Statement by Bishop Strickland
20 December 2024. At the start of this Advent, the Traditional Latin Mass was suppressed in Tyler, Texas. Pope Francis has now appointed Most Rev. Gregory Kelly, Auxiliary Bishop of Dallas, as the fifth bishop of the Diocese of Tyler. However, it is very unlikely that the Latin Masses will be returned. It seems, however, the if Bishop Joseph Strickland were returned to his rightful office as Bishop of Tyler, then the Latin Mass would not only be restored, but it would grow.
Bishop Strickland recently took a forceful and public stand on the necessity of holding fast to Catholic Tradition above all else. In fact, he made his own the famous "1974 Declaration" by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre.
In his statement, Bishop Strickland notes that Vatican II was a watershed moment in the Church's auto-demolition. An underlying root cause is because Church members began to turn their focus from God to man. There was a shift from being theocentric (focussed on God) to being anthropocentric (man-centered); from keeping eternity in mind and valuing grace and spiritual truths, to thinking only of the temporal and in valuing material and earthly goods. This shift is clearly seen in the destructive changes which were made to the Traditional Rite of the Mass as men fabricated the New Order of Mass. Bishop Strickland writes:
"It does seem that there has been a systematic attempt at the demolition of what had been considered “unreformable” before Vatican II. And yet how have those responsible attempted to destroy what is eternal? They have done this by attempting to confine what was of heaven to an earthly definition, and this is done most effectively by attempting to substitute man-made materials for what was given from heaven. However, when one end rests on earth and one end rests in heaven, as does the Church, then man cannot destroy it. What he can do, though, is obscure the Truth by offering the “ape of the Church” in its place."
This Foundation's goal is to recover and restore all of Catholic Tradition. An essential step in this process is the acceptance, love, and defense of the Church's infallible dogma: extra ecclesiam nulla salus (outside the Church there is no salvation). This is the dogma most violently opposed by the modernist heresy. Experience has show that once Catholics confirm their faith in this dogma, they begin to grasp the depth of the current diabolical crisis and see the true teachings of the Church far more clearly. In his statement, Bishop Strickland is placing this dogma front and center:
"And yet they know – they cannot help but know – that they are abandoning the staircase they have promised to protect. What Pope Boniface VIII in his Bull Unam Sanctam (1302) infallibly taught is on that staircase: “We are compelled in virtue of our faith to believe and maintain that there is only one Catholic Church, and that one apostolic. This we firmly believe and profess without qualification. Outside this Church there is no salvation and no remission of sins."
Bishop Strickland goes on to provide a brief history of Archbishop Lefebvre and the reasons he founded the Society of St. Pius X and ordained four bishops in 1988. Adding his voice to many others, he clearly states that the SSPX is not schismatic and there is no legitimate objection to Catholics assisting at Holy Mass offered by an SSPX priest:
"I feel that it is also important to state here that the SSPX is not outside the Catholic Church, and that although it is canonically irregular, it is not schismatic. Bishop Athanasius Schneider has done extensive study on the SSPX, and as a result, he has given a clear and consistent defense of the Society. He has stated that Catholics may attend SSPX masses and receive sacraments from its clergy without concern. Although he acknowledges the “irregular canonical situation” of the SSPX, he states that this does not equate to being outside the Church, and he has praised the SSPX for upholding traditional Catholic faith and liturgy. Bishop Schneider has also called for their full canonical recognition by the Vatican, asserting that the SSPX adheres to traditional Catholic teachings and sacraments as they were practiced for centuries before Vatican II."
He concludes by quoting Archbishop Lefebvre's declaration from 1974, insisting that this faithful prelate did not act in a spirit of rebellion but rather one of fidelity and obedience to Jesus Christ and Holy Mother Church. A few salient points from Lefebvre's declaration include:
We hold fast, with all our heart and with all our soul, to Catholic Rome, Guardian of the Catholic Faith and of the traditions necessary to preserve this faith, to Eternal Rome, Mistress of wisdom and truth.
We refuse, on the other hand, and have always refused to follow the Rome of neo-Modernist and neo-Protestant tendencies which were clearly evident in the Second Vatican Council and, after the Council, in all the reforms which issued from it.
No authority, not even the highest in the hierarchy, can force us to abandon or diminish our Catholic Faith, so clearly expressed and professed by the Church’s Magisterium for nineteen centuries.
That is why, without any spirit of rebellion, bitterness or resentment, we pursue our work of forming priests, with the timeless Magisterium as our guide. We are persuaded that we can render no greater service to the Holy Catholic Church, to the Sovereign Pontiff and to posterity.
That is why we hold fast to all that has been believed and practiced in the faith, morals, liturgy, teaching of the catechism, formation of the priest and institution of the Church, by the Church of all time; to all these things as codified in those books which saw day before the Modernist influence of the Council. This we shall do until such time that the true light of Tradition dissipates the darkness obscuring the sky of Eternal Rome.
Please pray for Bishop Joseph Strickland.
We encourage the reader to read Bishop Strickland's statement in its entirety at Life Site News (linked here).
You can also watch a talk Bishop Strickland recently gave at Life Site's Rome Life Forum in Kansas City on October 17, 2024. (Video linked here.)
Addition (26 Dec 2024): Life Site just published an article detailing a few of Bishop Kelly's 'progressive' and heterodox positions. Casting his lot with the likes of Blase Cupich, Wilton Gregory, and Robert McElroy, he wishes to prevent a vote by the USCCB which simply asserts Catholic doctrine that public figures, who publicly advocate for murder (abortion), should be denied Holy Communion. Kelly also stands in favor of illegal immigration into this country and he has had high praise for Francis.
Reference Note: Over a year ago Bishop Strickland was uncanonically, unceremoniously, and unjustly removed from the episcopal chair of that diocese. One of the reasons he was 'cancelled' was because he refused to implement Traditionis Custodes and cancel the TLM. He said he could – in good conscience – harm his faithful flock by depriving them of the spiritual goods which Christ Himself entrusted to His Church. [Read Rorate Caeli's report here.]
