I have declared myself a member of the internal resistance, and openly opposed the strategems of Menzingen in recent years, implemented to foster a merely practical accord which would have been the spiritual death of us all.
I commented openly on the troubling statements, communiques, docuмents, and actions of Menzingen (and the various District offices) even as recently as 3-4 weeks ago.
But when I did so, hopefully I did it within the bounds of Catholic morality, giving the benefit of the doubt, even against my own instinct sometimes, if there was a plausible explanation to the contrary, or if I knew there was information I was not privy to which might offer a reconciling explanation.
I have taken heat for that position, though for the life of me, I cannot see the flaw in that approach.
Most recently, I have extended this benefit of the doubt to the recent comments of Bishop Fellay, for the following reasons:
1) Because it is commanded by Catholic moral theology;
2) Because I see indications which could fortify this benefit, such as the attempt at the Priebke funeral; the polarizing effect these comments will have on the Romans, thereby making a future practical accord even more remote; the comments themselves, which squarely contradict the primary tenet of the branding campaign: Thou shalt not condemn modernism or Rome; etc.
Now I have just been made aware of yet another corroborative indication:
The October, 2013 edition of the "Nova et Vetera," which is a "publication of the priories of the Society of St. Pius X in South Africa."
The primary authors of the publication are Fr. Peter Scott and Fr. Paul Kimball (i.e., the priest who heroically "leaked" the "Letter of the Three Bishops to Bishop Fellay").
Even more interestingly, is the fact that the District Superior of South Africa is Fr. Duverger (which, unless there is more than one Fr. Duverger in the SSPX, was quite active in some unpopular actions in Post Falls in 2012).
Yet he allows this newsletter to be published officially.
I could not find an online link to the newsletter, and (curiously) the South Africa District website link from the SSPX.org website currently does not work, but here are some of the topics in the newsletter which certainly would not have been permitted a year ago:
1) Front page features the photo of the (presumable) Pope with a beach ball on the altar at St. Mary Major; 2nd page shows him wearing pagan Indian feathers;
2) The 1st article by Fr. Scott roundly rips Pope Francis, and the hermeneutic of continuity in the process;
3) The next short article is the beginning of a series praising the great figures of the anti-modernist counter-revolution, beginning with St. Thomas Aquinas;
4) Then follows a frontal attack on modernism (squarely again, against the primary tenet of the hopefully abandoned branding campaign) quoting Pope St. Pius X on the role of St. Thomas in opposing modernism;
The point being that the foot soldiers appear to have been emboldened by the recent comments of Bishop Fellay (even if that was not the intention; who knows?).
To me, that is but another reason to watch and wait, and see what plays out.
Meanwhile, there are no countervailing indications that the rewind is phantasmal; even the weird "Flying Squirrel" newsletter of India was written back in July (published in August), before Bishop Felays recent comments.
Where am I going with all this?
To wait, watch, and pray is neither "soft", naïve, or erroneous.
There are enough indications for a prudent man to pause and see how things play out.
PS: If anyone can find an online version of the October, 2013 "Nova et Vetera," it would be a tremendous help to this particular conversation.
Pax.