WINTER MAILBAG # 3

Pistrina Liturgica:

IMHO the Traditional Church has been in free fall since the 2009 SGG School Scandal. In the last year or so everything has gone to the dogs. We now have several new bishops and new priests appear every day. New seminaries are popping up everywhere. There is even a new wild rumor about a married man's ordination.

I know the old guard is bad. But don't you think it would have been better to put up with their shenanigans than suffer through this mess? At least there would be some kind of "quality control." I feel like the whole movement will be destroyed by this disaster.

We agree that Traddielandia has tumbled precipitously downhill in the last three years. However, Trad-World was a disaster before the shameful SGG episode exposed its diseased corpse: Greed. Waste. Incompetence. Nastiness and backbiting. Bishops behaving badly. Priests forgetting the consecration or unable to perform a graveside service. Crying deacons. New mortal sins. Distraught "seminarians" running away en masse late at night following a disgraceful scream-fest.

That was the norm, remember. Before 2009, we just couldn't see it owing to the foggy hype, sophomoric marketing ploys, and undeserved self-congratulation oozing like raw sewage from the cult centers. After 2009, the blinders came off. The knuckle-heads opened Pandora's box, and crushed hope as they hamfistedly tried to close it.

Actually, when you think about it, the current situation isn't too much different from the pre-November 2009 dog days. Ill-formed wandering bishops generally self-elected themselves to the episcopacy (either directly or through transparent campaigning). There was no committee of well-formed  churchmen to evaluate their fitness and recommend their candidacy.  All that was needed was ambition and a willing (or gullible?) consecrator. The same goes for the priests. Any warm body could gain admission to sede "seminaries." Capturing holy orders was (and still is) more a function of groveling brown-nosing than academic and spiritual merit. The only sacred rule was not to offend any member of the ruling confederacy of dunces.

Is it, then, any wonder why young mediocrities have pantingly aspired to a chance at grabbing the brass ring? In the aftermath of the 2009 débâcle (which average executive skills and a smattering of common sense could have prevented), every wannabe saw the field wide open. Truth to tell, there had never been much talent in the sede faction in the first place. And most certainly there was never, ever much thought given to genuine "quality control" (as some of Abp. Lefebvre's ordinations prove). Naked ambition alone, not ability or achievement, was the key to an upwardly mobile life on the laity's nickel. In the absence of the awe and mystery inspired by men of exceptional intellectual and spiritual gifts, any hungry, wet-behind-the-ears non-entity could figure out the recipe for getting ahead in Trad-World: (1) a generous handful of chutzpah, (2) a pinch of feral drive, and (3) a soupçon of reckless self-promotion.

Overall, however, we regard the current messy state of Traddielandia as beneficial. First of all, a few decent, well-educated, and able clergy have emerged. More important, the wretched, little, regional cult monopolies have been broken forever. More and more clergy will become available to offer chapels a choice, and these chapels will directly compete with the hobbled cults for donations and members. The increased choice and competition will put lay boards in the driver's seat, so if these newly minted clergy start to emulate the "old guard," they can be swiftly replaced. As long as this new breed of clergy learns to say Mass correctly and abide by the seal of confession, the laity should be able to look forward to a period of calm (and a few more dollars in their bank accounts -- much needed now in light of the recently restored federal payroll tax). Moreover, the new ex-SSPX Resistance movement with its superior clergy will continue to grow and introduce even greater competition -- and restraint.

But wait! There's an added bonus: Those poor, bewildered "Traddie Trash" who misguidedly stayed with their ol' sede cult masters can surely expect improved conditions at their compounds: the "old guard" will have to be on its best behavior if it wants to continue enjoying luxury vacations and lavish restaurant meals. (We may be witnessing this happy outcome already: last week, "One Hand" confessed in his bulletin that going out to lunch at a local, upscale chain-restaurant was "a rare treat anymore"; then he defensively added, in what read like an uneasy attempt to forestall simmering resentment, "we had a gift certificate." They never used to explain themselves like that before the self-inflicted 2009 crisis!)

So, we thank any prelate who, in the good, old-fashioned sede tradition stretching back to the archbishop, lays hands on lightly. (We hope they make sure to use both hands!) We welcome all the newbies and wish them happy hunting. May they increase and multiply. 

They can't be any worse than what we had before the 2009 calamity.