New Vatican document reveals Francis’ plan for a grotesque parody of the papacy

[Stone]

New Vatican document reveals Francis’ plan for a grotesque parody of the papacy
A new Vatican document reveals the roadmap by which Francis intends to establish a new 'synodal papacy,' intended to replace the papacy permanently established by Christ.



EDMONTON, AB - JULY 25: Pope Francis gives a blessing at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church of the First Peoples

 on July 25, 2022 in Edmonton, Canada. 

The pope is meeting with Indigenous communities and community leaders in Canada. (Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images) 

Jun 27, 2024
(LifeSiteNews) — A new Vatican document reveals the roadmap by which Francis intends to establish a new “synodal papacy,” which will preside over a new “synodal church.”

This new “synodal papacy,” which is intended to replace the papacy permanently established by Christ, would lead a global ecumenical church without doctrine or discipline. 

The new “working document,” called “The Bishop of Rome,” outlines a number of objections to Catholic doctrine and presents suggestions of how the exercise of the papal office can be transformed. 

These objections and suggestions have been drawn from submissions sent to the Vatican by non-Catholic denominations in response to John Paul II’s 1995 document Ut Unum Sint.

That the Vatican is revisiting these submissions 29 years after Ut Unum Sint was first issued should be a cause of alarm to everyone who is aware of the methods deployed by the Vatican under Francis.

Presenting heterodox ideas in non-authoritative documents, and then later attempting to make them “official” teachings, is a strategy that has been used many times during the last decade. 

We have seen it used, for example, to pursue Holy Communion for the divorced and remarried and “blessings” for same-sex “couples.” 

For this reason, this 150-page compilation of theological errors and radical suggestions for reform deserves more attention than it has hitherto received. 

If we approach the document with the known methodology of the Vatican in mind, we come to a startling conclusion: that they intend to abolish the papacy – at least in the eyes of the world – and replace it with a new institution, which will serve as the head of an institution that the documents call “an authentic conciliar/synodal Church.” (No. 112)1 

This article sets out what would occur if the objections to Catholic doctrine and the suggestions for reform made in this non-authoritative document were to be accepted and implemented – in the same way as Holy Communion for the divorced and remarried, and same-sex “blessings” have been before them. 


Stage I. The Redefinition of the Catholic understanding of the Papacy

The first stage would be to undermine the scriptural and theological foundations of the papacy, and to replace Catholic doctrine with “a renewed understanding and exercise of the Petrine ministry” based on “synodality” to fulfil Francis’s vision of a “synodal Church.” (No. 5).  This reform of the papacy would flow from the “commitment” of Francis to “build a synodal Church at all levels.” (No.5) 

The document indicates they will carry this reinterpretation out as follows: 

1. They will re-interpret Sacred Scripture so that it supports a “synodal” understanding of the papacy in which the pope is just a figurehead with no real authority (see Nos. 35 -39).
   
2. They will give new meanings to the concepts of “authority” and “service” so that the real authority of the papacy will be destroyed (see Nos. 40-42).
   
3. They will seek out ambiguous passages in the Church Fathers which could be deployed to provide a basis for a new understanding of the papacy (see Nos. 44-47).
   
4. They will reinterpret the infallible teaching of Vatican I on the divine institution of the papacy by means of a new “hermeneutic,” which will bring Catholic doctrine into line with the views of the Orthodox and the Protestants (see Nos. 48-56).
   
5. The same “hermeneutical approach” will be used to solve the “obstacle” of Vatican I’s infallible definitions of papal jurisdiction and papal infallibility. See (No. 57–73).
   
6. They will reinterpret Vatican I in light of (i) Vatican II (see Nos. 61, 66, 72), (ii) a reconstruction of the real “intentions” of the Council Fathers at Vatican I (see No. 62-63) and (iii) a “distinction between the text and its interpretation” which will allow them to interpret the text in a way that suits their agenda (see Nos. 64-66).
   
7. They will rehabilitate the previously condemned error that the exercise of infallibility requires the consent of the Church (see Nos. 72, 106).
   

Stage 2 – The Establishment of the Synodal Papacy

Once the orthodox idea of the papacy has been discredited, the path will be open to establish the new “synodal papacy,” which will preside over a new inclusive church void of doctrine or discipline. All the baptized will be invited into this synodal church, without having to abandon their doctrinal errors.

The synodal papacy will have these characteristics:

1. It will have “a primacy of honor” only, with no real authority over Orthodox and Protestant believers who will be invited to come under its banner (see No. 76-80, 94-98).
   
2. It will preside over a church which is synodal “at every level” and will therefore no longer be subject to authority, or possess the unity of faith, worship and government which are essential marks of the Catholic Church (see Nos 81-83).
   
3. It will preside not by divine right, but simply because there is a “pragmatic argument” for “the need for a ministry of unity at the universal level” (see No. 62-68).
   
4. It will be based on the papacy of the “first millennium,” which will be considered the “decisive” model. Later definitions and developments of doctrine regarding the papacy will be ignored. (See Nos. 89-91, 99-100, 104-107).
   
5. It will shun the exercise of “juridical” authority (See Nos. 92-93).
   
6. It will replace the immediate and ordinary jurisdiction of the papacy with a mere right to appeal to the Roman See (see Nos. 101-103).
   
7. It will exercise its primacy over a new “authentic conciliar/synodal Church” (see No. 112).
   

The seven steps and seven characteristics outlined above are reasonable inferences from the content of the document.

There will of course be those who reject such an interpretation as an exaggeration or a misinterpretation of the text. These are likely the same people who said there was no danger of Francis ever allowing Holy Communion for the divorced and remarried, or ever permitting same-sex ‘blessings”. 

But those who understand the true nature of the Francis regime, ought to regard the publication of “The Bishop of Rome” as a warning of what may be to come.