Episode 3017: Unbroken Rite: The Legacy of Vatican II and the Fight for Sacred Tradition

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wbrt_UDi5EA\
Traditional Catholic Groups Explained

Unbroken Rite: The Legacy of Vatican II and the Fight for Sacred Tradition
Opening Prayer
O most merciful Lord Jesus Christ, eternal High Priest, we kneel before You in sorrow and supplication. We offer You this episode in reparation for the profanations of Your Holy Sacrifice. May Your truth be made known, Your Church be restored to tradition, and the hearts of the faithful rekindled in love for the beauty of the Mass of the Ages.
Through the intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, St. Pius X, and all holy Popes and martyrs of the Roman Rite, grant us fidelity and clarity. Amen.
In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.
Episode Introduction
As I said in a previous episode, I heard a very good summary of the Traditional Catholic Groups produced by the young man did a very good job at just explaining who they are without adding his editorial comments. I will provide a separate episode on this since I find it extremely valuable and also where I saw some very good Catholics go off the rail by not providing my simple advice. If you want to be a practicing Catholic simply do what the church did prior to Vatican II (1963) and practice the faith of our ancestors.
So lets get started!
In 1962, the Catholic Church opened the Second Vatican Council commonly known as Vatican II. Its stated purpose was to "update" the Church for the modern world. But instead of bringing clarity and renewal, it gave rise to confusion, disobedience, and division.
Most radically, it changed the way Catholics worshiped.
Today, we trace how Vatican II reshaped the Mass, examine the groups who resisted these changes, and explore what it means to remain faithful in an age of compromise.
PART 1: From the Altar of Sacrifice to the Table of Dialogue
Although Vatican II closed in 1965, the most consequential changes occurred afterward especially through the Concilium, a private commission responsible for rewriting the Roman Missal.
From 1964 to 1967, the entire Roman liturgy was transformed. What emerged in 1969 was the Novus Ordo Missae, the "New Order of the Mass."
Key changes included:
• The use of vernacular languages instead of Latin
• The priest now faces the people, rather than facing God with the people
• Communion on the hand and standing became common
• Sacred music was replaced by folk and contemporary songs
• Head coverings for women were no longer expected
Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich, in a vision, warned:
“I saw many pastors cherishing dangerous ideas against the Church. They were building a church of their own one without sacrifice, without sacraments, and without supernatural grace.”
She saw a Church undergoing self-destruction an image now eerily familiar to many traditional Catholics.

PART 2: The First Resistance: Archbishop Lefebvre & the SSPX
Amid this confusion rose Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, a former Vatican II council father and missionary bishop.
In 1970, he founded the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) to preserve the Traditional Latin Mass and form holy priests. When he consecrated four bishops in 1988 without papal permission, Rome declared him excommunicated a sentence later lifted by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009.
SSPX Beliefs:
• Accept the Pope’s legitimacy
• Reject Vatican II’s errors (religious liberty, ecumenism, collegiality)
• Accept the validity of the Novus Ordo, but reject its viability
• Use the 1962 Missal exclusively
St. Athanasius, in the midst of the Arian crisis, declared:
“They have the churches, but we have the faith.”
The SSPX grew rapidly, with missions around the world and seminaries on multiple continents. Its impact is undeniable even inspiring the creation of parallel traditional orders.
PART 3: Within the Walls: Ecclesia Dei Communities
Some priests and faithful, while committed to Tradition, wished to remain in formal communion with Rome. This gave rise to the Ecclesia Dei communities.
FSSP: Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter
Founded by ex-SSPX priests in 1988, the FSSP celebrates the Latin Mass while remaining under diocesan bishops.
ICKSP: Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest
Founded in 1990 in Gabon, Africa. Known for ornate vestments, chant, and Marian devotion (symbolized by their light blue choir cassocks).
IBP: Institute of the Good Shepherd
A French fraternity formed in 2006, granted leeway to critique Vatican II while respecting Rome’s authority.
Each of these groups accepts:
• The Pope as valid
• Vatican II (some critically)
• The Novus Ordo as valid and viable
• The use of both 1962 and pre-1955 Missals
St. Pius X reminded us:
“Far, far from the clergy be the love of novelty!”
These communities strive to live their charism without falling into disobedience.
PART 4: The Resistance to the Resistance: The SSPX Resistance
In 2012, negotiations between SSPX and Rome prompted a backlash among some SSPX clergy who felt Archbishop Lefebvre’s legacy was being compromised.
Led by Bishop Richard Williamson, and priests like Fr. Pfeiffer and Fr. Hewko, this movement emphasized total rejection of Vatican II and sometimes questioned the validity of the Novus Ordo itself.
Many Masses are held in homes, garages, or rented halls. Though diverse, they largely:
• Accept the Pope (some tolerate sedevacantist leanings)
• Reject Vatican II and the Novus Ordo
• Use the 1962 Missal

Fr. Chad Ripperger observed:
“When modernism infects the liturgy, it becomes man-centered. But the Traditional Mass is theocentric everything orients the soul to God.”
This hunger for God-centered worship drives faithful to even the most remote resistance chapels.
PART 5: Sedevacantism & Conclavism: From Doubt to Division
Some took their rejection even further declaring that the post-Vatican II popes were not valid popes at all.
Sedevacantist Groups:
• CMRI: Mount St. Michael in Spokane, WA
• SSPV: From SSPX, reject 1962 Missal
• ICR: Bishop Sanborn’s group in Florida
• Others include the IMBC, MHFM, and independent clergy
Most of these groups:
• Deny that Pope Francis is pope
• Reject Vatican II entirely
• Reject both the validity and viability of the Novus Ordo
• Use the pre-1955 Missal
Some advocate “stay-at-home sedevacantism”, where Catholics are told not to attend any Mass only pray at home.
Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich foresaw:
“I saw the Church of Peter undermined by a plan concocted by the secret sect... and confusion reign everywhere.”
And confusion indeed reigns when unity in Rome is denied.
PART 6: Conclavists: Electing Their Own Popes
Some sedevacantists take it one step further: they elect their own pope.
Groups like:
• The Palmarian Catholic Church in Spain
• The late Pope Michael in Kansas
• A variety of small conclavist groups
These “popes” operate independently, often with wild liturgical and theological practices.
Here, we heed the wisdom of St. Irenaeus, who said:
“Where the bishop is, there is the Church.”
Unity with Peter is essential to the Catholic identity.
PART 7: Conclusion: Fidelity Over Novelty
Today, the Traditional Latin Mass is alive despite opposition, exile, and marginalization.
From tiny resistance chapels to Rome-recognized apostolates, the faithful remain anchored in what St. Thomas Aquinas called “the most perfect prayer.”
Fr. Chad Ripperger again warns:
“The loss of the sense of the sacred is the root of the Church’s crisis. The Mass is where that sense must be restored.”
And restore it we must for the glory of God, and the salvation of souls.

Closing Prayer
O Lord Jesus Christ, eternal High Priest, You offered Yourself upon the Cross for the salvation of souls and now remain with us in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. We thank You for the grace of tradition, for the Mass of the saints and martyrs, and for those courageous enough to defend it.
Through the intercession of Your Most Holy Mother, St. Joseph, St. Pius V, St. Pius X, and all the saints of the Roman Rite, restore to Your Church the light of reverence, clarity of doctrine, and holiness of worship. Keep us faithful, keep us small, but keep us Yours.
Amen.
In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.