Patrick Buchanan: Clueless Newchurch "Conservative"
By Patricius Anthony
TRADITIO Traditional Roman Catholic Internet Site
E-mail: traditio@traditio.com, Web: http://www.traditio.com
Copyright 2007 P. Anthony. Reproduction prohibited without authorization.
Pat, if it were only so!
In a recent column, "A Triumph for Traditionalists," Patrick Buchanan gleefully speaks of Benedict-Ratzinger's "liberalization" of the 1962 Mass and Missal as a breakthrough and a step toward a Catholic restoration: "Benedict XVI will take no action greater in significance for the Catholic Church than his Moto Proprio declaring that the Latin Mass must be said in every diocese on the request of the faithful. Dissenting bishops must comply."
Buchanan's article demonstrates a decided lack of understanding of the Conciliar Church, the character and mindset of the individual who sits atop it, and the Traditional Catholic Movement. His response, and the general euphoria within conservative, "indult," and semi-traditional quarters for the Moto Proprio, however, is to be expected since these groups have repeatedly shown that they are more than happy with any scraps that Newrome throws their way -- even the bastardized/modernized Mass of "Blessed" John XXIII. (As an aside, serious students of history know that the liturgical changes enacted by John XXIII were initiated by his predecessor, Pius XII. This and other fuller understandings about Pius XII indicate that his administration may not have been as solidly traditional as many may think.)
Buchanan believes that Benedict-Ratzinger has come "full circle" from his neo-Modernism as a disciple of Hans Kung with his recent "traditional" gesture. Apparently, the many years comfortably spent "inside the beltway" and his long association with the American, largely Protestant, conservative movement has rendered Buchanan's mind unable to distinguish what true Catholicism is. Even his "cultural conservative" credentials have been brought into question, as can be seen in the pages of his American Conservative magazine, managed by an intellectually-shallow editoress, who has published book reviews of rock 'n' roll "stars."
Benedict-Ratzinger has not come full circle, as a look at just a couple of his more egregious neo-Modernist activities clearly show. It seems that Newpope does not like the idea of Limbo and has approved a redefinition or elimination of it, in apparent opposition to dogmatic Church pronouncements on the matter. Another infamous writing of his as Cardinal Ratzinger argued that the Jews do not have to accept Christ as the Messias! This outrage was compounded by his visit as Newpope to a Cologne synagogue in 2005. These cases may have escaped Buchanan's attention while he was probably in the midst of or contemplating another presidential run.
Nor does Buchanan realize the restrictions and internal contractions within the Motu Proprio document itself, which will limit its effectiveness, or the most important reality of the Conciliar era: that the bishops and not the conciliar popes are the ultimate power, and though they may grant an occasional "Motu" Mess, they are opposed to any significant recission of Vatican II.
Yet it has been the Buchanans, the Buckleys, and the rest of the Catholic lay "intelligentsia" who did so little to combat the neo-Modernist onslaught at the Second Vatican Council and in its aftermath, so that Hannibal Bugnini and his sinister cohorts were allowed to enact their revolutionary agenda. Presidential ambition, book sales, and media respectability were all placed above the welfare of Almighty God's Holy Church. Conservatives, although they did not particularly like the Novus Ordo, eventually accepted it. Very few Catholics, such as the late great Fr. Gommar Depauw, took St. Paul's words to heart: "Therefore, brethren, stand firm; and hold the traditions which you have learned, whether by word, or by our epistle" (2 Thessalonians 2:14).
Although it is not clear to the "indult" mentality of Buchanan and his fellow Newchurch conservatives, the Traditional Catholic Movement has, in effect, passed them by. The issuance of a Moto Proprio in the 1980s may have satisfied many traditionally-minded souls, but no longer. The descent of Newchurch toward perdition after forty years of Conciliar Catholicism has gone too far.
In the meantime, traditional Catholics have established an infrastructure, albeit small, but one that has been built with dedicated and holy priests, nuns, bishops, Mass locations, religious houses, publication organs, internet sites, and schools with a growing loyal and committed laity. The learned arguments that have been put forth by the traditional community questioning the validity of Newchurch's "Mass" and its sacraments, including the ordinations of its presbyters and bishops, have fundamentally altered the parameters of the debate. It is no longer about "indults," but the very legitimacy of the New Order. Newchurch and its officialdom are now on the defensive. While it will not publicly admit it, Newrome is fully aware of the expanding traditional numbers and the erudite scholarship that has got it rightly terrified. Hence, the issuance of the new "indult."
A better explanation for the "promulgation" of the Moto Proprio is that it is an act of desperation from the head of a spiritually- and morally-corrupt organization that is in need of support from whatever corner is naive and ignorant enough to give it, especially in the wake of the continuing sex-crime revelations, such as from the Los Angeles archdiocese. It is ironic that in Buchanan's praise of Newpope and his grand eulogy to JPII a few years ago, the columnist made no mention of their cover-ups of Mahony and his fellow Newchurch bishops' heinous actions.
Although Buchanan may be satisfied with Benedict-Ratzinger's Moto Proprio, traditional Catholics are bound by an infinitely higher standard. Apparently, Buchanan believes that some of the very people responsible for the destruction of the Catholic Faith can be trusted to lead a restoration. Traditional Catholics, however, know all too well the games that Newrome plays, and while there may be an occasional statement or activity of an apparently traditional bent, in the end, the New Order remains the ruling orthodoxy.
Newchurch has sunk to such a low morally with its presbyters' sex crimes and their cover-up by the hierarchy and has deviated so far doctrinally from the true Faith that it can no longer be salvaged or tolerated. Traditional Catholics, therefore, have taken on the mindset of their Roman ancestors and their policy toward their arch-enemy, Carthage. These Romans did not compromise, negotiate, or wait for their lethal enemy to offer them favorable terms. They knew that compromise would lead to their ultimate demise. Instead, they followed the heroic call of Cato the Elder, who ended every speech, talk, and even conversation with "Carthago delanda est!" - Carthage must be destroyed!
And so it must be with the Conciliar Church.