Catholics warring against the Pope?

[KiwiNFLFan]

The extreme disconnect between what the Catholic church taught and practiced pre-1960s and what the Catholic church teaches and practices today has led some Catholics to conclude that the current pope and several of his predecessors were not true popes but heretics. As a result, the papal throne is currently vacant and has been since 1958 (or 1963 according to some). These people are called sedevacantists, a name taken from a Latin phrase meaning "the seat is vacant" and used to refer to the period of time between the death (or resignation) of one pope and the election of his successor.

The splinter group mentioned in the article is the Society of St Pius X, with whom I have been involved. I used to attend their chapel when I lived in Wellington. They practice and teach the Catholic faith the way it was (at least in some places) before Vatican II in the 1960s. They celebrate only the Traditional Latin Mass and their priests still wear cassocks.  They are not sedevacantists, but are very critical of the current pope and hierarchy, sometimes using the term "Conciliar Church" to describe them. They will tell you not to go to the New Mass and are opposed to television.

Technically (except for a small few instances such as the vernacular mass) rcc teaching is the same today as before Vatican 2. But to squar reality and changing cultural nores with papal infallibility (meaning very little is actually up for negotiation in rcc doctrine) the church simply neglects to tell its sheep what's allowed and forbidden under its rules.

Of course the church is still well behind the timse, so don't expect it to go silent on abortion or homosexuality for a few generations yet.

The three main areas where Catholic teaching changed after Vatican II are ecumenism, religious liberty and collegiality. 

Ecumenism - The official teaching of the RCC is that she is the only true church. This has not been changed (but I think a significant number of Catholics don't actually believe it). Prior to Vatican II, Catholics were forbidden to attend non-Catholic services without a good reason, and even with a good reason they couldn't actively participate. Vatican II encouraged a move towards unity between Catholics and other Christians and dialogue with non-Christian religions (and not with the aim of converting the non-Catholics to Catholicism either). Interfaith services took place and Catholics took part in non-Catholic (and even non-Christian) services. There are pictures of the current pope in a synagogue (when he was still an archbishop) and Pope John Paul II kissed the Qur'an.

Religious Liberty - Prior to Vatican II the Catholic taught that people only had the right to practice the Catholic religion but no right to practice other religions. Pope Pius IX in his Syllabus of Errors said that it was an error to say that the state should not suppress non-Catholic religions. Separation of church and state had been previously condemned by church leaders. Vatican II said that everyone has the right to religious liberty. Separation of church and state took place in many Catholic countries after the council.

Collegiality - This was an attempt to democratise the church by saying that there exists at all times a college of bishops which has authority and jurisdiction over the church. Traditional Catholic teaching says that the pope has full and supreme jurisdiction over the church.

While most teachings haven't been officially changed, a lot are no longer believed by a significant portion of Catholics. I don't know how many non-traditionalist priests believe that there is no salvation outside the Catholic church and believe that all non-Catholics need to be converted. A large number of Catholics dissent from the church's teaching on contraception and other sexual issues (there are bishops in Germany, for instance, who want the church to accept homosexual relationships). There is also a group who call themselves "Catholics for choice" who are in favour of abortion.

With regard to the "vernacular Mass", this is a significant issue as that's where the average lay Catholic encounters the Catholic faith. There is a saying, Lex orandi, lex credendi (the law of praying [is] the law of believing) which means that how one prays influences how one believes. The Mass was not simply translated from Latin to the vernacular but rather a group called the Consilium was convened to revise the Mass. They drew up a new order of Mass (Latin: Novus Ordo Missae), which traditionalists claim introduced certain changes that Martin Luther and Anglican Archbishop Thomas Cranmer had introduced in their liturgies). However, the changes went far further than what was actually required. For example, one change that was never mandated in either Vatican II or the new missal (Mass book) but has pretty much become the norm is the priest facing the people to say Mass. Prior to Vatican II, in most places the priest stood with his back to the people facing the altar, turning around at only a few points in the Mass. After Vatican II and down to the present day, in most churches, the priest stands on the far side of a table-like altar and faces the congregation. In many churches, beautiful altars were smashed after Vatican II and replaced with often plain altars that allowed the priest to face the people while saying Mass. Also, prior to Vatican II, only the priest (or deacon) was allowed to touch the "body of Christ" (consecrated bread) and the sacred vessels. People knelt at the altar rail to receive the sacred Host which the priest placed directly on the tongue. The chalice was withheld from the people. After Vatican II, permission was given in many countries for the faithful to receive the sacred Host in the hand, as well as for laypeople to assist the priest in distributing Communion. Giving the chalice to the laity had been allowed even before the close of Vatican II.

Your average Catholic's experience at a pre-Vatican II church is radically different to their experience at a post-Vatican II church. This has led some traditionalist Catholics to say that traditional Catholicism and post-Vatican II Catholicism are two separate religions. The difference between them is vast.