For there shall be then great tribulation, such as hath not been from the beginning of the world until now, neither shall be. And unless those days had been shortened, no flesh should be saved: but for the sake of the elect those days shall be shortened. Then if any man shall say to you: Lo here is Christ, or there, do not believe him. For there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders, insomuch as to deceive (if possible) even the elect. Behold I have told it to you, beforehand.
MATTHEW 24:21-25 DOUAY-RHEIMS
And when he entered into the boat, his disciples followed him: And behold a great tempest arose in the sea, so that the boat was covered with waves, but he was asleep. And they came to him, and awaked him, saying: Lord, save us, we perish. And Jesus saith to them: Why are you fearful, O ye of little faith? Then rising up he commanded the winds, and the sea, and there came a great calm.
MATTHEW 8:23-26 DOUAY-RHEIMS
I am off the Ann Barnhardt train. I have deleted her feeds from my Inoreader. My first deletion was her memes blog that began to resemble the Nazi trash you see on Gab. I recently downloaded her podcast but decided I didn't care to listen to her anymore. This stems from her Benevacantist errors that have blossomed into what I consider a variation of sedevacantism. I also include her compatriots Dr. Mazza and Non Veni Mark Docherty in my purge. They all suffer from the inability to admit they got it wrong. I don't suffer from that inability.
There are two ways you can fall out of a boat. You can fall out of the boat on the port side (the left) or the starboard side (the right.) Similarly, one can fall out of the Barque of Peter on both the left with modernism or the right with traditionalism. It doesn't matter which side you pick because they both end up with you outside of the boat and losing the faith. You must stay in the boat. No matter what confusion may come, STAY IN THE BOAT!
It is important to remember this elementary advice because confusion is going to come. Confusion comes from the Devil, and he is really good at stirring it up. The ultimate goal of the sinister forces is to make you abandon the faith, die in a state of mortal sin, and burn in Hell with them for eternity. The remedy for confusion is simplicity. When you don't know what is going on, stay in the boat. Your patience will do you better than resorting to your own "wisdom" on these things.
1. Vatican II and the modernist heretics
Modernism blossomed as a thing all the way back in the 19th century. The one thing you have to understand about the left wing heretics is that they never leave the Church unless they are thrown out. They already have churches to their liking that they can join, but this does not interest them whatsoever. Their aim is to stay as long as possible in the Catholic Church making a mess of things. This mess reached its apex with Vatican II.
Vatican II was originally supposed to be a condemnation of communism and a declaration of Mary as Co-Redemptrix and Mediatrix of All Graces. The modernists derailed that because they are fundamentally communists and push ecumenism at the cost of doctrine. Vatican II was ambiguous, and the modernists weaponized that ambiguity. The goal is to turn Roman Catholicism into something like the Lutheran or Anglican churches. When Pope Leo recently declared unity with the Anglicans and their new woman Archbishop of Canterbury, he wasn't wrong. The error is thinking he was speaking as a Catholic when he was actually speaking as a modernist.
What does a Roman Catholic do when the Pope says and does things that contradict the dogmas of the Roman Catholic Church? Some opt to popesplain and argue that the Pope didn't say or do what he said and did. This violence to one's common sense is to maintain allegiance to the error of hyperpapalism which argues that the pope can never err on these things. Wanting to keep common sense and the hyperpapalist error, the sedevacantists argue that these popes are not valid popes. Somewhere, the Lord Jesus Christ let everything fall to pieces. God failed. You can see how this line of logic can lead someone to schism, heresy, and outright apostasy.
You will not find anything explicitly heretical in the documents of Vatican II. The errors come with how they are interpreted and applied. If you are familiar with how progressives have warped the US Constitution, you can see how easily modernists can do the same with church teachings. The key aim is to propagate the idea that church teachings are mutable. If they can be changed, they will be changed. This is the essence of the modernist heresy.
2. Sedevacantism
The sedes believe we haven't had a valid Pope since Pius XII. Those in the Benevacantist camp claim Benedict XVI as the last valid Pope. It doesn't matter where you draw the line because you end up in the same place. The original sedes already fight with each other, so it is no surprise that they will now add another camp to their numbers.
Once you go down the road of sedevacantism, you will lose the faith. You will doubt the validity of all the sacraments including ordinations. Inevitably, the Roman Catholic Church succumbs to the Gates of Hell with no way out. You are left with believing in a God that failed. It behooves a Catholic to ignore these schismatic heretics and keep the faith by staying in the boat. God can never fail and never will.
3. The SSPX
The SSPX and Marcel Lefebvre were the original schismatics. They make pains to say they are not sedevacantists except that is exactly what they are in practice. I think Archbishop Lefebvre was the good guy up to the moment he did the illicit consecrations and incurred an automatic excommunication. I won't get into the arguments about the "state of emergency" that the SSPX argue necessitated this disobedience. As I write this, the SSPX has doubled down with another threat to illicitly consecrate more bishops without papal mandate.
I think the SSPX will settle in a definitive way for all to see that they are schismatics. When they tell you to not go to any Masses except those at an SSPX chapel, they are schismatics. They even include the TLMs of the FSSP, the ICKSP, diocesan Latin Masses, and the rest. Essentially, if you are in communion with Rome and the Pope, this makes you a heretic in the eyes of the SSPX. I don't believe this.
I have never gone to any of the SSPX chapels for my obligation, and I don't listen to the apologists for the Society anymore. They are sedevacantists except in name in my opinion. I choose to err on the side of caution and refuse to cross the line into the territory of the RadTrads. Lefebvre should have been obedient and trusted God for the outcome.
Conclusion
I do believe the Roman Catholic Church is in crisis, but we have been here before. The answer remains the same. Stay in the boat. I am watching people jump out of the boat, and I know that this ends in the loss of the faith. It is sad to witness, but my only advice is to get deep into the history of the Church. As for tradition, I am on the side of those who cling to the timeless faith and love the Latin Mass. You can never go wrong promoting reverence for our Lord in the eucharist. I don't know what the future will bring, but I trust that God is still steering the ship. I oppose the modernist heretics, but I do this from the inside of the boat. God will bring a renewal in His good time. My job is to remain faithful to the Lord.
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The Sedevacantist Dead End
From Hyperpapalism to Catholicism. Guest: Dr. Peter Kwasniewski
Lefebvre's biggest mistake: Disobeying the Pope w/ John Salza
Schismatics, the SSPX, and Sedes (John Salza) | Ep. 383
Tradition, Canonical Authority & the SSPX: A Conversation with a Canon Lawyer
Godsplaining Reacts: What's the deal with the SSPX? A Catholic priest explains
Apostasy: Rome or the SSPX? | FORWARD BOLDLY
