More Photos on the SSPX Rome Pilgrimage

How far can you follow the 'black line' of cassocks? Can you see it behind the obelisk?

The Superior General of the SSPX delivering his sermon in St Peter's. "We haven't heard a cardinal preach like this here for a long time!" (Msgr Conti, of the Comitee of the Jubilee)

At the feet of St Pius X: Fr F. Scmidberger
(first successor of Archbishop Lefebvre)
and the 4 bishops of the SSPX

Group picture of the happy clergy.
(The 2 priests in white cassocks are from the Philippines.)

Aug. 9, morning.
Fr Schmidberger carries the processional Cross in St John Lateran.

On the way to St Mary Major,
the Asian Pilgrims clearly visible with their colorful banners

A Traditional Capuchin Friar was carrying the Cross
all the way to the relics of the Crib, at the main Altar of St Mary Major

St. Mary Major, during the rosary.
The body of St Pius V is kept in this Basilica

August 9, afternoon.
Pontifical Mass at the falstool at Colle Oppio (formerly Nero's Garden).
A bishop offers Mass at the falstool when he celebrates in the diocese
of another bishop, by respect for his authority.

The volunteers of the Jubilee were present for this whole pilgrimage
to assist us at the key moments.

Here is what Father Schmidberger stated in his newsletter shortly after the pilgrimage:

___________________________________________________________

This pilgrimage was very important for us because we wanted not only to win the indulgence for the Jubilee Year, but we also wanted to manifest our attachment to the Holy See, to Eternal Rome, because we are not just Catholics, we are Roman Catholics. So we wanted to prove that we have no schismatic spirit, that Rome is our Mother, despite that fact that we do not agree at all with the actual orientation. This pilgrimage was also important for the mass media, who took notice of it. All the Roman newspapers wrote about it, and the television broadcast an interview with Bishop Fellay. The day we entered Saint Peter’s (Aug. 8), the Italian news service broadcast a report saying, "Something happened today that has never been seen before in the 2000-year history of the Catholic Church: 5,000 excommunicated people went to Saint Peter’s to pray there!"

One of our friends who works in the Roman Curia said that, when he went to his office the morning after the pilgrimage, there was only one subject that was spoken about, the pilgrimage of the "Lefebvrists." He went to the second floor, same discussion; third floor, same discussion. It was being talked about everywhere. He said the general feeling in the Curia was that if the bishops were excommunicated, it certainly cannot be said that all these people are excommunicated, too. A certain common sense seemed to prevail.

For the Roman authorities themselves, this pilgrimage was very important because they received first-hand knowledge of our real attitude towards Rome. We had officially asked to be able to enter the Basilicas in procession, and written permission for this was given us by the hand of Cardinal Sepe. Nevertheless, a watchdog was put at our side, a Roman monsignor who accompanied us everywhere to see, I guess, that we did not do silly things. When Bishop Fellay finished his sermon in Saint Peter’s, the monsignor inquired of Fr. Simoulin, the Society’s District Superior of Italy, who it was who preached? Fr. Simoulin told him that it was Bishop Fellay. He said, "I have never heard a sermon from the mouth of a cardinal that was as good as this sermon." In the end he said that he was very edified by this pilgrimage and that he would make a very good report. There was no word hurting charity or unity, he said.

We were especially well-received in Saint Mary Major by the monsignor who was responsible for the liturgical events there. He said that he never makes it difficult for any priest who wants to say the Latin Mass there. "I myself have been to Ecône," he said, "and have even assisted at the Masses of Archbishop Lefebvre." The day after the pilgrimage we returned to thank him for his reception; he told us that our pilgrimage was the biggest one he had seen come through Saint Mary Major during the Jubilee Year. He told us any of our priests could celebrate the Latin Mass at Saint Mary Major whenever they wished. Bishop Fellay proved his words true when he was allowed to celebrate a sung Mass on the Feast of the Assumption of Our Blessed Mother (August 15) in one of the side chapels of the basilica.

About three weeks ago, in early February, one of our confreres was in Rome to visit and happened to meet two monsignors who told him, "You cannot imagine what impact your pilgrimage had on the Roman authorities. They have refound the Church." That was what they said: "They have refound the Church."

When Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos heard about our pilgrimage, and that the bishops of the Society were in Rome, he jumped on the occasion and phoned invitations to them to come and see him before they departed. Bishop de Galaretta was already on his way back to Spain, but the other three went to see him. He expressed his satisfaction with the pilgrimage; he said he was very edified and that he had received good reports. One of the bishops replied that such a pilgrimage was the fruit of the old Mass. The bishops promised the Cardinal that he would get a letter from us. In the name of the others, one of the bishops wrote in his letter, "Your Eminence, make the Mass free as you have said yourself in your interview [in Profil]; just keep the word that you had in your interview. Free the Mass; this will change the atmosphere in the Church, and this could be the basis of a new dialogue. But free the Mass." No answer.

Then Bishop Fellay gave an interview to 30 Days. These people of 30 Days always have a slight tendency to diminish certain statements, and to bring people together where there are difficulties, and so in this interview they rounded the edges a little bit in the final published interview. Bishop Fellay was not very happy when he saw this interview. But the Pope read this interview very carefully. Everywhere in Rome it was read.

Following the publication of the 30 Days interview, Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos blessed the new seminary building of the Fraternity of Saint Peter in Wigratzbad, Germany (Dec. 2). His sermon, which was published in their bulletin, was classic but otherwise not remarkable. In a public statement he made after the sermon, however, he said that he hoped for a normalization with the Society of Saint Pius X. He said this in their seminary. At a meeting with the professors of this seminary, he said that the bishops of the Society of Saint Pius X had quite impressed him, and that he feels that they were "men of the Church." He could not have made a better statement about our bishops. This is what we have always said, that they are "men of the Church."

Later on, he wrote a letter to the Fraternity of Saint Peter in which he said that he was very impressed with the Mass in Wigratzbad, and that it was his first Pontifical Mass in the old Rite. (You must know that Cardinal Hoyos was consecrated in 1971, a time when there was already the New Mass, so he never had the occasion to celebrate anything but the Novus Ordo.) He said that he felt the Latin Mass really expressed the Catholic Faith.

In November he wrote a letter to Bishop Fellay, saying, "After having read your interview, I invite you to come to Rome to see me and to prepare an audience with the Holy Father." This invitation was the purpose of his letter. At that moment, Bishop Fellay was packing for a trip to South America to ordain priests at the seminary in La Reja and then to visit throughout the District. He replied, "I cannot come now; it is impossible before Christmas; it must wait. Let’s make contact after Christmas." When he returned from Argentina, there was new contact. So Bishop Fellay went to Rome on December 29, and he had an interview for two hours with the Cardinal, a personal meeting, nobody was there. There were very astonishing statements made on the side of the Cardinal. Bishop Fellay told him that we want to fight against the errors and that there was no chance that we would ever stop fighting the modernism and liberalism in the Church. Cardinal Hoyos said that he considered Karl Rahner to be the man who has done the most damage to the Church in the 20th century (which is quite true!). But, he also said, "I do not understand your reasons for the old Mass." Bishop Fellay gave him some arguments.

That evening the Cardinal rang him up and told him that his audience with the Holy Father was scheduled for the following morning. The audience took place December 30 in the Pope’s private chapel. Bishop Fellay told us that the chapel is quite traditional, no altar facing the people, altar on the wall, tabernacle on the altar. The Pope is in really bad health. The Pope said the Our Father together with the Cardinal, the Secretary of the Pope, Bishop Fellay, and Fr. Simoulin. Nobody else in the Vatican knew about this audience. It had been foreseen by the Cardinal that it would be very short, more or less only a greeting. Immediately afterwards the Pope had to go down for the official audience that was awaiting him.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.