Brian McCall

SSPX Update 17.0: Auxiliary Bishop of Astana, Bishop Athanasius Schneider, has told @RobertMoynihan that he disagrees with Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández’s claim that Vatican II’s texts “cannot be modified.” His Grace cited the Fourth Lateran Council (1215) as an example of change to pastoral councils. Bishop Schneider proposed bringing them into canonical regularity first, then continuing doctrinal dialogue. Read bits of the transcript: "Well, first, the statement of Cardinal Fernandez is completely wrong because what cannot be changed are only the Word of God. You cannot change the Bible because it is the Word of God." "The Second Vatican Council, by the Pope who convoked it, John XXIII, stated clearly, "This council is convoked not to give new dogmas, not to give some solutions to doctrines in a definite way." These are the words of John XXIII and said, "This council is only convoked to make explanations, kind of catechetical, for explaining to the people of our time in the style of our time." So it's a catechetical style, pastoral style, of doctrines which remain the same but the modality, the form of explanation, which is not a dogma, which is not a definite teaching, but a kind of catechetical, pastoral, temporal-bound explanation, it is, per se, of course, possible to change it,to improve it, or to correct it because it was not intended to be stated in a definite form." "[Pope Paul VI] he repeated, "The council did not have the intention at all to proclaim a dogma. The council did not have intention to proclaim a doctrine of itself in a definitive way but its character was primarily pastoral" and this he must again state and repeat and therefore, the formulation of Cardinal Fernandez is completely wrong." "Of course, he would beright when those statements in the council,which are in which you cannot change, these are the dogmas which the council quoted from previous councils." "Now, I would ask the Cardinal Fernandez, "I made a list of pastoral statements of previous councils which are to us unacceptable" and I would ask him,"Is this possible to correct?" He would have to concede me, "Yes." And then if, for example, the Ecumenical Council, the Fourth Ecumenical Council of Lateran in 1215, some statements if some of their pastoral expressions could be changed, why not some pastoral expressions of the council? For example, there is a formulation in the Ecumenical Council of the Fourth Lateran Council which states that the Jewish people who are living in a Christian and for example, there is a formulation in the Ecumenical Council of the Fourth Lateran Council which states that the Jewish people who are living in a Christian city or town, they must bear a sign on their vestments, a distinctive sign to show to all, "I am a Jew," attention. This is a horrible discrimination which did Hitler also... So I would ask Cardinal Fernandez, "Is this statement of an Ecumenical Council can be corrected?" I assume he would say, "Of course.”" "We must honestly examine those evident, undeniable ambiguity of some expressions of the council," "Like other Ecumenical Councils, pastoral statements can be changed. As I mentioned, one example only, there are several examples in the pastoral statements of other councils" "So I hope that the issue with the Society of Pius X is helpful for the entire Church to give them the possibility, really, honestly, charitably, pastorally, synodally to give their contribution to clarify, to improve, to correct the ambiguity and this will be a service for us all....so therefore, I fear that this harsh behavior of the Holy See towards this uncompromising and imprudent behavior of the Holy See towards the issue of the Society of Pius X"