If +Archbishop Lefebvre Were Alive in 2025 AD

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If +Archbishop Lefebvre Were Alive in 2025 AD

The Catholic Trumpet [slightly adapted] | January 3, 2025


A Call to Fidelity Without Compromise

“Thus those who were with us and were working with us for the rights of Our Lord, for the salvation of souls, are now saying, ‘So long as they grant us the old Mass, we can shake hands with Rome, no problem.’ But we are seeing how it works out. They are in an impossible situation. Impossible. One cannot both shake hands with modernists and keep following Tradition. Not possible. Not possible.”

 +Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, Écône Address, September 1990

A Timeless Fight for Truth

As Catholics in 2025, we find ourselves in the same fight that Archbishop Lefebvre described over three decades ago: the City of Satan against the City of God. His prophetic words ring truer now than ever. The crisis in the Church has deepened, the modernist errors condemned by Popes for over a century have flourished, and the faithful remnant must now grapple with an even more subtle and pervasive infiltration.

+Archbishop Lefebvre warned us not to waver, not to be deceived by a false charity, and not to collaborate with those betraying the Faith. His guidance gives us a clear roadmap for navigating the challenges we face today.


No Compromise, No Retreat

In 2025, we face the same temptation that plagued many in Lefebvre’s time: the urge to compromise for the sake of peace or unity. +Lefebvre stated:

“We must make up our minds if we too want to collaborate in the destruction of the Church and in the ruin of the Social Kingship of Christ the King, or are we resolved to continue working for the Kingship of Our Lord Jesus Christ?”

Today, as many celebrate the traditional Mass under structures that compromise the Faith, we must remain steadfast. The Faith is not preserved by outward appearances alone. True fidelity requires unwavering adherence to the doctrines and traditions of the Church of all time.


The Grave Importance of the Faith

+Archbishop Lefebvre emphasized that the greatest crisis is not the loss of the Mass but the loss of the Faith itself:

“Certainly the question of the liturgy and the sacraments is important, but it is not the most important. The most important question is the question of the Faith. This question is unresolved in Rome. For us it is resolved. We have the Faith of all time.”

The modernist Church continues to promote Vatican II’s errors, which seek to dethrone Christ and replace Him with the cult of man. This fight is not over. We must ensure that every decision we make as Catholics—whether in worship, association, or apostolate—is rooted in the Faith of all time.

A Warning Against Betrayal

[Archbishop] Lefebvre’s stern warning about betrayal speaks directly to us today:

“Friends, to the Church’s defenders, to those fighting on the battlefield, they look to our enemies on the other side. ‘After all, we must be charitable, we must be kind, we must not be divisive, after all, they are celebrating the Tridentine Mass, they are not as bad as everyone says’—but THEY ARE BETRAYING US—betraying us! They are shaking hands with the Church’s destroyers.”

The faithful must discern clearly between true allies in Tradition and those who use Tradition as a veneer while undermining the Faith. Collaboration with modernists is not charity; it is capitulation.


What Must the Faithful Do?

1. Choose the Faith Over Unity

[Archbishop] Lefebvre declared:

“We have to choose between you and the Council on one side, and your predecessors on the other; either with your predecessors who stated the Church’s teaching, or with the novelties of Vatican II.”

This choice is as stark in 2025 as it was in 1988. We cannot straddle the line between Tradition and modernism. Fidelity to the Faith demands separation from those who compromise it.

2. Reject False Charity

The Archbishop warned against false ecumenism and compromise:

“Stay in touch with them to bring them back, to convert them to Tradition, yes, if you like, that’s the right kind of ecumenism! But give the impression that after all one almost regrets any break, that one likes talking to them? No way!”

3. Trust in God’s Providence

Despite the bleakness of the crisis, Lefebvre urged us not to despair:

“No, the Good Lord does not want this fight to come to an end… We find ourselves caught up in the continuation of the same fight, and we thank God.”

The battle is not ours alone. It is God’s fight, and He will sustain us through grace and the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary.


A Call to Action

+Archbishop Lefebvre’s legacy is one of courage, clarity, and uncompromising fidelity. In 2025, his words call us to take up the fight with renewed zeal. We must uphold the Faith of all time, reject modernism in all its forms, and resist the temptation to compromise. As he stated:

“Humanly speaking, there is no chance of any agreement between Rome and ourselves at the moment.”

Our focus must remain on preserving the Kingship of Christ and the salvation of souls.

Let us resolve, with Archbishop Lefebvre as our guide, to stand firm in the face of modernist betrayal. Let us remain the faithful remnant, uncompromised and undeterred. As we do so, we entrust this fight to God, trusting in His grace and the ultimate Triumph of the Immaculate Heart.


A Final Note

+Archbishop Lefebvre’s unwavering principles leave no room for ambiguity: he would have categorically rejected the 2012 agreement with Rome and the compromises outlined in Bishop Fellay’s Doctrinal Declaration. To accept Vatican II “in light of Tradition,” or to claim 95% alignment with a Council that +Lefebvre identified as the foundation of a “new religion,” is to betray the mission he gave his life for. As he famously declared:

“We have to choose between you and the Council on one side, and your predecessors on the other; either with your predecessors who stated the Church’s teaching, or with the novelties of Vatican II.”

The Archbishop fought not merely for the Tridentine Mass but for the fullness of Catholic Tradition, untainted by modernism or the errors of Vatican II. He would have seen such agreements as nothing less than a surrender to the enemy. The bishops and priests of the SSPX know this in their hearts. To betray the Archbishop’s stand is to betray the fight for the Kingship of Christ and the eternal truths of the Church.

Let us pray, through the grace that flows through Our Lady, that Bishop Fellay publicly retracts and condemns his declaration. We love you, Bishop Fellay, and we pray that you will return fully to the mission entrusted to +Archbishop Lefebvre: the defense of Catholic Tradition without compromise, without retreat.

Let us honor +Archbishop Lefebvre’s legacy by remaining faithful—steadfast, unwavering, and united in the fight for the reign of Christ the King.


No Compromise,

No Retreat.



-The ☩ Trumpet