Bishop Joseph Strickland, a modern-day white martyr, reiterated these thoughts via social media, when he wrote that the road to hell is paved with the skulls of bishops, and that he had no desire to be one of them. So few bishops, however, seem to share his concerns, other than those with whose names we have become so familiar in recent times. Now that Bishop Strickland has been forced by the Pope to step down, we are faced with the deafening silence from almost all of the world’s bishops who either agree with the Pope’s decision or disagree, but are too timid to speak out. Indeed, it is of great import that the Society of Saint Pius X has issued a strident statement in support of Bishop Strickland: this group knows only too well what it means to suffer for the sake of tradition and has never shied away from calling out abuses of power which emanate from Rome.
He suggested that previous Popes - not to mention God the Father - have failed to understand the complexities of human existence, by saying that Pope Francis (using his unique Gnostic powers, no doubt) “... is able to speak into issues that are real for people, by listening to them and not dismissing them, and allowing them to sit where they are so that they may come to a maturity.”
Nowhere is this silence in the face of error and apostasy more evident than in Australia, where the bishops, under the auspices of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, (ACBC), appear intent on furthering a progressive agenda at the expense of what should be their most urgent duty: the salvation of souls. Still reeling from the depths of the abuse scandals which have occurred on their watch, the Australian bishops collectively seem content to limit their commentary to “safe” causes such as the plight of the indigenous, the apparent joys of World Youth Day and the complete Synodal experience. “Synodality” has so befuddled the minds of not a few shepherds that they seem unable to detect their own wrong-headed comments, some of which border on blasphemy.
As one example, Bishop Anthony Randazzo told a Synod press briefing that it was a “good thing” that Pope Francis addressed the issue of blessings for same-sex couples on the eve of the Synod. He suggested that previous Popes - not to mention God the Father - have failed to understand the complexities of human existence, by saying that Pope Francis (using his unique Gnostic powers, no doubt) “... is able to speak into issues that are real for people, by listening to them and not dismissing them, and allowing them to sit where they are so that they may come to a maturity.”
In that briefing, Bishop Randazzo went on to refer twice to “deep listening”, a term which, at first glance seems to be that active listening which is so necessary for meaningful conversations among human beings. However, the two are not interchangeable. “Deep listening” is a formal occult practice similar to meditation, designed to put a practitioner in touch with his “inner wisdom”. “Deep Listening” is practiced by indigenous Australians under the name of “Djirra”, and was promoted throughout the process of Australia’s Plenary Council - our dismal prelude to the “Synod on Synodality”. While Bishop Randazzo may have no idea of the true nature of “deep listening”, it is worrying that Australia’s bishops have picked up this terminology and that it is being woven into the “synodality” lexicon.
Another area which is surely leading both bishops and laity along the merry road to hell is indigenous spirituality and its incorporation into Catholic liturgy.
Bishop Shayne Mackinlay of the Sandhurst diocese has been even more open about his passion for modernist novelty. He told NCR that he would “welcome” the ordination of women to the diaconate, should the Synod recommend it. Well-trained in the art of synodality, his comments exhibit the dogma-vs-praxis paradigm made popular by Pope Francis. The pattern is clear: bleat something orthodox, then follow a “but” with the “concrete circumstances of life” justifying a cherished sin. Bishop Mackinlay stated that:
“Certainly, there was, as you'd anticipate, very clear reaffirmation of the importance of the church's doctrine and teachings. But there were also great insights into personal experience and personal encounter…” Dogma-but-praxis; it is The Synodal Way.
Another area which is surely leading both bishops and laity along the merry road to hell is indigenous spirituality and its incorporation into Catholic liturgy. While the Presbyterian Church of Australia has decided to ban indigenous practices such as smoking rituals in its churches, Australia’s bishops continue to embrace indigenous spirituality and causes wholeheartedly. The ultra-progressive Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Brisbane, has described injustices experienced by Aboriginals as “contemporary Australia’s original sin”. Coleridge has gone so far as to instruct his parish priests, many of them foreigners, in revisionist histories of the “white-man-bad” ilk.
Perth’s Archbishop, Timothy Costelloe, zealously promoted the ill-fated “Voice to Parliament”, an attempt to undermine the nation’s constitution by giving unelected indigenous activists veto power over federal legislation. The ACBC has also enthusiastically embraced the “Uluru Statement”, a document completely saturated in Marxism and which highlights the pre-colonial “sovereignty” of the Aboriginals (pagan tribalism) and decries “structuralism” (Western, Christian civilisation). The Uluru Statement is so ubiquitous among Australian Catholics that it can be found displayed in even the most traditional parishes.
There may be a clue as to why the Church in Australia exhibits such a paucity of courageous, orthodox clerics. This was recently pinpointed in a scathing sermon, by Fr Andre Feain, formerly of the diocese of Perth in Western Australia. After acknowledging the Vatican’s recent reaffirmation of the prohibition on Freemasonry, Fr Andre asked,
“Why, therefore, have bishops, priests, Catholics, laity especially in Australia, the Philippines, Argentina and other countries, embraced Freemasonry? Why have priests and Secretaries of Bishops, and Bishop Conferences in Australia said, and have allowed to be said, that priests can be Freemasons? Why have these cowards of the Catholic faith remained silent and yet receive Holy Communion when it is forbidden? It is forbidden to be a Freemason. You cannot receive Holy Communion otherwise you enter more deeply into serious sin.”
At the launch of his new Catechism, “Credo”, Bishop Athanasius Schneider spoke of the climate of fear which currently exists among the world’s bishops. Well may we ask what it is that these men fear, for, by all appearances, they do not fear the wrath of God.
Fr Andre’s comments refer to the revelation, made public by this author, that in 2017, the then-Secretary of the ACBC, Fr Stephen Hackett, gave permission for Catholics to be Freemasons. Despite repeated entreaties to several of Australia’s relatively orthodox Bishops, no public statement to condemn this abomination was ever made. Fr Andre continues:
The Catholic Church in Australia from the head down has been compromised to embrace teachings of the Freemasons because they are scared to embrace the Way, the Truth and the Life, because they are respectors of human opinion … For many of the clergy, Freemasonry slithered through the diocese’s chancery offices to appoint like-minded men to particular parishes and church agencies. If you want the job, you go slow and reject any prayer vigils outside an abortion clinic, or at least be indifferent to prolife matters. Stall, don't comment, laugh it off….. they will terminate, threaten and transfer priests who are seen to be pro-life and proactive. Ask any person in the pro-life movement about this.”
While it is true that a few of Australia’s bishops will attend popular pro-life marches and rallies, the overwhelming majority are just as Fr Andre notes: they ignore requests from pro-lifers and sweep the plight of the unborn under the carpet. If mentioned at all, the issue of abortion is relegated to a laundry-list of injustices, sandwiched somewhere between “migrants”, “poverty” and “indigenous”. This wilful avoidance of child-sacrifice on the part of the bishops was made crystal clear when abortion-tainted COVID treatments were mandated for priests and chancery employees, with some locking the unvaccinated faithful out of their parishes.
Fr Andre concludes:
“The Australian Bishops and clergy cannot change anything unless they themselves are catechized to know the evil of Freemasonry and how the diabolical snake of the Garden of Eden is crushing Souls.”
It is rare to hear a priest speak so clearly on one of the fundamental reasons underlying the inaction and silence of our Bishops. Mainstream Catholic media instead projects the persona of carefree prelates gaily opening another newly-built wing of another failed Catholic school or cherrily greeting yet another apostate politician or high-profile heretic. At the launch of his new Catechism, “Credo”, Bishop Athanasius Schneider spoke of the climate of fear which currently exists among the world’s bishops. Well may we ask what it is that these men fear, for, by all appearances, they do not fear the wrath of God.