"A visible unity in 'claims to be Catholic' is no more remarkable than a unity of 'claims to be Anglican.'" Photo by Sander Sammy on Unsplash Objection: "As long as someone claims to be a Catholic and professes submission to the Church’s magisterium, he cannot be considered to be more than an occult heretic – …
Continue reading Are we obliged to believe every person who calls himself a Catholic?
"Such legalistic and positivist ideas are an implicit denial of the visible unity of the Church." Image: Excommunication of Robert the Pious, Wiki Commons CC In previous parts, building on my review of the Tradivox Catechism series, we saw the following points across three theses: The nature and centrality of the Church’s visible unity of …
Continue reading What is the difference between an excommunicate and an open heretic?
Schism! Dissent! Donatism! Image: St Augustine in his study. Wiki Commons CC A priest suggested to us that we break our extended essays into shorter, more manageable pieces. We are quite committed to long-form essays, but are willing to try this – with a few extra points added or developed to make it worthwhile! This …
Continue reading Short essay: Is there a schism between traditionalists?
"The branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abide in the vine." Recap: In Part III, I explained the following matters: Reasons for following Louis Cardinal Billot in matters of ecclesiology Unity of the Church in faith, communion and government Unity of faith – particularly in an external profession – “is the most important …
"The custom of the Church stands for these things: and the Church cannot err." Image: Pope St Leo II, Wiki Commons CC Don't worry! This article appears twice as long on a browser than it actually is, due to the footnotes. This is the concluding part of my reply to Professor Edward Feser, who recently …
Continue reading Questions about Pope Honorius – a reply to Prof. Edward Feser, Part II of II
"An error which is not resisted is approved; a truth which is not defended is suppressed." Image: The Sixth Ecumenical Council, Wiki Commons CC Professor Edward Feser recently responded to my article Pope Honorius and Roberto de Mattei – Part I: The History. To begin, I must recall that my essay was a critique of …
Continue reading Questions about Pope Honorius – a reply to Prof. Edward Feser, Part I of II
"We would contend that Mr Hall is submissive to Francis in precisely the same way that we are." Image: Wiki Commons CC In a recent Crisis Magazine article, Mr Kennedy Hall has submitted a respectful “sedevacantist wager,” as an explanation as to why he thinks that it is more “fitting” to live and act as …
Continue reading Worth a gamble? A reply to Kennedy Hall’s “Sedevacantist Wager”
“Men are not bound to scrutinize hearts." Photo by Sayak Bala on Unsplash Following a revision and expansion of an earlier essay, I thought that it would be worthwhile re-publishing this edited section containing more detail on the profession of faith. The topics expanded include: How formal professions of faith can be a red herring …
"None of this is relevant to membership of the Church – and therefore, it has nothing to do with Francis' legitimacy." Image: Wiki Commons Public Domain This essay is written in response to Mr Michael Lofton's comments on a debate hosted by Mr Matt Fradd on Pints with Aquinas on 20 September 2022. (We have …
Continue reading Does Michael Lofton understand the arguments made in the debate on Francis?
"This unity consists principally in the common profession of the same faith." Photo by Mike Kenneally on Unsplash In this essay I will begin explaining the following two points: The Church is, among other things, a visible unity of Faith; she is a visible society which is visibly one, or united, in faith. Membership of the …