Cardinal Pell and the ‘Demos’ Memorandum
VATICAN CITY — A text is being attributed to the late Cardinal George Pell that summarizes deep concerns he and many others in Rome have had about the current crisis in the Church and the direction of this pontificate.
Last March during Lent, the veteran Italian Vaticanist Sandro Magister published the text and described it as a “memorandum”circulated to cardinal electors and pseudonymously written under the name “Demos,” the Greek name for people. Magister wrote at the time that it was written by someone who “shows himself a thorough master of the subject” and it “cannot be ruled out that he himself is a cardinal.”
Last week, Magister revealed to the Associated Press that Cardinal Pell was the author. He also told the Register Jan. 13 that “the text was handed over to me personally by Cardinal Pell” who was “very pleased that I published it, provided I did not mention the name of the author.
“And he wrote it all,” Magister said, “from the first words to the last.”
Read the rest HERE.
15 comments:
Good for Cardinal Pell. Maybe the only good thing to come out of this pontificate is a rejection of hyper ultramontanism. Pope Francis is totally unfit to exercise this type of authority. People should hold a pontiff’s feet to the fire. I would be in favor of a canonical process to remove an unfit pontiff
I agree with TJM in principle. To me, and with TC, a pandora's box has been opened such that governing by whim and popularity might become the order of the day. Successor popes nullifying the work of prior popes just because it doesn't match their style. Chaos will ensue.
Regarding the office of Supreme Pontiff, it might be time to craft a mechanism to censure and correct and, heaven forbid, remove. If anything is learned, one person, elected by men, cannot hold hostage an entity with the behaviors and actions we have often lamented here. On the flip side, such measures must protect against undue persecution of one who is a pillar and protector of the faith. In other words, rule by faction cannot be allowed. Such mechanism should cascade down to all levels to weed out pockets of evil undermining the successor of Peter. Again, where a papacy is deemed flawed, pockets of decent that are acting as pillars of the faith should not face persecution. In corporate culture, it's called a whistleblower.
I sincerely hope that another poster here doesn't fire up his magic copy/paste machine to justify through endless "declarations" (some of which might have been said decades ago) how wrong these men "in question" are for simply trying to save an institution to which they have dedicated their lives and clearly love. I doubt any here "hate Pope Francis". I cannot practice a behavior that I, nor anyone else here, was taught. Regarding the current pontificate, I'm disappointed as well as disillusioned, I sincerely wish things were different and I pray for a change of heart. When is enough, enough? I suppose the Holy Spirit will decide. More locally, and after a decade, the St. Marta Boarding House might want their room back. No one should expect the free continental breakfast for that long.
There are massive, monumental credibility problems in regard to the "Cardinal Pell was Demos" claim.
The Demos nonsense has just exploded.
Edward Pentin has reported today that just three days ago, Sandro Magister "told the Register...the text was handed over to me personally by Cardinal Pell" who was “very pleased that I published it, provided I did not mention the name of the author."
"And he wrote it all,” Magister said, “from the first words to the last."
Okay...Sandro Magister has assured the world that he had received the Demos text from Cardinal Pell, and that Cardinal Pell "wrote it all...from the first words to the last."
However, Edward Pentin in the same article today declared that "Those closest to the cardinal have downplayed the cardinal’s involvement, telling the Register that the text was the “work of many hands,” possibly as many as six or seven cardinals, but that Cardinal Pell was not the direct author."
That has made Sandro Magister a liar. He insisted that he received the Demos text from Cardinal Pell, who had written every word of said letter, according to Magister.
Conversely, if we believe Magister claim, that Cardinal Pell was Demos, then the National Catholic Register's sources — "Those closest to the cardinal have downplayed the cardinal’s involvement..." — have lied.
The bottom line is that the Cardinal-Pell-was-Demos claim has just take a massive, monumental, credibility hit.
Massive chaos has engulfed the Cardinal-Pell-was-Demos story.
The person, or persons, responsible for the vile, cowardly, anonymous, attempted verbal assassination of the holy Vicar of Christ has/have had the Demos letter story blow up in his face/or their faces.
The vile attack against Pope Francis was Satanic...and Satan, as he always does, makes his minions look bad...he betrays, and always has the last laugh, on those who perform his work.
Pax.
Mark Thomas
Pope Francis’ attack on the TLM is Satanic, Mr. Cut and Paste Instead of Thinking
I am among Cardinal Pell's supporters. I believe that Cardinal Pell had led a holy life. I believe that he was an honest, holy, stand-up man.
That is why I was amazed that many among his supporters had accepted in uncritical fashion the questionable claim that Cardinal Pell was Demos. Well, on a certain level, I was not amazed. I recognized that many among the above-mentioned folks were those who had long-despised Pope Francis. Said folks were keen to have accepted the story in question.
However, on another level, I was amazed that the Cardinal's supporters had accepted in uncritical fashion the Cardinal-Pell-was-Demos claim. The reason is that the Cardinal-Pell-was-Demos claim defamed Cardinal Pell.
To have authored the Demos letter had meant Cardinal Pell had operated as a two-faced liar. As a man who had led a double-life. That is, Cardinal Pell had assured the world publicly that Pope Francis' Pontificate was orthodox, and benefitted Holy Mother Church.
Cardinal Pell had assured the world that Pope Francis was of fine personal character. However, in private, Cardinal Pell had spoken in opposite fashion supposedly.
When he could hide himself from public view, Cardinal Pell had spoken in vicious, horrific fashion against Pope Francis' Pontificate, as well the Pope's personal character.
In public, Cardinal Pell was one type of man. In private, when he could operate in the shadows, he was the opposite.
That is what those who have promoted the Cardinal-Pell-was-Demos claim have made of Cardinal Pell.
Pax.
Mark Thomas
With Father McDonald's permission, I wish please to add:
Let us pretend that Cardinal Pell had written the Demos assault against Pope Francis.
Cardinal Pell, then, is a key accomplice in regard to Pope Francis; supposed catastrophic Pontificate.
For nearly 10 years, Cardinal Pell had informed the world that Pope Francis' was a fine, orthodox man whose Pontificate had benefitted the Church.
Cardinal Pell had refused publicly to confront a supposed evil Pope whose Pontificate had wrecked the Church supposedly. Cardinal Pell had refused publicly to have informed us as to the supposed awful truth in regard to Pope Francis.
Cardinal Pell had permitted Pope Francis' supporters to employ against the Pope's detractors his (Cardinal Pell's) many positive public assessments of Pope Francis' Pontificate, as well as personal character.
Cardinal Pell denounced publicly those who had insisted that Pope Francis' Pontificate had proved catastrophic to the Church.
Cardinal Pell (Demos supposedly), as Pope Francis' prominent, public ally, served as Pope Francis' enabler.
Pax.
Mark Thomas
Mr. Cut and Paste go to bed
"Pope Francis; supposed catastrophic Pontificate"
A massive drop in Mass attendance is not a "supposed" catastrophe
https://fsspx.news/en/news-events/news/united-states-sees-largest-drop-church-attendance-decades-38548
A decline in priestly vocations is not a "supposed catastrophe
https://www.lifesitenews.com/blogs/vocations-to-the-priesthood-continue-to-plummet-under-pope-francis/
Firing the members of the Pontifical Academy for Life and replacing them with pro-aborts and atheists is not a "supposed" catastrophe
https://www.ncregister.com/blog/pal-appoints-mariana-mazzucato
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252589/vatican-press-office-pro-abortion-pontifical-academy-for-life-member-contributes-to-dialogue
There is so much more we could list here as not "supposed" but ACTUALLY tragic consequences of the Sankt Gallen Pontificate, but it would seem to me that a decline of Mass attendance, a decline of priestly vocations (after a surge under the previous pontiff) and an erasure of the Vatican's pro-life support system are fairly serious enough to make the point.
Mark, I sense you really want to be a good Catholic and it is a wonderful instinct to NOT want to disagree with a sitting pope. However, when that pope goes astray, it is not only necessary, but it is your responsibility. This makes me sick, because I NEVER thought I would see this kind of horror in my lifetime, but it is here and it is real.
Pell never "enabled" any of this. He stayed on and tried to work "under the radar" to minimize the damage--damage that he could never have hsf s chance of mitigating had he proclaimed his disagreements with Francis. Had he done so, he would have either been dismissed or demoted, like Francis did to Cardinal Burke.
Jesus said that we had to be as cunning as wolves and as innocent as lambs. Look no further than Cardinal Pell. Led like a lamb to the prisons of Australia for crimes he never committed, cunning as a wolf in his dealing with duplicitous and apostate Churchmen.
Retired and laicized bishops and cardinals have little or no influence. Pell knew this. God bless his memory.
Crd Pell a martyr. Santo subito, no?
Jerome Merwick, how do you think Mark Thomas will respond to this?
"Seminarians from Barcelona say they were scandalized when Pope Francis reportedly used the f-word and other expletives at a papal audience in Rome.
According to testimonies from the seminarians, Francis ranted against “f***ing careerists who f*** up the lives of others.” The pope criticized “those who climb to show their a**,” the Italian media outlet Daily Compass reported on Monday.
The trainee priests were shocked when Francis also reportedly insisted that priests should never deny absolution to penitents in the confessional under any circumstances."
Pope Francis sounds distinctly, "unholy" and heretical, all in the same speech. Can one imagine any other Pope in our lifetime behaving in this churlish manner?
TJM
The language doesn't bother me, I guarantee you I would have started laughing. I don't get scandalized easily.
We clearly aren't dealing with a Saint in the making, or a future doctor of the Church. I just wished he treated his flock fairly, equally and didn't introduce so much confusion.
I am not sure I trust the source of this reporting. While I am sure that most men have the potential to speak this way, I don’t know too many priests or bishops, let alone the pope, who would do it in a public setting. If it is true, not so much the use of vulgar language but in this kind of public “church” setting, I would be very concerned that the priest or bishop or even a pope, might be off his mental health meds. It just isn’t appropriate given the public setting.
Luther repotedly had a potty mouth; of courqse, he was a heretic.
Father McDonald,
Would you be more likely to trust THIS source?
https://catholicherald.co.uk/pope-francis-rants-against-delinquent-priests-who-withhold-absolution-2/
I am waiting for the “cut and paste” defense replete with lots of holies!
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