Among the questions surrounding the termination of Bishop Joseph Strickland is what happens to the people of Tyler, Texas, who are now lacking a shepherd. And what happens to the dozens of seminarians from his diocese?
In the absence of an official reason for the removal, one can only assume that it is because Pope Francis stands in opposition to much of what Bishop Strickland believed. As opposed to the persona of the merciful, listening, accommodating and accompanying pastoral figure that Francis tries to portray, the excusal of Strickland paints an entirely different picture; namely tyrannical, petty, rigid, uncompromising, punitive, merciless and vindictive. But, in order to help His Holiness fill the void in Tyler, a list of possible candidates in better standing with the Bergoglian Church than Strickland is to be compiled. Here is the Catholics 4 Catholics effort to help:
- Ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. Pope Francis has pulled Uncle Ted from the dog house before, so why not again? McCarrick was forced to withdraw from public service in 2011 when Pope Benedict XVI saddled him with penalties for his serial sex abuse of seminarians and minors. But he re-emerged as an unofficial Vatican ambassador in 2013 when, just months into his pontificate, Pope Francis lifted the penalties imposed by Benedict and called upon McCarrick to broker a deal between the Vatican and the People’s Republic of China. Why not reach into the retirement home again and bring out an old friend?
- Father Marko Rupnik. With the full knowledge and at least tacit approval of Pope Francis, a Slovenian diocese has announced that Rupnik, a former Jesuit, has been accepted and granted faculty as a priest into the diocese of Koper. Since he is a Catholic Priest in good standing with the Holy Father, why not?
- Cardinal Joe Tobin. So, he lived with a male Italian soap opera star. Cardinal Tobin is infamous for his accidental public tweet in which he wished someone “Nighty-Night Baby, I love you.” He has a current job, but since he is in good standing with the Holy Father, maybe he can make some recommendations.
- The Holy Father has been very passionate about the ministry of Father James Martin, SJ. Martin was invited to and played a key role of the Synod on Synodality. He was intricately involved in the planning and execution of what is becoming Vatican III, so now marks a perfect time to promote him. This would teach those rigid people in Tyler, now with pitchforks in hand, but who until last week loved their Bishop enough to enlist their sons into seminaries! Martin, a well-known advocate of homosexual activity is in good standing with the Holy Father, so why not?
- Yes, he just got a new job, but how about Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, “Tucho” to his friends. This strange character wrote a book called “Heal Me with Your Mouth. The Art of Kissing”. The book includes a poem addressed to a witch, “bruja” in his native Spanish. “How was God so ruthless to give you that mouth… No one can resist, witch, hide it.” He has recently been promoted to the job of Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, so this creepy poet, too, must indeed be in good standing with the Holy Father, so why not?
- Bishop Gerald Kicanas. Bishop Kicanas was one of two bishops who subjected Strickland to this summer’s Apostolic Visitation. No dirt was exposed. Of course, Kicanas’ past is littered with scandal. As recently as 2014 he was named as a Catholic Church leader involved in a massive cover-up related to priest sex-abuse cases in Chicago. Still, he was worthy of being selected by Pope Francis to investigate Bishop Strickland. So, since he is in good standing with the Holy Father, why not?
- How about any number of German or other European Bishops, like Bishop Johan Bonny of Antwerp? Not only is he for euthanizing the elderly, but he also advocates for women priests and sodomite blessings. But if these Europeans are in good standing with the Holy Father, why not?
- Admittedly, this is a stretch, but how about Pachamama? If there is something in such good standing with Pope Francis that it was placed on an altar in Rome, after being worshipped in a Vatican Garden ceremony, then why couldn’t Pachamama be pulled out of the Tiber, dried off a bit, and named as titular Bishop of Tyler? The Vicar General will just have to be advised to keep Alexander Tschugguel at arm’s length.
- Any number of the Friends of Francis. On this list one might find, Whoopi Goldberg, who boasts of at leasts eight abortions before the age of 25, Bono, Bill Clinton, Alex Soros, and demon Kachina doll-wielding Cindy McCain. Many of these are not in communion with the Church, but they certainly don’t believe what Bishop Strickland was selling, so they might be considered a preferable option for Pope Francis.
- Here is an interesting candidate. How about Marina Abramovic? First of all she is a woman, whose placement as a bishop will scratch the itch of many of the other people on this list. Plus, she is the ambassador from the corrupt government of Ukraine to its school children, for the rebuilding of schools. Again, though not technically a Catholic, this woman is skilled in diplomacy, is steeped in knowledge of the spiritual and occult. She is a high priestess of the satanic movement, but don’t judge. Remember, all are welcome (except those who assist at the Traditional Latin Mass). As a final credential, she stands as far away as possible from the Deposit of the Faith, held so dear by Bishop Strickland. It may not be far enough for the taste of some in the Vatican, but it’s a good start.
- A real possibility that should be explored might be Ahmed el-Tayeb, Grand Imam of al-Azhar Mosque and University in Egypt. Now, readers might dismiss this as crazy, but in 2019, the Holy Father co-signed a document with el-Tayeb, declaring their agreement that “The pluralism and the diversity of religions, colour, sex, race and language are willed by God in His wisdom…” Apparently, to Francis, a whole diversity of religions is willed by God as long as it is not that particular Strickland brand of Catholicism. If this is true, what better form of outreach is there than bringing Sunni Islam into the fold?
As reported this week on lifesitenews.com, the Apostolic Nuncio to the US told Bishop Strickland three years ago, that “there is no deposit of faith” and that he needs to stop talking about it because the “Holy Father is watching you.”
As is found in CCC no. 84, Bishop Strickland is a staunch believer that “The apostles entrusted the ‘Sacred deposit’ of the faith (depositum fidei), contained in Sacred Scripture and Tradition, to the whole of the Church”. For that, he has been targeted for removal since at least three years ago. Francis sidles up to celebrities, abusers, Muslims, heretics and homosexuals, but his tyrannical termination of Good Bishop Joe is a warning to others not to go too crazy with orthodox Catholicism. Otherwise, they will be the next to have given their last full measure of devotion to the faith which got Strickland sacked.
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