ZOLTAN THE TERRIBLE AND EXHIBIT A

We do enjoy hearing from our neocatechumenal friends...and even our "unfriends". And today we heard from several. We like to hear from them because in addition to pumping up the numbers on the ever critical "pageviews", their comments make a better case against the Neocatechumenal Way than we can ourselves. 

Let's begin with our "unfriend", Zoltan the Terrible. In response to "WHOAH!",  a post wherein I simply copied the major comments of Pope Francis to the Neocatechumenal Way as reported by the Catholic News Agency, Zoltan says: 

If you truly want to read what Pope Francis said about the Neocatechumenal Way, read it here: http://neocatechemunal.blogspot.com/

Zoltan's reply is, as usual, at once fascinating and tedious. Here's why. For Neo's, a major news source, in this case the Catholic News Agency, despite the fact that it reported exactly what the Pope said, cannot be trusted. We must be directed to a Neocatechumenal source if we "truly want to read what Pope Francis said." 

(Just a note, Zoltan. The site you directed us to has only one post, and nothing about the Pope's talk. Oops. Here's what it looked like at 8pm tonight.)

We are quite used to this, of course. It matters not what the pope says, what matter is what Kiko says he said. "Exhibit A" of how this works was the address of Benedict XVI on January 20, 2012, at a similar meeting with "the Way." 

Kiko was sure that Benedict was going to announce an approval of the Neocat liturgy. Indeed he had assurances from the highest levels of the Curia - which tells you just how far Kiko and his ilk have infiltrated the Vatican. However, a few days before the pope's meeting with "the Way", Benedict got a hold of the text that was prepared for the meeting and ordered that it "be scrapped and rewritten according to his guidelines." 

The rewritten text DID NOT approve the Neocat liturgy but only licensed those ceremonies peculiar to the NCW which were not "already regulated by the liturgical books." Translation: NO APPROVAL FOR THE NEOCAT VERSION OF THE EUCHARIST outside of the very minor amendments in the approved Statute. 

(By the way, for those of you who still believe the lie that the peculiarities of the Neocat liturgy were resolved with the approval of the Statute in 2008, the fact that Kiko, in 2012, was still angling for approval of your liturgy, should tell you that you've been both lied to and that you are engaging in an illicit celebration of the Eucharist every Saturday night.)

In fact, Benedict gave Kiko and crew an outright slapdown for trying to do an end run behind his back:

A while ago I was reading the decree with which the celebrations which are in the "Catechetical Directory of the Neocatechumenal Way" are approved; celebrations which are not strictly liturgical, but are part of the itinerary of growth in faith. It is another element that shows you how the Church accompanies you with a patient discernment that includes your richness, but also looks to the communion and harmony of the whole Corpus Ecclesiae. This gives me the opportunity to offer a brief thought on the value of the liturgy. 

And the pope goes on to give the NCW a "spanking" of a lecture. And in case, because of the pope's measured criticism and papal kindness, you have any doubt that this was a serious reprimand, Benedict ordered an investigation into the liturgical abuses of the NCW not three months later. 

Yet, for months I watched as local neocats (on Facebook) celebrated the approval of their anomalous liturgy, and endured sarcastic rebuffs for any attempt to set the record straight, even though I used the pope's own words. The pope's words didn't matter, only Kiko's, and of course, those of their infallible catechists. 

Even now, as evidenced by the persistence of their celebration of an illicit liturgy, most neos still believe that Benedict approved their liturgy EVEN THOUGH Kiko is still trying to twist and turn to get it approved. Few humans are able to lie about such weighty matters with as straight a face as Kiko does. 

From the beginning of our discussion of the Neocatechumenal Way on this blog, all we have ever asked for is the document permitting the peculiar way in which the Neo distributes communion. There are other anomalies, but we have only asked for the document for this one matter. Just one document and the whole criticism of the NCW on this blog would fall. 

There were several other comments. We'll get to them. And it won't be pretty.