I wish someone would give a synopsis of the interview with the Bishop for us. He looked much too happy and flattered to be there. Perhaps he has forgotten all that this European Parliament has done to strip Europe of all that remains of its Catholic heritage. Not to mention the member country's rights to determine their own laws such as those that outlaw abortion or ɧoɱosɛҳųαƖity. To see a nativity scene there is quite a contradiction to their agenda. One has to wonder how it came about.
Bishop Fellay is at the European Parliament because he has the courage to enter the Lion's Den.
Bishop Fellay says the Nativity Creche in the public spaces of Europe and America is simple honesty. He says everything those nations have become they owe to the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the public Nativity Creche is simple recognition of this truth such that even atheists ought to be able to recognise the fact. He says this requires courage. These are sufficiently hard words and he speaks them well with a friendly smile.
His words here show him to be a man who is not lacking in courage. In this video he shows himself to be a bishop of the Church of Rome. He shows he is worthy of respect.
He is some sort of Jesuit and I am a Franciscan, but despite everything I must respect him for what he does in this video. And when some sort of Jesuit like Bishop Fellay commands the respect of a Franciscan like me, then he is entitled to the respect of every Catholic. He is entitled to our respect.
May the Good Lord bless Bishop Fellay!
Or is the bishop responding to changes in the general political mood in Europe? Participation in events like this would be at the invitation of members and one is tempted to wonder whether the local bishop was conveniently too busy to attend on this occasion. I am sure Bp. Williamson would have given the assembled party more for their money though such a wonderful prospect would have been too politically charged! Perhaps being reminded of their Christian heritage is quite innocuous if such sentiments are intended to apply to the past and dare not impose themselves on the present!
Dear Mr. Wessex:
Of course this is a response to changes in the general political mood in Europe! And in the world as well. Bishop Fellay is nothing if not a canny Jesuit-like diplomat with his wetted finger always raised up and carefully testing the latest breeze. He is the embodiment of Jesuit cautiousness. This Nativity blessing is not innocuous either: Bishop Fellay is not only appearing with the French leader of Civitas, the dread bête noire of the French Republic, but also with the foremost political representative of Italian Fascism in present day Rome. Rest assured that nothing could be less innocuous than this episcopal blessing.
An invocation of the Prince of Peace at the European Parliament addresses the rising concern with the Anglo-Zionist campaign to promote a general European war between the West and the Russian Federation. Their warmongering is not going down well among many members of the European Parliament who are not immune to epochal political tsunamis such as the one we (and they) are currently living through.
The continent-reshaping earthquake has now already utterly destroyed the Ratzingerians and with their destruction new forces within the Church must come to the fore. The best name to designate this new force is not far to seek: His Excellency Bishop Tissier de Mallerais. One might say that the good Bishop de Mallerais has, so to speak, won the contest over the future direction of the Catholic world. Therefore from now on the cautious Bishop Fellay is going to most carefully follow the directions set out for him by the masterful Bishop de Mallerais. This is what happens when one has won a great spiritual war as Bishop de Mallerais has now done.
Methinks that with the spiritual guidance of men such as Bishop de Mallerais in the background the prospects of Civitas and Italian Fascism are anything but not daring to impose themselves on the present. Au contraire. The blessedly diplomatic Bishop Fellay has set himself firmly on the crest of the wave of contemporary European society and civilisation and must now ride that wave onwards and upwards to smash through the very Gates of Hell and beyond. There is no turning back. The die is cast and this contest is going to be for all or nothing. But have no doubts: Bishop Fellay is no man's fool. He is under the masterful guidance of Bishop de Mallerais while Our Father in Heaven has the spiralling and terrifying European cataclysm well in hand.
Where all this leaves our ambitious Oxbridge Bishop Williamson this lowly writer must leave for you to determine.
I am afraid I do not quite recognise your descriptions of Bps. Fellay and Tissier. I have to make the trend my friend and see the growing alteration in the former since the death of ABL. (We cannot also discount the possibility that he was a Swiss plant from his consecration). As regards Bp. Tissier he has admitted that he lacks the strength for combat and is relying on the obedience route. I suppose Fr. Pfeiffer and Pablo were not that impressed when they dropped by. Are bishops supposed to exile themselves so comfortably?
One would expect the new Society's approach to the European parliament to be different to the old one. In fact one does not have to be particularly Christian to see good things in the history of the Church in Europe. Conversely, the appearance of clergy at Christmas time may merely be adding to the brash tinsel. So, the general public may see such demonstrations as being rather innocuous because the broad culture allows for this but, if you are right in what you say about Bp. F's act of bravery, to sharp observers he is certainly not that prudent being in the company of anti-establishment figures. Uncharacteristically, he seems to be borrowing Bp. W's mantel in this respect.
So, where does this indeed leave Bp. Williamson. With no room to manoeuvre on his self-imposed 'authority' side (cf. Tissier's 'obedience' straight jacket), he can only minister to small isolated unstructured groups that still cling to R & R purity. And of course there is his political and literary work. Have I left anything out?
No one can deny that Bishop Fellay has more than a little of the opportune Jesuit in him. But what is he doing with the talents the Lord has given him? His diplomacy is dividing the existing Novus Ordo in two and reorienting tens of millions of Catholic souls scandalised by the current occupant of the Chair of Peter (whatever Pope/Bishop/Journalist Francis/Bergoglio may be calling himself at the moment) towards Tradition. We are certainly witnessing the greatest changes in the Church since V-2 and the many who can be turned towards Tradition are being so turned. That is happening very largely thanks to the deft diplomacy of Bishop Fellay. Therefore he may be a Jesuit, but what a Jesuit! As is said, he's "our" Jesuit.
One fears that nowadays anything to do with Christmas is far from innocuous. In their current hysteria against Christmas, the masses are truly baying for the blood of Christians. In Europe and North America at present Baby Jesus is (horrible to tell) the most universally hated thing out there. So Bishop Fellay's championing of Baby Jesus with key leaders of the Anti-Establishment at the ground zero of European politics is not exactly a sign of half-hearted timidity. Bishop Fellay is a brilliant world-class diplomat. He borrows the mantel of Bishop Williamson when it suits his diplomatic purpose, and he smiles and amuses politicians when that suits best. He is a born diplomat. He does St. Ignatius of Loyola proud.
In my estimate nothing Bishop Fellay has done has been outside the historic perimeters of normal Jesuit behaviour. That may offend us and he is no doubt an unlikely candidate for canonisation in future (to put it gently) but he is doing his duty, making great use of his abundant talents and clearly has the humility to accept advice from some men better than himself (such as Bishop Tissier de Mallerais).
Which means that Holy Mother Church has great need of non-Jesuits as well. Zeal must complement the diplomatic cautiousness of Bishop Fellay. Perhaps Bishop Williamson might resist a little more and recognise a little less? That is what Bishop Fellay now seems to be doing, evidently at the behest of Bishop de Mallerais who in his extraordinary humility appears to be quietly correcting many of the excessive compromises in the S.S.P.X. during recent years.
Surely the less said about Pablo the better, but those who want to place more emphasis on the Kingship of Christ might do well to learn from Bishop Fellay's cooperation with prominent Pan-European Catholic Nationalists. Perhaps the one pious sinner Marine Le Pen is more pleasing to Our Lord than all the unctuous Tartuffes of Pablo & Company put together.
Topic: The Christmas crib at the European Parliament (Read 22064 times)