The Traditional movement is full of individuals who have taken on what is called the “Recognize & Resist” understanding of the Church. Included on this list are people like “Bishop” Athanasius Schneider, “Archbishop” Carlo Vigano, “Cardinal” Raymond Burke, et al. I put quotes around their titles, because as I have demonstrated in this Column previously, the consecration of each of these individuals was derived from Paul VI’s new ordinal, (1968) which is, at best doubtful and most probably invalid. At any rate, a sacrament that is doubtful must be considered invalid in the practical order.
Laymen such as John-Henry Westen, editor of LifeSite News, and Michael Voris of Church Militant generally fall into this category of “Recognize & Resist,” along with many others. Catholic Family News and The Society of St. Pius the X are in the category of recognize and resisters.
What is “Recognize & Resist?” It means that an individual or an organization recognize Bergoglio as the true pope and the Novus Ordo sect as valid but disobey most everything concerning him and it. Even without much training in philosophy and theology, most people should see this as absurd, don’t you think? The “bright light” in R&R circles these days still seems to be Taylor Marshall. According to Wikipedia Marshall:
is an American Catholic YouTube commentator, former Episcopal Church priest, and former academic, now known for his advocacy of traditionalist Catholicism. He is the author of multiple books, including the 2019 bestselling book Infiltration: The Plot to Destroy the Church from Within.
Taylor Marshall is married, with he and his wife having eight children. He holds several academic degrees, the most significant of which being a Doctor of Philosophy degree in philosophy from the University of Dallas in 2011. He has also held various positions in academia over the years. Before I go any further, I must interject a few thoughts about people and their academic degrees. Two of us graduated with undergraduate degrees in philosophy way back in 1982 from Siena Heights College, now University. Believe me, I make no claims to being a great philosopher, however I had a solid understanding of what philosophy was and could articulate its principles with some intelligibility. My classmate, who actually had a higher GPA than myself, was totally clueless. Her professors did not teach her how to think, and as a result she graduated with a degree, with around a 3.50 average, but not having any idea what the
discipline was all about. It was incredible. After college she got a job doing “clown ministry” at a hospital somewhere. I’ll say no more about that! My point: beware of people with degrees and credentials, as they could very well be dangerous. To be continued.