When Religious Authority Tries to Suppress Faithful Ministry

The SSPX is following the example of — IRONY ALERT — St. Peter.

In the aftermath of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) consecrating new bishops, and Rome responding with questionable excommunications, I’ve been thinking a lot about how to respond to errant church authority. And I was about to write a rather involved post on the subject. But I decided to spare you (and me) and instead focus on a specific instance of Peter and John respectfully defying religious authority in order to obey Christ’s call to minister the Gospel.

The whole episode can be found in Acts 3-4:22, but we shall focus on 4:17-21.

The Sanhedrin having interrogated Peter and John about their healing and preaching, and Peter having respectfully but clearly answered, the Council decides it does not want the Gospel to “spread any further among the people.” (NASB 95) So they commanded the two “that they speak henceforth to no man in this name.” (KJV) Note the response of Peter and John:

Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard. (NASB 95)

An important moment in church history! What if the Apostles had decided that they must obey the authority of Sadhedrin and cease spreading the Gospel? Thank God they decided differently!

They continue to acknowledge the Sanhedrin’s office of judgement. But they assert that God is the highest authority. Therefore they cannot stop following his call and command in ministry to keep “speaking about what we have seen and heard” about the Lord, His mighty acts, and His Holy Gospel. And they persisted in that decision even though the Council “threatened them further.” Peter and John thereby set the standard for Christian conduct and ministry when religious authority forbids what Christ has commanded.

And is not the SSPX following the example of St. Peter? (Yes, irony abounds.)

Under a catholic model of ordained ministry, bishops are essential. For, among other duties, they ordain priests to teach the Faith and administer the sacraments. No bishops, no priests. (Or at least no validly ordained priests). And no priests, no Mass.

So it is not just a matter of church organization behind the SSPX’s pleas to the Pope that they needed to consecrate new bishops. And they were right to consecrate them when it became obvious papal permission to ordain new bishops was not forthcoming. It is a matter of continuing to minister as Christ has commanded. It is a matter of the salvation of souls.

And is not the Vatican following the bad example of the Sanhedrin? It is hardly a secret that the Modernists in charge want the SSPX to fade away. They certainly do not want their Traditional Catholicism to “spread any further among the people.” If SSPX were kept from consecrating traditionalist bishops, it would eventually kill their ministry. And that was the very path Pope Leo XIV was taking by ignoring their pleas for bishops as well as ignoring pleas for an audience. Leo ignored them until the last minute, and even then told them not to consecrate new bishops. Further there were threats of excommunication, which also followed the anti-Christian lead of the Sanhedrin.

All through church history malefactors in the seats of authority have so attempted to suppress the Faith by suppressing faithful ministry. Arian bishops had orthodox bishops like Athanasius exiled. The Puritans in power under Cromwell suppressed the ministries of faithful Anglicans, and when Anglicans came back to power, they returned the favor and suppressed faithful Puritan ministers (which harmed the Church of England in the long run but that is another story). Today it is impossible for forthright men of the Faith to be ordained in many apostate churches and dioceses. It is an old tactic, going back to that Sanhedrin itself, to try to suppress the Faith by suppressing the ministers of the Faith. And, sadly, we are now seeing Pope Leo and his minions committing that same grave sin.

(Now church authorities do and should have authority to suppress ministries. That is necessary in dealing with significant error or immorality in ministers. One of my favorite popes, Clement XIV, suppressed the Jesuits. John Paul II disciplined a few priests in the Liberation Theology cabal. One of the many failures of Leo XIV is he is not suppressing the likes of James Martin and Robert McElroy. But that authority should not be used to suppress the Faith itself or faithful ministry.)

Faithful Christian ministers, although remaining respectful to legitimate authority, are not to give up or to give in to that old tactic of suppression. St. Peter showed us the way. And the SSPX is following St. Peter’s good example.