Against The Grain

Thursday, June 03, 2004

The Cardinal Ratzinger Fan Club (and this particular blogger) would like to recognize Traditional Catholic Reflections & Reports (TCRNews.Com) and its faithful editors, Stephen Hand Carol O'Reilly, and their 5th year of service on the internet as a "lay apostolate" providing Catholic news and commentary from an orthodox perspective. Since 1999 they have been navigating the rough waters of conflict and controversy, maintaining their fidelity to the Catholic faith in accordance with their mission:

We are partisan to the Church's Magisterium alone and respect truth wherever it is found. With the Church, and subject to her correction, we seek to transcend the old polarities of right and left, whether political or theological, knowing that the Church both conserves and develops in time. In point of fact there are no "conservatives," "liberals," or "traditionalists," there are only those who obey the living magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church, which alone may interpret the scriptures and the Church's tradition -- and, alas, those who do not.

The great summary and criterion of orthodoxy for Catholics in our time is the Catechism of the Catholic Church which summarizes and reaffirms the whole doctrinal tradition of the Roman Catholic Church. With the Holy Father and Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, we urge a return to the actual texts of the documents of Vatican II and reject any proposed "renewal" which would seek to go beyond or stray from the actual texts. We must ever recall, post hoc, ergo propter hoc: to translate in this context, "just because it [certain rebellions] happened after" the Council "doesn’t mean it was caused by" the Council...

For their persistent and provocative witness, and especially for their defense of the Holy Father and the Church, I remain sincerely appreciative.