NEWS: December 29, 2025
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Bird’s Eye View of the News
LEO XIV’S FIDELITY:
AN OVERVIEW –
Given that December 8, 2025, marked the 60th anniversary of the closing ceremony of Vatican Council II, Pope Leo XIV issued an Apostolic Letter to celebrate it. Titled A Fidelity that Generates the Future, his Letter deals with two of the Council’s final decrees – Optatam Totius [The Desired Renewal] and Presbyterorum Ordinis [The Order of Priests] – which respectively address the formation of seminarians and of priests.
To analyze Leo’s Fidelity, I will first highlight the main points of each of these Conciliar documents so that the reader can follow my review of the papal Apostolic Letter:
Optatam Totius
Indeed, regarding numbers, in 1960, before the Council started, the estimated number of diocesan seminarians was 48,000 only in the U.S.; while the diocesan priests worldwide numbered more than 400,000. Today, the number of diocesan seminarians in the U.S. is 3,600, which represents 92.5% less; and the diocesan priests number 280,000 worldwide, which is 30% less. These figures need to be placed into perspective: The Catholic population to be assisted by those priests in 1960 was about 550 million while today it is 1.4 billion, that is, 254% more.
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Regarding doctrinal formation, we see the seminaries have been transformed into leftist centers to form social-workers and Liberation Theology agents. Even when they are “conservative,” the seminaries are infected with Teilhard de Chardin’s Evolutionism, Karl Rahner’s Anthropological Reduction, and a Pentecostal spirituality that extols joy and abhors the Cross.
Regarding Morals, they have become focuses of homosexuality among other depravities.
Regarding Faith, a glance over the ensemble of the clergy reveals that, besides the “baggage” they took from the seminary, very few priests still believe in Original Sin, the Real Presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, the Mass as a bloodless renewal of the Sacrifice of the Calvary, Heaven, Hell and Purgatory, and many other dogmas of our Catholic Faith. In other words, they no longer profess the Catholic Faith.
In brief, these are the fruits of Vatican II – particularly from those two documents – on the ensemble of the diocesan seminaries and clergy.
Focusing on Fidelity
So, when Pope Leo XIV proposed to address those two documents, any serious Catholic would suppose that his aim was to correct these grave defects and make every effort to bring the Bark of Peter back to smooth sailing on the seas of the orthodoxy and discipline.
Unfortunately, this did not happen.
Pedophilia crisis
When he addresses the crisis of pedophilia in the clergy, which was unveiled in 1995 and reached an apocalyptical proportion after the year 2000, Leo XIV has only these weak words of lamentation:
“In recent decades, the crisis of trust in the Church caused by abuses committed by members of the clergy has filled us with shame and called us to humility. It has made us even more aware of the urgent need for a comprehensive formation that ensures the personal growth and maturity of candidates for the priesthood, together with a rich and solid spiritual life.” (§ 10)
His words could not be more ineffective and vague. If there is an “urgent need for a comprehensive formation,” why did he not acknowledge that an enormous part of this problem was caused by abandoning the Catholic discipline and traditional asceticism; abandonment that was recommended by the Council under the general guidelines of “renewal” and “adaptation to the world”?
General apostasy
When Leo XIV deals with the general apostasy that took place after the Council, which still is eroding the ranks of the clergy, he has these words:
“The issue of formation is also central to addressing the phenomenon of those who, after a few years or even decades, leave the priestly ministry. This painful reality … requires us to look carefully and compassionately at the history of these brothers and the many reasons that may have led them to such a decision. The appropriate response is, first and foremost, a renewed commitment to formation, whose objective is ‘a journey of growth in intimacy with the Lord. It engages the entire person, heart, mind and freedom, in order to shape him in the image of the Good Shepherd.’” (§ 11)
Again, just sentimental words with no effective solution for the enormous debacle we are facing. Why did Leo XIV not have the courage to say that the cause for this general apostasy is the false conception of the Church and the priesthood that was taught in those conciliar documents? Indeed, traditionally the priesthood was presented as a state of life that rejected the world and made great sacrifices to attain Heaven. After Vatican II, it was presented as a state of life that should adapt to the world and imitate it in order to be modern and attract more people.
Now then, this approach created an identity crisis in the mind of the priest which could be formulated this way: “If the ideal of my vocation is to adapt to the world, why should I be separated from the world? There is no essential reason. So, let me return to it.”
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When the ideal of imitating Christ on His Cross and the goal of fostering a like-minded lifestyle for the laity are abandoned by the clergy, it loses its raison d’être. Hence the identity crisis and the almost inevitable apostasy come.
Instead of making any correction or change to this bad route, Fidelity wants to continue on the same path:
“In the last few years the Church has been led by the Holy Spirit to develop the Council’s doctrine on her nature as communion according to the synodal and missionary dimension. It is with this intention that I address this Apostolic Letter to the entire People of God, in order to examine together the identity and function of the ordained ministry … continuing the great work of renewal begun by the Second Vatican Council” (§ 4)
Is it only to confirm the errors of Vatican II that Pope Prevost issues his Letter? No. It is to further increase egalitarianism in the priesthood. So, we realize that priests still have some remnant of the legitimate authority they rightly have, and Leo XIV wants to get rid of that vestige to make them more “synodal.”
Here is the central message of his Apostolic Letter:
“As the aforementioned Final Document [of the 16th Synod, issued on October 26, 2024] recalls, ‘priests are called to live their service in a spirit of proximity to their people, to be welcoming and prepared to listen to all, opening themselves up to a synodal style’ (n. 72). In order to implement an ecclesiology of communion ever more effectively, the ministry of the priest must move beyond the model of exclusive leadership, which leads to the centralization of pastoral activities and the burden of all responsibilities entrusted to him alone. Instead, the ministry should move toward an increasingly collegial leadership, with cooperation between priests, deacons and the entire People of God resulting in mutual enrichment that is the fruit of the various charisms bestowed by the Holy Spirit.” (§ 22)
Thus, what we were given is not an honest document that sees reality, evaluates the errors and corrects them. We have yet another document feeding the myth that Vatican II was not a catastrophe, but a great achievement.
So long as Catholics are still fooled by this myth, the progressivist Vatican will continue to feed it – by either progressivist or “conservative” Popes. But I believe that Catholics are becoming increasingly fed up with this great hoax.
I pray that this process accelerates.
To analyze Leo’s Fidelity, I will first highlight the main points of each of these Conciliar documents so that the reader can follow my review of the papal Apostolic Letter:
Optatam Totius
- The formation of seminarians must be reformed §§ 17, 22b, and not be based on concepts §§ 1, 17, 22b;
- Seminarians should have the experience of human life § 3; should study modern philosophies and evolution § 15; should not be turned toward honors and power § 9; their studies should be laicized §§ 3, 13;
- Seminarians should be acquainted with the false religions and learn “what is good and true” in them §§ 16e, 16f.
/bev313_Clo.jpg)
On December 8, 1965 Paul VI closed the Council Vatican II
- Priests are equal to laymen §§ 2, 9, 22c; they should abandon “all appearances of vanity” § 17d; should have communion of goods §§ 8c, 17c, 21; should dedicate themselves to manual labor § 8; should enter into dialogue with today’s world § 12d.
Indeed, regarding numbers, in 1960, before the Council started, the estimated number of diocesan seminarians was 48,000 only in the U.S.; while the diocesan priests worldwide numbered more than 400,000. Today, the number of diocesan seminarians in the U.S. is 3,600, which represents 92.5% less; and the diocesan priests number 280,000 worldwide, which is 30% less. These figures need to be placed into perspective: The Catholic population to be assisted by those priests in 1960 was about 550 million while today it is 1.4 billion, that is, 254% more.
Top, Teilhard de Chardin & Karl Rahner infected the seminaries with their theologies
Regarding Morals, they have become focuses of homosexuality among other depravities.
Regarding Faith, a glance over the ensemble of the clergy reveals that, besides the “baggage” they took from the seminary, very few priests still believe in Original Sin, the Real Presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, the Mass as a bloodless renewal of the Sacrifice of the Calvary, Heaven, Hell and Purgatory, and many other dogmas of our Catholic Faith. In other words, they no longer profess the Catholic Faith.
In brief, these are the fruits of Vatican II – particularly from those two documents – on the ensemble of the diocesan seminaries and clergy.
Focusing on Fidelity
So, when Pope Leo XIV proposed to address those two documents, any serious Catholic would suppose that his aim was to correct these grave defects and make every effort to bring the Bark of Peter back to smooth sailing on the seas of the orthodoxy and discipline.
Unfortunately, this did not happen.
Pedophilia crisis
When he addresses the crisis of pedophilia in the clergy, which was unveiled in 1995 and reached an apocalyptical proportion after the year 2000, Leo XIV has only these weak words of lamentation:
“In recent decades, the crisis of trust in the Church caused by abuses committed by members of the clergy has filled us with shame and called us to humility. It has made us even more aware of the urgent need for a comprehensive formation that ensures the personal growth and maturity of candidates for the priesthood, together with a rich and solid spiritual life.” (§ 10)
His words could not be more ineffective and vague. If there is an “urgent need for a comprehensive formation,” why did he not acknowledge that an enormous part of this problem was caused by abandoning the Catholic discipline and traditional asceticism; abandonment that was recommended by the Council under the general guidelines of “renewal” and “adaptation to the world”?
General apostasy
When Leo XIV deals with the general apostasy that took place after the Council, which still is eroding the ranks of the clergy, he has these words:
“The issue of formation is also central to addressing the phenomenon of those who, after a few years or even decades, leave the priestly ministry. This painful reality … requires us to look carefully and compassionately at the history of these brothers and the many reasons that may have led them to such a decision. The appropriate response is, first and foremost, a renewed commitment to formation, whose objective is ‘a journey of growth in intimacy with the Lord. It engages the entire person, heart, mind and freedom, in order to shape him in the image of the Good Shepherd.’” (§ 11)
Again, just sentimental words with no effective solution for the enormous debacle we are facing. Why did Leo XIV not have the courage to say that the cause for this general apostasy is the false conception of the Church and the priesthood that was taught in those conciliar documents? Indeed, traditionally the priesthood was presented as a state of life that rejected the world and made great sacrifices to attain Heaven. After Vatican II, it was presented as a state of life that should adapt to the world and imitate it in order to be modern and attract more people.
Now then, this approach created an identity crisis in the mind of the priest which could be formulated this way: “If the ideal of my vocation is to adapt to the world, why should I be separated from the world? There is no essential reason. So, let me return to it.”
Pope Prevost reveals himself to be much more progressivist than many expected...
Instead of making any correction or change to this bad route, Fidelity wants to continue on the same path:
“In the last few years the Church has been led by the Holy Spirit to develop the Council’s doctrine on her nature as communion according to the synodal and missionary dimension. It is with this intention that I address this Apostolic Letter to the entire People of God, in order to examine together the identity and function of the ordained ministry … continuing the great work of renewal begun by the Second Vatican Council” (§ 4)
Is it only to confirm the errors of Vatican II that Pope Prevost issues his Letter? No. It is to further increase egalitarianism in the priesthood. So, we realize that priests still have some remnant of the legitimate authority they rightly have, and Leo XIV wants to get rid of that vestige to make them more “synodal.”
Here is the central message of his Apostolic Letter:
“As the aforementioned Final Document [of the 16th Synod, issued on October 26, 2024] recalls, ‘priests are called to live their service in a spirit of proximity to their people, to be welcoming and prepared to listen to all, opening themselves up to a synodal style’ (n. 72). In order to implement an ecclesiology of communion ever more effectively, the ministry of the priest must move beyond the model of exclusive leadership, which leads to the centralization of pastoral activities and the burden of all responsibilities entrusted to him alone. Instead, the ministry should move toward an increasingly collegial leadership, with cooperation between priests, deacons and the entire People of God resulting in mutual enrichment that is the fruit of the various charisms bestowed by the Holy Spirit.” (§ 22)
Thus, what we were given is not an honest document that sees reality, evaluates the errors and corrects them. We have yet another document feeding the myth that Vatican II was not a catastrophe, but a great achievement.
So long as Catholics are still fooled by this myth, the progressivist Vatican will continue to feed it – by either progressivist or “conservative” Popes. But I believe that Catholics are becoming increasingly fed up with this great hoax.
I pray that this process accelerates.
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