Contorted Cross &
Bergoglio’s Standards on Chastity

Dear Marian,

Regarding the Contorted Papal Cross article

Good article. It is really grotesque. Is the Remnant saying that this symbol was not supported by Benedict? A Blessed Ascension tide.

     In Maria,

     Fr. P.S.

Dear Marian,

Thank you for this article. I have always detested this particular depiction with the extremely immodest sprawling legs.

I also remember that many rosaries arrived at my mother's home that have this ugly crucifix. I have tried to squeeze the legs on such ones with no success as they were firmly made. Fortunately I have the lovely Rosary you gave me, for which I will always be grateful.

Your article has enlightened me because I was under the impression that JPII was the one who commissioned and began this practice of carrying a highly unsightly crosier.

God bless you. You continue to teach me. I have you in my prayers always,

     In Our Lady,

     P.J.

Dear Marian,

I just wanted to thank you for the informative article on the Papal Cross. I had read elsewhere that it was "satanic" but was never certain about the authenticity of the information, nor the motive(s) of the author(s) of such articles.

My husband's godfather had a wooden carved "broken cross" among other things that he gave us upon his death, and I always wondered what the story was behind it, as he was a post V2 priest, ordained in his 60s. I had never seen anything like it. I also wondered about the symbolism it represented. Now I know, and I'm glad that I chucked it in the garbage a long time ago. It gave me the creeps.

My niece recently gave our family rosaries that she had purchased in the Vatican, and all of us agreed that those scary crosses had to be removed from the rosaries; those crosses were gladly chucked, too!

Thank you, again, for all of the time and research you put into finding out the truth!

     E.S.


Note on a Forgotten Practice of the Church

Regarding unwanted blessed statues, pictures, medals and other religious objects that were meant to be venerated or used by the faithful, the proper way to rid ourselves of them is this:

Blessed items should be completely destroyed so that they can no longer be recognized and possibly be shown disrespect or even used by the enemies of the Church for blasphemous purposes.

So, accordingly, a statue should be smashed; a picture should be completely shredded or burned, a metal object should be melted down, and so on.

With this task accomplished, there is nothing wrong with putting in the garbage the remains of a shredded picture or the ashes of a burned cross. However, out of respect, the Church recommends that the remains of plaster statues or destroyed metal objects be buried or thrown in the ocean or lakes.

     TIA correspondence desk

Dear Marian,

Thank you for the very interesting article. I had purchased a rosary with the hideous crucifix and replaced it immediately with a traditional crucifix.

God bless,

     M.E.

Marian,

This is a wonderful article.

Pax,

B.W.

TIA,

Sometimes, as Traditional Catholics, we are so keyed on the immediate, we do not see how far we have fallen. Compare these 2 YouTube videos.

The first video is from 1944 of Pope Pius XII’s addressing the British army in a papal audience.

The second shows the JPII generation, probably about the same age group as those British soldiers 35 years earlier. It was filmed in Madison Square Gardens during Pope John Paul II’s visit to New York in 1969. It is a shocker!

PPXII audience with British Army 1944 is here

JPII in Madison Square Gardens 1969 is here

     A.T.

Dear TIA,

I have read some of what you have quoted of Cardinal Seguara y Sáenz in your articles and felt it quite worthwhile to read more about this historic figure.

Sadly I have not been able to find much further information, most likely due to it not being in English. What little I have found however has only made me desire to learn more.

Perhaps you or your readers could share some more information about this man?

     Sincerely,

     J.W.


TIA responds:

Dear J.W.,

All the references we have about Cardinal Pedro Segura are good. As far as we know, the Archbishop of Seville was an ultramontane.

Prof. Plinio knew him personally and visited with him several times. In these comments on Our Lady of Lourdes, there is a reference to one of these conversations.

Besides the two pieces we have on dances (here and here), TIA plans to post more on him as we have some spare time to translate some articles on him.

If any of our readers can provide more information, it will be welcome.

     Cordially,

     TIA correspondence desk

TIA,

Kindest greetings,

Reference to this article re the Sanhedrin in which it is said that this great institution has been reestablished.

Please be advised that only God can reestablish this great body as per Isaiah 1:26,27.

Therefore, this cannot be the promised Sanhedrin which was dissolved in 425CE.

Thank you for your attention.

     With best wishes to all,

     R.B.

Dear TIA,

Here is a link to a Mass celebrated by Archbishop Bergoglio in June 2012 in Buenos Aires which shows the relative unimportance he attaches to the 6th Commandment compared to his oft-quoted "preferential option for the poor."

With reference to Bishop Fernando Bargalló of the diocese of Merlo-Moreno in Buenos Aires, but without mentioning him by name, Bergoglio simply mentioned his feeling of "tristeza" (sadness) at the Bishop's resignation. No mention was made of the immense scandal that the Bishop had given by his cavorting with a bikini-clad woman on a luxury seaside resort in Mexico. The woman, María de las Victorias Martínez Bo, was a wealthy divorcée, mother of three children and owner of a plush restaurant in Buenos Aires.

While the Church is in dire need of spiritual and moral leadership, it is mystifying that Bergoglio's only remarks about Bargalló were laudatory. He praised him for his 15 years of work in the diocese among the poor (he was President of Caritas for the Latin American and Caribbean region), for helping the elderly and for "listening to the youth." He went on to praise him for helping to make the Church what it is today: "united, humanitarian and missionary." The immediate effect of his remarks was to elicit a shout of "¡Viva Fernando María Bargalló!", followed by the general applause of the congregation.

It is highly probable that the new Pope will put rocket fuel behind the drive for married priests, judging by his continued support for Jerónimo Podestá, formerly Bishop of Avellaneda, Buenos Aires, and also for his wife, Clelia Luro (a previously married mother of six) whose "marriage" had been blessed by Brazilian Bishop, Dom Helder Camara.

Podestá and his wife were founding members of the Latin American Federation of Married Priests, and Luro is a member of the Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests.) Both were in the forefront for the abolition of clerical celibacy, and Luro is seen here concelebrating a New Mass.

Notwithstanding these contrary indications, when Podestá died, Begoglio praised his work for the poor; he also maintained friendly relations with Luro and shielded her against criticism from the Vatican. Journalist Margaret Hebblethwaite reported that "Luro talked to me at length about her friend [Bergoglio], of whom she has the highest opinion, and told me how she would write to him almost weekly, and he would always reply by ringing her up and having a short chat."

There was never a shadow of criticism expressed by Bergoglio for Podestá's breaking of his sacred vows of priestly ordination or for expressing his view that the love of his wife was "the most important gift of God in my life."

It seems that Bergoglio is not just in favor of the "preferential option for the poor" but also the preferential option for human love rather than divine. In that case, what are the chances that clerical celibacy and the male priesthood will survive?

     Dr. Carol Byrne, Great Britain