The Magisterium of the one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church is exercised, infallibly or non-infallibly, by the Pope, by the body of Bishops led by the Pope, or, only non-infallibly, by individual Bishops or groups of Bishops. The one true Church is indefectible and can never pass away or fail.
But all the persons exercising the Magisterium are fallible sinners, and so some problems may arise: limited errors in non-infallible teachings, limited errors in decisions of discipline, errors in personal theological opinions or non-magisterial assertions, personal or corporate sins by Popes or Bishops, and, more generally, sins and errors by Church leaders and members who are not Pope or Bishop. These sins and errors may obscure the purity and clarity of Church teaching and practice, contributing to the incorrect opinion that some leaders are illegitimate, or that some teachings or decisions of discipline are gravely in error.
[John]
{6:60} He said these things when he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.
{6:61} Therefore, many of his disciples, upon hearing this, said: “This saying is difficult,” and, “Who is able to listen to it?”
{6:62} But Jesus, knowing within himself that his disciples were murmuring about this, said to them: “Does this offend you?
{6:63} Then what if you were to see the Son of man ascending to where he was before?
{6:64} It is the Spirit who gives life. The flesh does not offer anything of benefit. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.
{6:65} But there are some among you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who were unbelieving and which one would betray him.
{6:66} And so he said, “For this reason, I said to you that no one is able to come to me, unless it has been given to him by my Father.”
{6:67} After this, many of his disciples went back, and they no longer walked with him.
{6:68} Therefore, Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?”
{6:69} Then Simon Peter answered him: “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.
{6:70} And we have believed, and we recognize that you are the Christ, the Son of God.”
{6:71} Jesus answered them: “Have I not chosen you twelve? And yet one among you is a devil.”
{6:72} Now he was speaking about Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. For this one, even though he was one of the twelve, was about to betray him.
Some Catholics today have tried to decrease the authority of the papacy, or of recent Ecumenical Councils. Some have tried to assert opinions which would make any teaching of a Pope or Council subject to an evaluation as to whether or not it adheres to Tradition. Some accuse Pope Francis of being an invalid pope or antipope. Others have questioned the validity of Vatican II, or even of Vatican I and earlier Councils. The problem with all these attempts to reduce the authority of the Magisterium, is that they have nothing with which to replace the Magisterium, other than their own understanding or that of a subculture within the Church (or a subculture outside the Church).
The teaching of Jesus on the Eucharist was too difficult for some of the disciples, and so they walked away. Then Jesus asked if the Twelve would want to depart also. Peter did not respond by saying that he understood the sayings of Jesus on the bread of life. Rather, Peter said that there was no one else to whom they could go: “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.”
Those who reject Pope Francis, or some other Pope, or a set of Popes, grasp at straws seeking a replacement for the Pope. Some tried to claim that Benedict was still Pope. But the former Pope had no part in such claims, and then he passed on to his reward. There was a group in Rome which claimed that Pope Benedict remained Pope, after Francis was elected. When Benedict died, they met for a very clearly illegitimate “conclave” to elect the next pope after Benedict. They claim to have elected Francis. For you see, there was no way to claim anyone else was pope. They had been grasping as straws all along.
Those who reject the Second Vatican Council, or both Vatican Councils, have painted themselves into a corner. Each Pope and each generation of Bishops in the world continue to teach the teachings of every past legitimate Council, including Vatican I and II. It has become absurd to claim that Vatican II and all the Popes since that time are and were not legitimate. The Church is indefectible. It cannot be the case, at any time in any circumstance, that the body of Bishops follows a false pope. For then the Church would no longer be indefectible and Apostolic. It cannot be the case that Pope Francis, or any other post-Vatican II pope, is invalid or an antipope. Nor can it be the case that the Second Vatican Council, accepted by so many Bishops and Popes, decade after decade, would be declared illegitimate or in any grave error.
To whom would we go for the teachings of Christ, if not to the one holy catholic and apostolic Church, the Catholic Church? Some Catholics left the true Faith to become Orthodox Christians, and then many returned, disillusioned. The Protestant Churches only have valid Baptism and some valid marriages. Other religions do not worship Jesus Christ. And the various schismatic groups — which have proclaimed themselves to be more faithful than the Church led by the successive Popes and by the body of Bishops (successors to the Apostles) — have disagreed among themselves about everything, and so have fallen into ever smaller splinter groups. Thus do they prove that they are not the true Church.
Some complain about synodality, in which the Pope and Bishops consult the rest of the clergy, religious, and faithful. Some complain about the body of Bishops supposedly going astray. Some complain about Pope Francis, as well as other Popes. Who would be left to run the Church if not for the Popes, the body of Bishops and the rest of the faithful? It seems that those who think in this way have nothing left to turn to but their own understanding and that of some small subset of Catholics, who can’t agree among themselves.
Popes and Bishops can sin and they can err to one extent or another in doctrine, discipline, and in their theological opinions and ideas about society. But they exercise the Magisterium of the Body of Christ, and they do so with the full authority of Christ. So we must be forbearing and lenient if we think that perhaps they may have erred in some way.
Ronald L Conte Jr
please say a prayer for the repose of the soul of my brother, Jay, who passed away early Christmas morning, 2024, while on hospice care at home.
please do not contact me or my family to express your condolences. Thanks for understanding.
the reproach of Christ 
Hi Ronald. I read an article about dinosaurs. I known this not the appropriate thread for posting this. However, for some reason you blocked me on twitter. My question from being a a person. When God, created the Dinosaurs it is like God was having some fun. Yes. I know it was part of God’s eternal plan. Thanks.
I often block accounts on X (twitter) so that the X algorithm will stop showing me posts on topics I don’t wish to read. No offense intended. You can still contact me here.
It’s difficult to say what reasons God has for His plan in Creation. I would not say merely having fun, although good things in humanity, such as sense of humor, having fun, etc. are said to come from the Nature of God, even though God does not really think and act like us mere human persons. The creative analogies used by Christ, such as the lilies of the field being better clothed than Solomon, or disciples being like sheep following a shepherd, are true and good analogies, but they also, in a sense, show that Christ has a playful sense of humor in explaining things.
Ron, excellent commentary!
Praying for the repose of your brother, Jay!
Ron, hope your brother enjoys the heavenly delights. Somewhere it was said that on Christmas day the biggest number of souls enter heaven.
I have a question: why are there so many orders, congregations, religious institutions? How many are the Franciscan orders alone, both male and female? How many female institutions that nobody knows their number?
At the same time, few function properly that are mostly those who are in the missions.
I understand that all of them got permission to exist at some point in history, especially the last 150 years. What if the reverse process happens when they don’t have new vocations (that they also carry the blame for)? I think it was pope Benedict who called for the smaller congregations to join the bigger ones.
Who said that St Francis, St Dominic, St Ignatius, other founders, wouldn’t be admitted in their own orders if they apply in them today?
Isn’t it a time in the Jubilee year finally the Church to start cleansing itself? Not only 1 in 10,000 obviously corrupt prelate even for the secular standards who would finally be removed or retired by the Vatican rather unwillingly under pressure? But more thoroughly on a spiritual level, even when it is not a matter of a grave sin or a crime, but a matter of incompetence, misuse, rejection of newcomers? After all, those members of the consecrated life are well backed financially and their retirement is nothing remotely close to banishment or losing a job in the civil world. They continue living in their free religious estates, such as the defrocked McCarrick. I mention him for contrast that Even he could benefit from his former position, what to say about people who did not commit his sins but are rather Incompetent, they would save all their privileges, just to be removed from position so not to torment God’s people any longer. It is literally a vocation killer ne such prelate or even a parish priest. The assumption that the consecrated person is almost always right, and the practice to return written testimony back to them is appalling and discourages and kills any fresh air in the local church or local level in the orders. The wall is just impenetrable when you try to correct even a brick in it, and often (as with me) the one who tries to do it is later bitterly sorry that even tried it.
Is there a Vatican commission to consider all aspects and not only the gravest of the sins when it has nowhere else to go but to remove the prelate from duty? If similar negligence and incompetence that we witness daily in the local church happens in the civil world, a person would have long ago lost a job. Not so in the religious world. At the expense of the new comers who are often thrown out without any option to appeal, or to return their lost years. Once I heard the percent of 80% out of all seminarians didn’t reach to ordination. Sure not all of them were sinful, and their superiors sinless. The system keeps itself from inside. I wonder, how long? Why not correct itself at least partially before the Celestial punishment?
One way that would work is to have overseeing cardinals, not necessarily bishops, as there were such in the past. Let notice that for example St Silvester the pope who convened the Nicaea council, was just made a deacon at 30s and later elected pope without being first bishop. So…Young deacons cardinals today with power to oversee and correct bishops? Sure the Vatican can find the proper formula based on its vast historic experience and innovatory vision of the future…
God will cleanse the Church at the Warning of Garabandal. Human efforts to do so fail without divine help. No particular structure to the Church guarantees corruption will be rooted out. We must practice prayer, self-denial, works of mercy. I don’t know the answers to the other questions. Thanks for your kind words about my brother.
sorry Ron about your brother. May he rest in peace. Thank you for your continued defense of the Pope, Magisterium and Tradition of the Catholic and Apostolic Church of Our Lord Jesus, the Christ.
Dear Ron,
Thank you so much for this article. I am sorry about the death of your brother, Jay. I’ll say a prayer for him and your whole family.
Trusting in God’s mercy and love,
Robert