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Author Topic: Fr. Connell, Fr. Feeney, and the "Invisible Church"  (Read 2399 times)

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Offline OABrownson1876

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Fr. Connell, Fr. Feeney, and the "Invisible Church"
« on: June 19, 2026, 08:45:42 PM »
Fr. Francis Connell, Redemptorist, was a Boston priest ordained in 1913, died 1967.  I bring him up because he was friendly to Fr. Feeney and the St. Benedict Center, but, as Bro. Francis says, when the letter Suprema Haec was published, Fr. Connell distanced himself from Fr. Feeney.  Fr. Connell by all accounts was conservative, and it is said that during the Vatican II Council he petitioned Cardinal Siri to present an essay to the Council, asking him to "urge the pope to make some pronouncement on the problem of freedom of conscience, where one is not free to make subjective decisions that are objectively erroneous." 

Fr. Connell was a long-time contributor to the American Ecclesiastical Review, and he wrote the following in the 1958 volume, vol. 138. There is a problem with what he said, and it is only one sentence where he leads himself astray.  One becomes an actual member of the Church by actually being baptized.  Sanctifying grace is found only in the Mystical Body of Christ, which is the Church, because only the Church sanctifies. I hope Fr. Connell saved his soul.  Bro. Francis said that if Fr. Connell saved his soul, he probably spent a good deal of time in Purgatory for throwing away his opportunity to defend the Dogma. 

Post Scriptum - I know that someone here will retort, "But the Protestant who is validly baptized is 'Outside the Church,' but he is a member of the Church."  He is a member of the Church although receiving baptism in a heretical sect, but only the Church has rights over him, simply by virtue of the fact that Protestant churches have no rights, as they are not from God.  


Offline Ladislaus

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Re: Fr. Connell, Fr. Feeney, and the "Invisible Church"
« Reply #1 on: June 20, 2026, 07:18:47 PM »
Right ... and Vatican II came up with a brilliant synthesis, where it speaks of the Church having a visible subsistent core in the Catholic Church, and then having a different degree of visibility in the "Church of Christ", consisting of the baptized who are outside the Catholic Church, as well as some invisible "hangers on" outside of that.

In any case, Pius XII dropped the poison pill into his statement.  While it was not erroneous, the "really" part (as it's translated above", whereas others translate it as "actually", which leaves open the possibility that some might be members of the Church "in voto", rather than "in re" (aka "really").


Re: Fr. Connell, Fr. Feeney, and the "Invisible Church"
« Reply #2 on: June 20, 2026, 08:03:16 PM »
Right ... and Vatican II came up with a brilliant synthesis, where it speaks of the Church having a visible subsistent core in the Catholic Church, and then having a different degree of visibility in the "Church of Christ", consisting of the baptized who are outside the Catholic Church, as well as some invisible "hangers on" outside of that.

In any case, Pius XII dropped the poison pill into his statement.  While it was not erroneous, the "really" part (as it's translated above", whereas others translate it as "actually", which leaves open the possibility that some might be members of the Church "in voto", rather than "in re" (aka "really").
Bingo. That's bothered me for a while.

Quote
Actually only those are to be included as members of the Church who have been baptized and profess the true faith

Baptism aside, it can even be interpreted as meaning that that one can be a sort of member without professing the true faith  :facepalm: