Are Some Catholics Fomenting Schism?

Some commenters on my blog insist that I take a position on whether Francis is or is not the pope. I've always replied that to make that decision is definitely "above my pay grade." In fact, it's above the pay grade of almost every Catholic on earth. And if it isn't, if someone is truly competent to come to that determination because of his ecclesial or scholarly position, he should bring his argument privately to those with the competence to act; that is, the college of cardinals. 

Whether Francis is a valid pope will soon be a moot point. He is clearly not going to live much longer. Then we will see the next conclave and, since Francis has nominated a majority of the current voting bishops, 78% in fact (Source), it is likely that the next pope will be cut from the same cloth. Hopefully, the cardinals are sick of the confusion and chaos of the past decade and will make a better choice. We need a holy, faithful pope. Will we get one? Let's pray for him and those with the electoral duty to protect the Church.

As for the question of Pope Francis and whether he is valid pope, I offer an excellent article at Crisis that I read this morning:

Starting a Schism: So Easy It’s Not Funny -- To deny that Francis is the true pope requires either divine revelation or a very special competence to discern this. Those who make this claim have neither.

The article is filled with reasonable, intelligent argument from a Benedictine priest, Dom Pius Mary Noonan. I'll give you just a few bits from the article and recommend reading it, especially those telling us over and over ad nauseam that Francis is a heretic and anti-pope. Dom Noonan begins:

To be an expert in theology is to be a faithful son or daughter of the Church, which means taking into consideration not only the doctrines themselves but also the specific role of those who teach it. The only ones in the Church with a divine mandate to teach the faith are the pope for the universal Church and the bishop in one’s diocese. This latter teaching office is shared by divine right with priests, as the ancient Roman rite of priestly ordination makes clear with the words doctores fidei in the consecratory preface.

I mean to say that having competence in theology at any level does not give one the right to lay out before the eyes of all theories that are not theologically certain and publicly verifiable, especially when they contradict the judgment of the universal episcopate. In particular, it certainly gives no one the right—were he a new Aquinas—to declare the Apostolic See vacant.

Amen! That's why I refuse to take a position. It's above my competence. My duty is to keep the faith in season and out no matter who sits in Peter's chair. Hopefully it's a saint willing to die for upholding the faith, but as history teaches, that is not always the case. Dom Noonan adds another reason:

The second is, supposing Francis did formally adhere to heresy, we would need men with the competence to declare this before the universal Church. This competence my critics do not have, for, like myself, they do not belong to the hierarchical Church. We must conclude that these gentlemen cannot “discover” this truth. They have neither the competence to make this judgment nor to pronounce it before the Church.

Do bloggers like me have the "competence?" NO! I certainly don't and it's no act of humility to say that -- just the plain, unadulterated truth. Bloggers and others who claim that competence remind me of the lemmings who jumped on the bandwagon to condemn the Covington kids at the Lincoln Memorial. The students supposedly disrespected a native American grifter. The kids critics were proved to be wrong, just plain, disgustingly wrong! What does our Benedictine say about these oh-so-convinced folks who declare Francis is not the pope?

I suggest it may come across to many as a bit rash and disputatious—if not arrogant—to put forth as the truth a conclusion that is opposed by the universal praxis of the episcopate: every diocesan bishop in the world names Francis in the Canon of the Mass and therefore acknowledges him to be the pope.

This being so, unless and until the hierarchical Church recognizes that the pontiff is in error and formally challenges him to recant, it can only be the status quo until the universal Church declares him to have lost the papacy. Francis was acknowledged as pope by the universal Church. He is still alive, he has not abdicated nor been declared a heretic by those who could potentially do so. Therefore, we must accept him as the pope and not publicize opinions to the contrary, even though we have every right and duty (assuming we have some competence in the matter) to make our findings known to the hierarchy.

The article is long but well worth reading in its entirety. Do I think it will convince my sede vacantist readers or some of the well known incendiary bloggers who insist the chair of Peter is empty? I doubt it. As for me, I will continue to pray for the pope every day when I say my morning prayers and my husband and I pray the rosary. We will pray for Francis' salvation. He has certainly created much chaos in the Church and "made a mess" of things. He isn't the first pope to do so. And so, let us join in prayers for Pope Francis as he prepares to meet his maker. Read these sobering paragraphs from Dom Noonan.

As I write these lines, the Holy Father’s health is cause for concern. Perhaps his time has come, perhaps not. In any case, he will die. I, for one, will weep at the death of Pope Francis, not because I have been one of his fans, far from it. In my preaching, I have often had to explain dogmas that he has muddled or even apparently denied. Such is my role as a father of souls. If I had children and my own father were teaching them errors, I would explain the truth to them while continuing to respect my father and making sure my children respect him as their grandfather.

I will weep for Pope Francis because he is the Vicar of Christ on earth, our father in the Faith, and every truly Catholic heart knows that when your father dies, part of you dies with him. But I will also weep because I truly fear for his salvation. Some of the saints who saw visions of Hell tell us that they saw priests, bishops, and popes there. The responsibility is crushing. To bear the burden of all the Church and to have—in spite of his intentions which no one can judge—caused scandal, perhaps leading many souls to leave the Church or continue in sin, is nothing short of terrifying. All the more reason to storm Heaven that he dies in the Lord’s grace. And, of course, that a worthy pope be elected to succeed him.

I don't see myself weeping for Pope Francis, but neither will I rejoice in his death. Like the dear little mystic, St. Jacinta, I "pray for poor sinners" including the pope and myself. I've been praying for his public repentance and ask for a sign of his conversion like St. Therese did for the multi murderer, Henri Pranzini. Murdering souls is much more serious than murdering bodies and the scandals of Francis are legion. Let's pray for him instead of calling him names or standing in judgment on the mountain of pride and arrogance. 

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on Pope Francis and all of us.

Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for our salvation.

St. Jacinta, pray for the pope and all of us poor sinners.

Guardian Angel of Pope Francis, intercede for him.