The Vatican might have to act over Bishop Williamson's most recent comments on the Jewish people - Anti-Semitism is anathema to the vast majority of traditional Catholics

Whilst speaking with a well-regarded priest yesterday, I asked him why there was no provision for Old Rite Masses in his central London parish. He told me quite frankly that he feared that some of those attracted to the ancient form of the Roman Rite were prone to anti-Semitism and right-wing extremism, which implied that he thought the usus antiquior of the Catholic Church encourages vile forms of hatred! Needless to say, I told the priest in question that I felt his comments were in fact based on prejudice and irrational thinking, adding that my experience of traditional Catholicism bore no resemblance to his perception - in fact, I would have thought there were more people prone to anti-Semitism amongst those who attend novus ordo Masses than amongst devotees of the Old Rite.

After explaining to the priest in question that many young Catholics are thirsting for their ancient Catholic heritage, and that numbers of young people attending the Church's ancient liturgy is on the rise, he agreed to consider celebrating the extraordinary form of the Mass in his parish - with the proviso that I act as server! He also seemed to accept that he was wrong to suggest that the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite somehow led to anti-Semitism or to a tendency to accept right-wing conspiracies. In fact, he admitted that it was probably more correct to say that people from certain nations or cultures are more susceptible to certain prejudices than to believe that those from different forms of the Catholic Church's liturgical tradition tend towards certain types of irrational hatred.

Having said all that, it was sad to come across yet another rant against the Jews (and the Pope) by the SSPX Bishop Richard Williamson, published on his Eleison Comments last Saturday. According to the World Jewish Congress, Williamson has "[lashed] out against the Jews again." Although the SSPX bishop's latest comments are no-where near as bad as his denial of the existence of the Nazi gas chambers, they are bound to cause controversy as well as embarrassment to Pope Benedict XVI.

In his recent blog post, Williamson seemed to be reiterating the belief that Our Lord's crucifixion was "deicide". But he went on to say that, "only the Jews (leaders and people) were the prime agents of the deicide because it is obvious from the Gospels that the Gentile most involved, Pontius Pilate, would never have condemned Jesus to death had not the Jewish leaders roused the Jewish people to clamour for his crucifixion" (emphasis mine). Williamson also wrote that, "Pope Leo XIII considered there to be a real solidarity between the Jews clamouring then for Jesus to be killed and the collectivity of Jews of modern times. Did he not in his Act of Consecration of the Human Race to the Sacred Heart of Jesus have the entire Church, from the end of the 19th century onwards, pray to God that he turn his 'eyes of mercy towards the children of that race, once God’s chosen people: of old they called down upon themselves the Blood of the Saviour; may it now descend upon them a laver (i.e. washing) of redemption and life'" (emphasis mine).

Of course, Williamson forgot to mention the important - very important - fact that all human beings share in the collective guilt and responsibility for Our Lord's death. Jesus died as an atonement for the sins of every person, from the beginning of time to the world's very end. To emphasise the role of those Jewish men and women who called for Christ's Crucifixion over and above our own guilt could lead to a theology which teaches that the effects of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus can only be exclusively claimed by members of one race. Bizarrely, it would seem that blaming the Jews alone for the Crucifixion lessens the universal and timeless nature of Christ's Sacrifice. In that sense, the theology of blame, which seems to be one that the SSPX bishop is comfortable with, cancels out the theology of grace and makes a mockery of the fact that Christ died for Jews and Greeks alike. If only some members of the human race are responsible for the death of the Lamb, then it stands to reason that only some (the same ones) can be saved by his Sacrifice.

It would also appear that Williamson seems to have misunderstood where Pope Leo XIII was coming from when he said, "may [the Blood of Christ] ... now descend upon [the Jews as] a laver (i.e. washing) of redemption and life." Surely, the Pope was merely asking God to grant the same grace to the (non-Christian) Jews that those Gentiles (and Christian Jews) "smeared with the Blood of the Lamb" (to paraphrase St John Chrysostom) have enjoyed since the effects of the Cross were made manifest. When the Jews present at the trial of Christ cried out "may his blood be on us and on our children" (cf Mt  27:25), they weren't condemning themselves, but were actually (unbeknown to them) pleading to be "washed in the blood of the Lamb" (cf Rev 7:14). They were therefore securing their own salvation, and were already being absolved from the Cross: "Father, forgive them for they know not what the do" (Lk 23:34).

Many people consider Bishop Richard Williamson to be a rather odd and unpleasant fellow. I know some members and former members of the SSPX who really do not like him. He is a man - although having never been a representative of the Roman Catholic Church - who seems to have brought scandal to the Church by his controversial words, especially when talking or writing about the Holocaust and the Jewish people. As Pope Benedict XVI has said of him, "Williamson is an atypical case in that he was, when you think about it, never Catholic in the proper sense. He was an Anglican and then went over directly to Lefebvre. This means that he has never lived in the great Church, that he has never lived with the Pope" (emphasis mine - Light of the World, Ignatius 2010, pp 121 - 122). He is not typical of the SSPX, even if others within that group sometimes seem prone to eccentricity and appear to revel in disobedience to the Successor of St Peter.

Pope Benedict XVI has also said, whilst discussing the lifting of Williamson's excommunication, "If I had known [that Bishop Williamson denied the existence of the Nazi gas chambers], the first step would have been to separate the Williamson case from the others. Unfortunately, though, none of us went on the Internet to find out what sort of person we were dealing with" (emphasis mine - Light of the World, p 121).

Sadly, it seems that some Jewish organisations, possibly because they lack a proper knowledge of the Catholic Church or because of the painful memories of the 1930s and 40s, have over-reacted to Richard Williamson's most recent rant. Maybe they do not realise that Williamson does not have many supporters, even within the SSPX? Indeed, it seems that the other bishops within the Society of St Pius X have often distanced themselves from their rather maverick brother.

According to the World Jewish Congress, in response to Williamson's blog post, "the president of the Conference of European Rabbis, Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, called on Pope Benedict XVI to halt the Vatican talks with 'extremist' Catholic groups such as the SSPX." Rabbi Goldschmidt is quoted as having said, "Comments like these take us back decades to the dark days before there was a meaningful and mutually respectful dialogue between Jews and Roman Catholics.” Other members of the Jewish faith have also called for an end to talks between the Holy See and the SSPX. The Chief Rabbi of Moscow saying, "There must be no rapprochement within the Catholic Church for those of its flock who seek to preach words of hate."

But, as Pope Benedict XVI himself has pointed out, Williamson is "atypical" of the SSPX; and is definitely at odds with the "great Church" of which he has very little experience. Although I can understand the fears that these Jewish spokesmen must have, I must say that I think it might be better if they were to totally ignore Williamson's seemingly obsessive and rather vile comments - he really is not worth bothering with. The Holy See definitely seems unhappy with him, and the Pope even appears to regret having lifted the excommunication against him in the first place. It also seems that the other SSPX leaders are rather fed up with this rather eccentric bishop of theirs. His utterances offer no grounds at all for the Holy See to halt its desire to work for the Society of St Pius X's full reconciliation to the universal Church. His comments might offer grounds, though, for the Vatican to insist that "the Williamson case" (as the Pope has called it) be dealt with as a separate issue from the on-going talks between it and the SSPX.

I have noticed that a very tiny minority of extreme traditionalists, usually those who have rejected the authority of Rome, can appear to be obsessed with conspiracy theories usually involving Masonic Lodges and / or the Jews. Obviously, this form of lunacy or hatred has no place within sane, rational and loving Christianity. In my experience, though, most of these troubled souls are not really interested in the Old Rite and the ancient liturgy of the Church, rather they tend to come from cultures or nations with a long history of anti-Semitism or Masonic interference.

Although I have come across a very small amount of anti-Semitic Catholics in my lifetime, it's true to say that most of them were from the European Continent, and that nearly all of them seemed to be attendees of the Mass of Paul VI. Therefore, to smear all traditional Catholics as anti-Jewish or as nutty conspiracy theorists is not only quite disgusting, but is totally unjust - it is just as vile as any other form of ill-informed prejudice. The reality is that most Catholics - New and / or Old Rite - do not hate their fellow human beings; hating and / or judging others is completely contrary to the Christian way of life. It is evil to hate another human being, or to hate anything or anyone created by God. Those people who call themselves Catholic, but actually seem to be cultural-Christians at best, and who use the faith as a means to hate others, can and often do cause grave scandal.

It is immensely frustrating to know that some so-called liberals in the Church are convinced that those who love tradition are probably nutty or prejudiced. It is also quite bothersome for the Catholic Church to have to deal with the likes of Williamson - who has no active or official ministry within the Roman Catholic Church, even if he is an ordained bishop. The reality is that many traditional Catholics take their faith very seriously, and strive to be loving witnesses to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, there are far more examples of prejudice amongst those who worship only within the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite than amongst those who prefer the older Rites of the Catholic Church. One of the most invidious prejudices, which is often to be found amongst "liberals" who are deeply attached to the Mass of Paul VI, is the one that seems to presume that all traditionalists are hateful eccentrics. As Pope Benedict XVI has said, even amongst the SSPX, men like Williamson are completely "atypical". He, and others like him, should be ignored. They scandalise traditional Catholicism, as well as Church as a whole.