The End of a Taboo: Even Romano Amerio Is “A True Christian”

Amerio was the leading figure of the traditionalist opposition in the Church of the twentieth century, and was punished for this through a general ostracism. But now it turns out that his central thesis is the same as that of Benedict XVI – who wants to make peace with the Lefebvrists

By Sandro Magister

ROMA, February 6, 2006 – For the morning of Monday, February 13, Benedict XVI has scheduled a meeting of the cardinal prefects of the Vatican congregations in order to decide two questions: the lifting of the sentence of excommunication against the followers of archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, and the widening of the permission to celebrate the Mass in Latin according to the rite established by the Council of Trent.

Benedict XVI has already taken two important steps toward the correction of these irregularities.

On August 29, at Castelgandolfo, he received the two principal leaders of the Lefebvrist Fraternity, Bernard Fellay and Franz Schmidberger, “in an atmosphere of love for the Church and of the desire to arrive at perfect communion.”

On December 22, in his pre-Christmas address to the Vatican curia, he made an interpretation of Vatican Council II that took into account the seriousness of some of the criticisms advanced by the traditionalists. In particular, the pope wanted to reassure them that the conciliar decree on religious liberty does not have to be understood as a surrender to relativism.

Continued...