Benedict admits
Lefebvrist mistakes
By staff reporter
20 March 2009

Rabbi Shear-Yashuv Cohen, chief rabbi of Haifa, Israel, speaks to Benedict XVI on the day he released his letter

The Pope has said he regretted the storm and bitterness following lifting the excommunications of four Lefebvrist bishops as he called for peace and unity in an unprecedented letter to the world's bishops.

Pope Benedict XVI said the controversy arising from Bishop Richard Williamson's Holocaust denial was "an unforeseen mishap". He said that the uproar could have been anticipated, however, by checking the internet.

He said: "I have been told that consulting the information available on the internet would have made it possible to perceive the problem early on. I have learned the lesson that in the future in the Holy See we will have to pay greater attention to that source of news."

The bishops of England and Wales wrote to the Pope on Monday to express their gratitude. The letter, signed by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor and Archbishop Patrick Kelly, respectively president and vice-president of the bishops' conference, said: "We wish to thank you most warmly for your letter... We are deeply moved by the sincere and humble expression of your mind and teaching. We share in solicitude for all the churches, in communion with you and under your authority. We offer you our heartfelt loyalty and affection."

The letter recalled the Pope's comments about St Bede last month. It said the Benedict XVI had reminded people "of fidelity to tradition while remaining open to historical developments", adding: "We have received your letter in the spirit of those remarks."

Benedict XVI's 2,500-word letter was sent out to the bishops in order to explain his decision to lift the excommunications imposed on the four illicitly-ordained Lefebvrist bishops.

Thanking those bishops and faithful who supported him, despite the media onslaught of the last two months, the Pope said: "Some groups, on the other hand, openly accused the Pope of wanting to turn back the clock to before the [Second Vatican] Council: as a result, an avalanche of protests was unleashed, whose bitterness laid bare wounds deeper than those of the present moment.

"I therefore feel obliged to offer you, dear brothers, a word of clarification, which ought to help you understand the concerns which led me and the competent offices of the Holy See to take this step. In this way I hope to contribute to peace in the Church."

Not only did the Pope express dismay over the mistakes that exacerbated the situation, he also said that the vehemence of the reactions had taken him by surprise. He also said he was saddened by attacks that he suffered, especially from fellow Catholics.

Pope Benedict said: "I was saddened by the fact that even Catholics who, after all, might have had a better knowledge of the situation, thought they had to attack me with open hostility. Precisely for this reason I thank all the more our Jewish friends, who quickly helped to clear up the misunderstanding and to restore the atmosphere of friendship and trust which - as in the days of Pope John Paul II - has also existed throughout my pontificate and, thank God, continues to exist."

His gesture to Bishop Williamson and the other three bishops of the Society of St Pius X was designed to heal a wound, bring unity to the Church, by lifting excommunications incurred in 1988 in order to open a way to dialogue with the estranged group.

When Bishop Williamson's comments about the Holocaust were circulated Pope Benedict said: "It suddenly appeared as something completely different: as the repudiation of reconciliation between Christians and Jews, and thus as the reversal of what the Council had laid down in this regard to guide the Church's path."

Pope Benedict said he deeply regretted another mistake: that the lifting of the excommunications was not adequately explained and gave rise to misinterpretations about the traditionalist society's status in the Church. He emphasised that the removal of the excommunications was a disciplinary measure that affects individuals, but that what divides the SSPX from the Church is doctrinal.