and Relativism: the Conclusion
The (Invisible) Remnant Theory of Church History
Protestant View #2: The (Invisible) Remnant Theory(2) runs into almost the exact same problems as (1). Because the problems with Protestant View #1 are so severe, and because even the verses cited for the notion of an end-times apostasy (like Matthew 24:10-14) suggest a general falling-away from the Faith, rather than a global abandonment [the… Continue reading The (Invisible) Remnant Theory of Church History
Protestantism and Moral Relativism: The Trilemma
The biggest reason I think that Protestantism lies at the heart of relativism is this. Protestants are in the awkward position of saying, “All of Christendom c. 1516 and before, you all misunderstand Christianity!” This means that they necessarily have to come to one of three unfortunate conclusions: either (1) that there was no authentic… Continue reading Protestantism and Moral Relativism: The Trilemma
How the Reformation Failed
Remember that the Reformers set out to reform all of Christendom; that they ended up with countless minor factions bickering amongst themselves and against Catholicism and Eastern/Oriental Orthodoxy means that the Reformation was, at least to an extent and despite many notable successes, a failure. I. Christendom Understood Core [Capital-T] Truths Before the ReformationPrior to… Continue reading How the Reformation Failed
Why Are So Many Catholics Leaving the Church?
That’s the question that InsideCatholic posed last year to a long list of luminaries: the bishops of Orlando and Baker, Oregon; the Archbishop of San Antonio, the auxiliary bishop of San Diego, the late Bob Novak, Senator Sam Brownback, Fr. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life, Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J. (founder of Ignatius Press, the… Continue reading Why Are So Many Catholics Leaving the Church?
The Road to Recovery
This week, we’ve looked at how certain diseased elements within the Catholic Church: looking specifically at parts of the American Catholic Church and at the Jesuits. What’s most striking about this latter example is that the Jesuits, the religious order most openly in dissent from Rome, is also the religious order which takes a special… Continue reading The Road to Recovery