Note: I regard Roman Catholicism as a valid and valuable Christian denomination, and one that seems to contain many of the rare real-Christians who currently exist (so far as I can judge).
It is precisely because I regard the Roman church as so important to the survival and thriving of Christianity, that I comment upon it - including critically.
At present, some of the rare real-Christians among Roman Catholics, fall into the category of 'traditionalists' or trads. This is essentially fine and good; but the position has a 'fatal flaw' that renders it fragile in the context of these End Times, where The World is against God, Jesus and Christianity; and all institutions of significant size, power and status to be important in the world, are subject to great and increasing corruption towards the evil strategies of the secular (thus demonic) powers.
This comment is about the fatal flaw...
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I find it strange to read trad Roman Catholic bloggers who are very obviously making personal discernments - for instance that Francis is an anti-Catholic Pope and agent of (secular, left, totalitarian, globalist) evil.
And then they suddenly 'panic' and realize that they are failing to be obedient to 'the church' - and 'walk back' everything they have just said, with some kind of 'it's just my opinion and means nothing', and 'the church must and will decide - and correctly', and 'my job is not to pick-and-choose, but just to obey the church'.
This seems to be a deeply confused and self-contradictory attitude, setting 'the discernment of the heart' against 'obedience' to authority - setting the deepest Christian motivation against traditional definitions of what it is to be Christian, derived from a time where the RCC 'spoke with one voice'...
And therefore a point of fracture that will surely be unable to withstand the pressures being brought to bear on Christian faith, as its institutions (the churches) become absorbed into the unified global bureaucracy.
Such trads want to be meekly obedient to 'the church' because they believe that is what Roman Catholics ought to be; but they cannot decide what exactly 'the church' is, without first using their personal discernment - which they do not want to do.
Yet they Must choose; because there are so many different (and mutually opposed) Roman Catholic voices each claiming to be, or to define, 'the church'.
And therefore a choice must be made between these rival claimants, and indeed a choice is made.
But the fact that there has already been a choice must then be denied!
And is denied.
And the trads then claim to be living in simple obedience to the single voice of the church (no personal discernment necessary!) - just as a medieval peasant might have done.
This can't end well...
What is needed is simple... but difficult.
It is the explicit acknowledgement that even the most traditionalist and orthodox Roman Catholic bases his faith - his obedience - upon personal discernments and choices among the many competing voices of authority.
After this discernment has been made, and responsibility for it taken by the individual - then it is perfectly rational and consistent to live a traditional Christian life: in obedience to that which has been recognized as legitimate authority.
But at some point, in some respect; each individual - here-and-now - is compelled to make a choice that has no ultimate basis but his own personal judgment.
Unless he is clear about this necessary fact; his faith is built on sand, because it is built on a lie.
