It's beginning to come out...

As I mentioned in a post last week concerning the lifting of the latae sententiae excommunications of the four SSPX bishops, one of the interesting points that will necessarily be discussed is the doctrinal acceptance (or not) of the Second Vatican Council. There are hard-core elements, which many people are aware of, within the SSPX who are true "sede vacantists." Such people would seemingly necessarily reject the doctrinal authority of the Council. The question has always existed: to what extent do these factions of the SSPX speak for the group as a whole? Any process of reconciliation with the Church will have to address these issues. What will ensue is a separating of the "wheat from the chaff" so-to-speak. This discussion seems to have begun amongst their group as indicated by the following statement by one of their number to a French newspaper just a few days ago. Stay tuned, there will certainly be more to come on this...

PARIS, 10 February 2009 (AFP) - Bishop Fellay of the Society of Saint Pius X, speaks his reservations about Vatican II

Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior of the Fraternity of Saint Pius X, does not reject the whole of the Second Vatican Council but shares some of his reservations in an interview with the weekly Famille chrétienne and La France catholique.

He distinguishes between "the spirit and letter" of the Council: "There is a dangerous spirit which moved across the Council and in this sense we do refuse it," he says, "but when speaking of the letter [of the Council], we do not reject it in full as it is" he adds.

He recalled the position of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the Fraternity, for whom only those things which are in line with tradition in the council should be kept and the rest should be rejected.

Bishop Fellay adds that "the Church can not get rid of her past".

[...]

He also explains his position on ecumenism where he sees a risk of "connivance with the world" and regrets that the Church no longer has "the will to convert."

[...]


Asked about the spiritual and/or doctrinal challenge of rapprochement with Rome, Bishop Fellay sees "a benefit for the whole Church" if "one manages to restore clarity on many issues."

Finally he feels that the discussions between Rome and the Fraternity Saint Pius X will "certainly start quickly" but he does not know in what form.