“… If I should have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” (I Corinthians 13:2)
In moments of great tension within the Church, we must remember that every judgment made must ultimately serve the salvation of souls. Truth can never be separated from charity, nor charity from truth.
As discussions continue regarding the Society of St. Pius X, I believe we must ask a question that reaches deeper than canonical arguments or historical disputes. What has moved these priests and faithful throughout the past fifty years?
To understand the Society, we must remember its beginnings. Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre did not embark upon this path because it was easy, nor because it brought him honor or peace. Whatever one thinks of every decision he made, few would deny that he bore immense personal suffering. He believed that precious treasures entrusted by Christ to His Church – the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the reverent celebration of the sacred mysteries, the formation of holy priests, and the perennial teachings of the Catholic Faith – were in danger of being diminished. His response was born from a profound desire to preserve and hand on what generations of Catholics had received with gratitude.
That love for the Church’s sacred inheritance has continued to inspire many priests, religious, and faithful families who have accepted misunderstanding and sacrifice because they believe these treasures were worth preserving for future generations.
Looking honestly at their history, one sees men and women who have sacrificed greatly because they believed they were preserving the treasures entrusted to the Church by Christ Himself: the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the reverence due to the Holy Eucharist, the perennial doctrine of the Catholic Faith, and the sacred traditions handed down through the centuries.
Whether every decision made along the way was prudent is a question that reasonable Catholics may discuss. But it is difficult to deny the love that has inspired countless sacrifices, vocations, families, and faithful souls who have desired only to remain close to Our Lord and faithful to the deposit of faith.
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