Monday, March 20, 2017

Pope Forging Ahead With SSPX Reunification

Abp. Pozzo of Ecclesia Dei: "canonical recognition of the SSPX will soon be achieved"

by Trey Elmore  •  ChurchMilitant.com

ROME (ChurchMilitant.com) - The head of the pontifical commission in charge of overseeing talks between Rome and the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) is saying Pope Francis is forging ahead with re-unification. And a respected Vatican journalist seems to be confirming the imminent reunion.

In an interview published Friday, Abp. Guido Pozzo, secretary of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, discussed the ongoing talks between the Vatican and the SSPX, noting that the Holy Father is urging a positive and constructive attitude in dialogue.

"Today, we can say that the approach has progressed, and one can be confident that canonical recognition of the SSPX will soon be achieved in the legal form of a personal prelature," he explained.

Marco Tosatti, writing on his blog Monday, seems to be confirming Pozzo's indications that reunion may be near.

"Reliable sources claim that the Society of St. Pius X and the Vatican are just a step away from an agreement," he wrote. "In fact, according to some, only the signatures remain; and they're waiting for Bp. Fellay to give the finishing touches on the SSPX's internal situation and reaching out toward the big step: the total and official return, as a personal prelature, of Lefebvre [and his followers] to Rome..." (continued)


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Thursday, March 16, 2017

URGENT PRAYER REQUEST – Fr. Philip Johnson

From Father Z:
From time to time over the years I have requested that you pray for now Father Philip Johnson, who suffers from a brain tumor.  Fr. Johnson was recently ordained.

However, today I received this:

Begin forwarded message:
From: “Msgr. David Brockman” <>
Subject: Prayers Requested
Date: March 16, 2017 at 7:39:42 AM EDT
To: Priests <>

Dear Brother Priests,

On behalf of Msgr. Michael Shugrue, Diocesan Administrator, your prayers are requested for Father Philip Johnson, a newly ordained priest of the Diocese of Raleigh and who is currently stationed in priestly ministry at Sacred Heart Parish in Pinehurst and its mission, San Juan Diego in Robbins.
Father Johnson has requested I share with you that on Monday of this week, his physicians at Duke University discovered new growth in the Anaplastic Astrocytoma brain tumor, which had been static for an extended period of time...  (continued)

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Friday, March 3, 2017

Anti-reform cardinals ‘want the Pope to quit’

By Philip Willan, Rome

(The Times) A group of cardinals who supported the election of Pope Francis are worried that his controversial reforms are leading the Catholic church towards a schism and are planning to appeal to him to step down, a leading Vatican watcher has claimed.

“A large part of the cardinals who voted for him is very worried and the curia . . . that organised his election and has accompanied him thus far, without ever disassociating itself from him, is cultivating the idea of a moral suasion to convince him to retire,” Antonio Socci wrote in the Italian newspaper Libero...

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