FSSPX Dispute May Now End Positively - Polish Senator
He notes that the Vatican reacted swiftly to the FSSPX’s announcement.
Comparing the situation with 1988, Libicki writes: “I believe - though of course without certainty - that this time the matter may end positively.”
Roman Rite No Longer a Peripheral Anomaly
Libicki points to the visibility of the Roman rite after Benedict XVI’s Summorum Pontificum.
Despite later restrictions, Libicki maintains that the Roman rite can no longer be dismissed: “This indicates that we are dealing with a real internal ecclesial issue, not with a peripheral anomaly that can simply be ignored.”
Anglican Style: Coexistence Rather than an “Agreement”
For Libicki, the conflict between Rome and the FSSPX is ultimately doctrinal rather than liturgical.
He recalls that Benedict XVI demanded “an unambiguous acceptance of the Second Vatican Council,” a condition that prevented a settlement.
By contrast, Libicki argues that Francis adopted a different governing approach.
He points to the reception of the deviant Fiducia supplicans [!] as an illustration: “For Benedict XVI such a situation was unacceptable; for Francis - regardless of intentions - it became, in effect, a model for how the Church functions.”
In this context, Libicki notes that Francis granted FSSPX priests faculties to hear confessions and assist at marriages without requiring prior doctrinal declarations.
Evil China Agreement as a Precedent
Libicki further argues that the Vatican’s agreement with communist China weakens objections to a canonical solution for the FSSPX. If Rome can recognize bishops selected under an atheist regime, then objections to flexibility toward the Society lose credibility.
“If, in the name of Church unity, such far-reaching compromises are accepted toward a state openly hostile to Christianity,” he argues, “the argument that no canonical solution can be found for the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X loses much of its persuasive force.”
Need for a Decision
Libicki concludes that Pope Leo XIV will have to address the issue.
He notes that personal prelatures, ordinariates, or similar structures already exist within canon law. “What is lacking is not instruments, but decision,” he writes.
Picture: Jan Filip Libicki © wikicommons, CC BY-SA, #newsRamcswiasw