⛪️ The Modernist Apostasy and the Destruction of the Church: An Analysis of the Conciliar Revolution
In this crucial chapter, Dr. Rama P. Coomaraswamy dissects the philosophical and theological roots that led to the current catastrophe in the Catholic Church, arguing that the crisis is not accidental, but the result of the triumph of condemned heresies, specifically Liberalism and Modernism, which were enthroned by the Second Vatican Council. The author begins by acknowledging that those responsible for the changes in the Church may have acted with what they considered "good intentions," similar to the High Priest Caiaphas, who justified the crucifixion of Christ as a benefit to the people. The current hierarchy believes that the "old Church" must die so that a "new Church" - the Church of the "new Pentecost" - can live. However, these intentions paved the road to hell. The innovators, imbued with false notions of progress and liberalism, believed that if the Church did not speak to modern man, the fault lay with the Church, forgetting that it was modern man who refused to listen to God. They sought to make the Church "relevant" to an alienated world, abandoning her role as "Teacher" (Magister) to become a "servant," an attitude reflecting the Luciferian rebellion of non serviam (I will not serve) and the choice of human judgment over the divine (p. 384-385).
⚔️ The Revolution and Liberalism
Coomaraswamy identifies the driving force behind this change as "the Revolution," not merely the French historical event of 1789, but a permanent principle of hatred against any order not established by man. The Revolution is "the proclamation of the rights of man free from the care of the rights of God" and the enthronement of man in the place of God (p. 386). The philosophical basis of this revolution is Liberalism, whose fundamental premise is that each individual is free to decide for himself what is true or false, not being subject to any law superior to his own reason and will. Liberalism proclaims the absolute sovereignty of the individual and his total independence from God's authority. The author cites Fr. Felix Sarda to summarize Liberalism as the absolute sovereignty of the individual, society, and the civil state, with unrestricted freedom of thought and press, ignoring any divine criterion (p. 387). The text recalls that all Popes, from Pius VI to Leo XIII, repeatedly condemned these errors. Pius IX, in particular, with Quanta Cura and the Syllabus, condemned the separation of Church and State, freedom of conscience and worship as inalienable rights, and the idea that the will of the people constitutes the supreme law. Such condemnations were consistent with the Church's traditional practice of combating rebellion against the supernatural order (p. 388-389).
🦠 Modernism: The Synthesis of All Heresies
The author explains that Modernism is essentially the application of liberal principles to the realm of Doctrine, Theology, and History. It is the most vicious form of liberalism, as it disguises itself under the appearance of defending religion. The author resumes St. Pius X's definition in the encyclical Pascendi, identifying the pillars of modernism: Agnosticism, where human reason is confined to phenomena, rejecting Revelation and superior intellectuality; Vital Immanence, in which faith does not come from without (hearing the Word), but springs from the subconscious and the human need for God; Dogmatic Evolutionism, where truth and dogma are not fixed but evolve as man's collective consciousness changes; and finally, Scientism, where faith must be submitted to the criteria of modern science and historical criticism (p. 394).
🏛️ Vatican II: The Canonization of Error
The central point of the author's critique is that Vatican II adopted all these liberal and modernist ideas as Catholic doctrine. Maritain's impossible dream of uniting "Saint Joan of Arc and the Storming of the Bastille" became a reality. The Council declared that man possesses an innate dignity independent of his conformity to the divine will and proclaimed Religious Liberty, based on the dignity of the human person, asserting that man must be guided by his own judgment in religious matters. This, according to the author, amounts to saying that Christ gave man the right to ignore His teachings and to blaspheme against God, and that the State must protect this "right" to propagate error (p. 389-390). The consequences of this apostasy are Indifferentism (one religion is as good as another) and Syncretism (the attempt to create a world religion based on the lowest common denominator). The "New Church" seeks to unite humanity not in Truth, but in a vague fraternity, accepting as "people of God" anyone who has "good will," including atheists and communists (p. 391). Coomaraswamy vigorously denounces the abandonment of the concept of the Catholic State. The new Church, following the mandate of Vatican II, induced Catholic countries to alter their constitutions to eliminate the recognition of Catholicism as the official religion, effectively dethroning Christ the King in favor of secularism, which opened the doors to divorce, abortion, and the moral destruction of society (p. 392).
🤝 Moral Betrayal and the Alliance with Marxism
In the moral field, the post-conciliar Church abandoned absolute values. Sin and hell have been banished from the vocabulary. The "new morality" or "situational ethics" permits abominations under the pretext of being "liberating" and "enriching," provided they follow subjective conscience. Furthermore, the Church accepted Marxist and socialist ideology. The author criticizes the Council's refusal to condemn communism and the Vatican's subsequent Ostpolitik, which betrayed martyrs like Cardinal Mindszenty. The post-conciliar Church not only tolerates but promotes socialism under the guise of "social justice" and "progress," ignoring that communism is intrinsically evil (p. 392-393).
🛐 The False God of Progress and the Idolatry of Man
The "New Church" replaced the worship of God with the cult of man. It believes in "progress" and "evolution" as universal laws, viewing history as an inevitable march toward an earthly utopia (Teilhard de Chardin's "Omega Point"). In doing so, the Church abdicated her role as spiritual guide to become the "servant of the world," promoting a "new humanism" where man is defined by his responsibility to history and his brothers, rather than to God (p. 397). The author argues that this belief in progress and evolution are the true "opiates of the people," providing a false faith in a future superman and a false hope in an earthly paradise. The traditional Church knows that no tyranny or progress will eliminate suffering, for human nature is fallen. The attempt to create a perfect society without God is demonic and doomed to failure (p. 418).
🌍 Ecumenism: The Great Betrayal
Ecumenism is denounced as placing Truth on the bargaining table. It is the "death of hope" that Truth exists. To achieve unity with heretics and pagans, the post-conciliar Church diluted her doctrine, destroyed her liturgy, and compromised her sacraments. The author asserts that ecumenism is "the best possible way of neutralizing Christianity" and "the most perfect trap the Devil can set." The true goal of ecumenism is not unity in Christ, but a worldwide political and social unity, paving the way for a universal religion without dogmas (p. 419-420).
⏳ The End Times and the Small Remnant
Coomaraswamy connects the current situation with biblical prophecies about the end times, citing St. Paul on the "great apostasy" and the advent of the Antichrist. He suggests that the "abomination of desolation" may be the suppression of the continual sacrifice of the Mass and its replacement by an idolatrous cult of man. The post-conciliar Church, in seeking world unity under the aegis of the United Nations (described by Paul VI as the "hope of the world"), is acting as a precursor to the Antichrist. The true faithful is now part of a "small remnant," persecuted and marginalized, who must maintain the faith amidst general apostasy (p. 420-423).
🛡️ The Duty of the Layman and the Final Solution
The author rejects the idea that the layman is incompetent to judge this crisis. On the contrary, it is the layman's duty to know his faith and reject any innovation that contradicts it. The faithful Catholic cannot obey a hierarchy that destroys the Faith. He must reject Vatican II as a heretical council and the New Mass as a protestantized and doubtful rite. The conclusion is severe: the post-conciliar Church is not the Church of Christ, but an "anti-Church" or a new Protestant sect. The traditional Catholic is not a rebel, but one who remains faithful to what the Church has always taught ("what has been believed by all, always, and everywhere"). There is no possible compromise between Truth and error. The only option is to remain unshakably faithful to Catholic Tradition, refusing any communion with the new humanist and evolutionary religion, for, as St. Jerome said, the important thing is not to follow the multitude in error, but to remain on the straight path, even if one stands alone (p. 425-433).
See English version of the critical articles here.