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| Leo Appoints a Sister to Rule Over Bishops |
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Posted by: Stone - Yesterday, 08:08 AM - Forum: Pope Leo XIV
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[Pope] Leo Appoints a Sister to Rule Over Bishops, While a Cardinal Says Laity Can Now Rule Over the Ordained
Meanwhile Leo XIV appoints three more terrible bishops, including one praised by a female "bishop" of the womenpriest movement
Chris Jackson via Hiraeth in Exile | Feb 18, 2026
Women in the Episcopacy? The Brambilla Appointment and Its Implications
When Sister Simona Brambilla was appointed prefect of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life in January 2025, shockwaves rippled through Catholic media. Here was the first woman (and first non-cleric) ever to head a major Roman dicastery. In practical terms, Sr. Brambilla’s promotion means she now exercises authority over one of the largest departments in the Vatican and even oversees a subordinate Cardinal-Pro-Prefect assigned under her. On February 14, 2026, Leo XIV escalated the experiment by naming Brambilla a member of the Dicastery for Bishops, inserting a woman religious into the curial machinery that shapes the selection of bishops. The Holy See Press Office bulletin announcing the appointment listed her among the dicastery’s members alongside a roster of Francis-era cardinals and synodal officials, making clear that this was a formal integration into the consultative body tasked with episcopal nominations.
“She has authority over a cardinal; that has never happened in the Church,” marveled one amazed observer. Indeed, this appointment, made by Francis and enthusiastically carried on by Leo XIV, blurs the line between the lay and clerical roles in Church governance. While women remain barred from Holy Orders, the Brambilla precedent effectively creates a female quasi-bishop at the highest levels of the Curia. She wields decision-making power akin to that of a diocesan ordinary, except over all religious orders globally and now over the selection of bishops. It is little wonder that leftists and feminists described her elevation as “completely new” and a “very good news” symbol for women in the Church.
From the Vatican’s perspective, this move was made possible by Francis’s 2022 constitution Praedicate Evangelium, which explicitly opened the door for laypeople (including women) to lead Vatican departments. In other words, the constitutional framework no longer treats curial offices as participating in sacred authority derived from ordination, but as delegated administrative tasks that the Pope can entrust to anyone competent.
The underlying theology, spelled out by Cardinal Marc Ouellet, among others, posits that governance in areas like religious life or education does not strictly require the grace of Holy Orders, but can be exercised by those with particular charisms and expertise. Ouellet argues that the Holy Spirit’s gifts “have their own weight of authority” wherever sacramental ordination is not necessary, and that even a layperson or nun can be legitimately placed in charge, “without detract[ing] from the value” of their service despite a “lack of holy Order”. The Brambilla appointment puts this theory into practice on an unprecedented scale.
Still, the implications are profound and troubling. For one, Brambilla’s role as Prefect grants her a status long reserved to bishops and cardinals. She will be a voting member of episcopal conferences when invited, participate in high-level synods, and be treated as a peer by prelates. This has prompted talk (half in jest, half in alarm) of “women in the episcopacy” in all but name. Canonically, she is not a bishop, yet functionally Sister Brambilla occupies an office indistinguishable from that of a diocesan bishop curially. The symbol is powerful: a woman religious now sits at a desk historically held by apostolic men, issuing directives that affect clergy and laity alike.
This sets the stage for a push toward female deacons or even female cardinals (offices that, while not requiring priestly orders, confer significant ecclesial authority). The Vatican insists nothing about Brambilla’s job involves sacred ordination; she cannot confer sacraments or govern a diocese. Cardinal Ouellet himself emphasized that appointing a woman prefect “does not mean entrusting [her] with tasks that are strictly sacramental,” only administrative leadership under the Pope’s ultimate jurisdiction. Yet optics and ecclesiology often intertwine. The Church now visibly operates with two tracks of authority: one sacramental-hierarchical, the other charismatic-administrative. The former is male-only; the latter is open to females. Such a bifurcation is a novelty.
Traditional ecclesiology, from St. Paul through Pope Pius XII, linked governance (the munus regendi) inseparably with Holy Orders. By contrast, the novel and erroneous post-conciliar approach, especially under Leo, leans into a more “democratic” distribution of power (in the non-sacramental realm) as a fulfillment of the Council’s call for lay co-responsibility. This is another sign of rupture: a concession to modern egalitarianism that subtly undermines the Church’s divinely ordained hierarchy. If a nun can run a congregation of the Roman Curia, and have a role in selecting bishops, does it not suggest that ordination is a contingent accident rather than an intrinsic necessity for governing the Church?
Rome may answer “no,” but the ambiguity is unescapable. In sum, the Brambilla precedent accelerates the Vatican II project of “updating” structures, even at the risk of doctrinal muddiness about the nature of authority. It is a risk the current regime is clearly willing to take.
The Ouellet Thesis: Laity Have Power Over the Ordained
Providing the theological underpinning for reforms like Brambilla’s placement is what might be called the Ouellet Thesis; a line of reasoning championed by Cardinal Marc Ouellet (Prefect Emeritus of Bishops). In essence, Ouellet proposes that the Church rediscover the role of the Holy Spirit’s charisms as a source of authority alongside the sacrament of Orders. He notes that Vatican II already “happily revalued” charisms and non-ordained ministries after “centuries of mistrust.”
While affirming that the episcopate remains a sacrament with the full tria munera (teaching, sanctifying, governing), Ouellet incredibly argues that this does not imply that “the sacrament of Holy Orders is the exclusive source of all government in the Church”. In a recent Vatican News article, he reflects on Francis’s “bold decision” to appoint laypeople and religious to high office, asking whether this is a mere temporary concession or a true “ecclesiological advance.”
Ouellet leans toward the latter. He discerned in Francis’s move “the authority of the Holy Spirit at work beyond the link… between the ordained ministry and the government of the Church.” In plainer terms, charismatic gifts bestowed by the Spirit can empower a person for governance tasks even without ordination. Ouellet hastens to add that this is “not a question of substituting charismatic governance for hierarchical government.” The Pope’s delegates still govern in communion with the ordained pastors. But it is a question of integrating the laity and women “without reservation” into the Church’s administrative and pastoral apparatus.
Conciliar Canon law already permits laity to cooperate in power of governance (cf. Canon 129 §2); Francis and Leo have simply taken this to a new level. According to Ouellet, having dicasteries “directed by competent persons, lay or religious, with a charism recognized by the supreme authority, does not detract” from their service just because they lack Holy Orders. In fact, he insists the charisms themselves carry a genuine “weight of authority” in certain fields, e.g. in social communications, education, finance, or dialogue, where specific expertise is needed and ordination per se adds no technical competence.
This erroneous thesis fundamentally changes how the Church understands authority. It shifts emphasis from the ontological character of the ordained minister (the traditional Catholic focus) to the spiritual and natural gifts of individuals, irrespective of clerical status. For example, if a lay woman has a proven charism for leadership in religious life, the Pope can appoint her to oversee nuns globally, trusting the Holy Spirit’s guidance in her work. The sacramental priesthood remains intact for sacramental duties, but in governance the hierarchy can at times yield to the charismatically endowed non-ordained.
Ouellet grounds this in a “richer” pneumatology: we must better discern the Holy Spirit’s action “beyond the sacraments” and within the Church-as-communion. It’s a warped theology that takes Vatican II’s talk of the “people of God” and “universal call to holiness” to its logical administrative conclusion. To its proponents, this development corrects an overly clerical vision of authority and allows the Church to use all her gifts. In reality, it is a spiritual veneer on what is, in effect, a managerial revolution.
One cannot ignore that this thinking conveniently aligns with modern secular values of egalitarian governance and meritocracy. In practice, the Ouellet Thesis smooths the path for more appointments like Sister Brambilla’s. It provides the doctrinal justification: the Pope is not “making” a woman a bishop; he is “entrusting a person recognized as competent… by virtue of a charism” with a responsibility, all under his own supreme authority. The hierarchical principle is preserved at the very top (the Pope as source of jurisdiction), but below that, flexibility reigns.
This “flexibility” is actually a rupture disguised as development. Did Christ or the Apostles ever envision charismatic governance separate from the sacramental hierarchy? No. Governance flows from Orders. The new paradigm means an uncoupling and a false disfigured view of authority in the Church.
Read more here.
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| The Catholic Trumpet: A Layman’s Resolution of Fidelity |
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Posted by: Stone - 02-17-2026, 08:51 AM - Forum: The Catholic Trumpet
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A Layman’s Resolution of Fidelity
![[Image: rs=w:1280]](https://img1.wsimg.com/isteam/ip/df55e1a9-c854-4d0b-a2a9-94177954436c/photo_2026-02-06%2008.52.36.jpeg/:/cr=t:0%25,l:0%25,w:100%25,h:100%25/rs=w:1280)
The Catholic Trumpet | February 17, 2026
What does the Blessed Virgin Mary ask of us in this present crisis?
Beyond remaining in the state of grace, praying the Rosary daily, wearing the Brown Scapular, and praying for the Pope that he may consecrate Russia in union with all the bishops of the world exactly as Our Lady requested in 1929, the question must be asked plainly: what concrete action does she expect from us as lay faithful?
It is inconceivable that Our Lady would desire passive neutrality in the face of doctrinal collapse. The Catholic Faith has always advanced through clarity, fidelity, and courageous witness. Therefore, it follows that she expects the laity to rally behind those priests who remain faithful, who refuse compromise, and who continue to hold the line of +Archbishop Lefebvre without ambiguity.
Today, this is not a subjective judgment. It can be measured objectively. Fidelity is shown by adherence to Catholic doctrine as it has always been taught, by the public condemnation of the errors and heresies of Vatican II, by the rejection of the New Mass, and by the consistent and unflinching articulation of these truths. By this standard, Father Hewko and the priests he supports and works with have provided the clearest instruction, the most consistent witness, and the strongest defense of the Faith. It is therefore not only reasonable but obligatory that the laity support, encourage, and rally behind such priests.
Moreover, given the deepening of the crisis and its acceleration in the years ahead, especially from 2026 onward, it is evident that Our Lady calls for a redoubling of these efforts. The laity must not retreat but rather strengthen their supernatural and practical support of faithful clergy, always within the limits of their state, yet with full confidence in the limitless power of grace.
Trusting entirely in Mary, Mediatrix of all Graces, it is not beyond hope that a bishop, validly consecrated and possessing the fullness of Holy Orders, may abandon the errors and confusions of the last decade, reject the false resistance, and return to a firm and uncompromising defense of Catholic doctrine. Such a bishop, aligned with the clarity and fidelity already demonstrated by faithful priests, could restore unity around the Faith itself, not personalities, and serve the good of souls in this time of trial.
All of this must be undertaken with humility, obedience to one’s state in life, and total reliance on the supernatural action of the Mother of God. The laity do not replace the hierarchy, but neither are they permitted to remain silent when the Faith is under assault. History shows that God often preserves His Church through small, faithful remnants who act with courage, charity, and conviction.
May Our Lady find us faithful.
Slave of Mary
Of The Catholic Trumpet
Anthony Martinello
02/16/2026
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| Leo XIV Appoints Agenda 2030 Bishop: "Against Ecumenism Is Against Christ" |
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Posted by: Stone - 02-17-2026, 08:48 AM - Forum: Pope Leo XIV
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Leo XIV Appoints Agenda 2030 Bishop: "Against Ecumenism Is Against Christ"
![[Image: 7q4kxea9w9o0dfr7887d4ylhm4brzhso7ux3zu9?...1771402140]](https://seedus4268.gloriatv.net/storage1/7q4kxea9w9o0dfr7887d4ylhm4brzhso7ux3zu9?secure=yrkkKyA3LL89wA5a5I0Iqw&expires=1771402140)
gloria.tv | February 16, 2026
Pope Leo XIV appointed today the Cabo Verde born Bishop Teodoro Mendes Tavares, 62, of Ponta de Pedras, Brazil, as Bishop of Santiago de Cabo Verde.
Cabo Verde is an island country in the central Atlantic Ocean, off the west coast of Africa, made up of ten volcanic islands.
Born on 7 January 1964 in Cabo Verde, Bishop Tavares took his vows with the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans). He was ordained a priest on 11 July 1993 and was sent as a missionary to Brazil in 1994, to the Prelacy of Tefé, in the Amazonas region.
In 1995, he earned a licentiate in "ecumenism" from Trinity College in Dublin. His doctoral theses was on "Churches and European immigration policy in light of the Schengen and Dublin agreements".
In 2011, Benedict XVI appointed him as auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese of Belém do Pará, Brazil. Back then, the Catholic website FratresInUnum.wordpress.com described the appointment as anti-Catholic.
Francis advanced him in 2015 as Coadjutor and then Bishop of Ponta de Pedras, Brazil.
Signatory of the Cop30 Declaration
In 2023, the Brazilian bishops elected him president of the Episcopal Commission for Ecumenism and Inter-religious Dialogue for the 2023–27 term.
In July 2025, Pope Leo XIV appointed him as a member of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue.
In November 2025, Tavares was listed as one of the Catholic bishops who signed a joint church statement at the COP30 UN-sponsored meeting in Belém.
Amazon Synod Is “Historic Milestone”
Monsignor Tavares participated in the Amazon Synod in 2019. Talking to VaticanNews.va, he described the long-forgotten Synod as a “historic milestone” that gives visibility to “the cry of the Amazon”.
“Earth Is Common Home… Religions Serve Fraternity”
In May 2021, according to Cnbb.org.br, he suggested that all dioceses should have "ecumenical" pastoral teams and groups to organise "ecumenical" prayers and celebrations.
He also said: “The Holy Father says that the Earth is our common home, and that we are all brothers and sisters. In the encyclical Fratelli Tutti, he clearly reiterates that a path of peace between religions is possible. He even states that religious leaders are called to be true dialoguers, playing an active role in building peace, not just as intermediaries, but as genuine mediators who seek peace as their ultimate goal. Furthermore, he affirms that religions are at the service of fraternity in the world.”
“Francis Is Ecumenical... Follow this Path”
In 2023, Monsignor Tavares told CanCanova.com that Pope Francis sets a “shining example” for the path we should follow in favour of ecumenism and interreligious dialogue in our search for unity in diversity.
He believes that “today's highly divided world expects churches and religions, members of other faiths, and us Catholic Christians in particular to promote a culture of encounter, dialogue, fraternity, social friendship, and peace”.
"Not to Be Ecumenical Is to Disobey the Magisterium"
In April 2024, he spoke at another interreligious celebration, according to A12.com: “Above all, this celebration shows the Catholic Church's openness to dialogue between Christians and people of other religions. I want to reiterate what Pope Francis has emphasised: the importance of living in a culture of encounter, dialogue, fraternity and social friendship. Religions must contribute to fraternity, peace, and goodness in the world, and never the opposite. So, the Catholic Church's great banner is peace, fraternity, and unity.”
In September 2025, he said at an ecumenical conference, as reported by CnBB.org.br: “Ecumenism is essential for the Church. Not to be ecumenical is to disobey the magisterium and go against the will of Christ, who prayed for the unity of his disciples.”
Salvation in Different Religious Traditions
Talking to Paulinas.com.br, Mons Tavares said that Nostra Aetate from Vatican II is the Magna Carta for interreligious dialogue:
“It represented a paradigm shift: from ecclesiocentrism and exclusivism to the recognition of the value of non-Christian religions. The Church proclaims Christ, but respects and esteems other religious confessions. The Declaration introduced a more inclusive vision, recognizing God's action in the history of salvation, which is realized under different names and in different traditions.”
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| Fr. James Martin praises Pope Leo for celebrating Mass with altar girls |
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Posted by: Stone - 02-17-2026, 08:43 AM - Forum: Pope Leo XIV
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Fr. James Martin praises Pope Leo for celebrating Mass with altar girls
Martin’s claim that it is un-controversial to have female altar servers is contradicted by many arguments,
including irrefutable theological principles and practical considerations.
Pope Leo XIV leaving the event at the Waterfront Mass on December 2, 2025, in Beirut, Lebanon
Photo by Adri Salido/Getty Images
Feb 16, 2026
(LifeSiteNews [adapted - not all hyperlinks included from original]) — Dissident Jesuit priest James Martin has praised Pope Leo XIV for including two female altar servers at a Mass he celebrated at a parish in Rome this past weekend.
“The use of female altar servers has proven controversial in some US dioceses, and among some bishops, but, apparently, not in the Diocese of Rome or for its bishop,” Martin said on social media Monday.
Martin’s remarks come amid what seems to be a rather grueling media tour promoting his new autobiography, Work in Progress. In recent days, Martin has appeared on Good Morning America and left-wing talk show host Stephen Colbert’s late-night program to boost book sales. He told Colbert that Leo is continuing Francis’ pro-LGBT agenda.
Martin’s claim that it is un-controversial to have female altar servers is contradicted by many arguments, including irrefutable theological principles as well as practical considerations that take into account the differences between boys and girls and the preparation of young boys for seminary.
The role of altar servers has historically been reserved for men and boys in the life of the Church, with several popes expressly forbidding women from serving at the altar. Fifth-century Pope Gelasius (492-496) condemned “the evil practice” of “women serving the priest at the celebration of Mass.” Pope Benedict XIV (1740-1758) reiterated this in his 1755 encyclical Allatae Sunt.
In a 2024 letter written by Sri Lankan Cardinal Albert Malcolm Ranjit, His Eminence declared that “no girls should be invited to serve at the altar” because that role “is one of the main sources of vocations to the priesthood in Sri Lanka and it will affect the number of candidates entering the seminaries, which risk we cannot take.”
Despite the Church’s longstanding teachings and tradition of denying women the role of altar boy, John Paul II permitted female altar servers in the 1990s. The Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts backed the move in a controversial decision.
Lectors, as well as acolytes, were historically minor orders reserved for men alone as they serve as stepping stones to the priesthood. Bishop Athanasius Schneider noted this in his 2023 book Credo when he said that ministers of the Church represent Christ, and because of this their ministries are to be carried out by ordained men or by their substitutes, male lectors or altar boys.
The cracking open of the door to female altar servers arguably took place under Paul VI when in his 1972 motu proprio Ministeria Quaedam he allowed the roles of lector and acolyte to be “lay ministries,” which eventually led to women stepping into the roles. Pope Francis went further in his 2021 motu proprio Spiritus Domini, which modified canon law to allow women to be officially installed as acolytes and lectors.
Bishop Schneider told LifeSite co-founder John-Henry Westen during a recent interview that allowing women to serve as lectors and altar servers introduces feminism into the “core” of the Roman liturgy, as it is a key step toward the ordination of female “priests.” His Excellency noted that this is exactly what happened in the Anglican Church, whose archbishop of Canterbury is now a woman who supports abortion and homosexual “marriage.”
Left-wing Catholic influencers who agree with Martin’s specious reasoning were quick to pounce on conservative critics of Leo. Former Democratic congressional candidate Chris Hale posted several images on his X account of female altar servers being included in liturgies offered by John Paul II and Benedict XVI.
Regardless, the theological principles and millennia-old teaching of the Church are irrefutable. Conservative and traditional Catholics on social media drew additional attention to how Leo’s liturgy was banal and uninspiring.
“Terrible music, ritual detached from tradition, and nonsensical things like female altar boys. Nobody finds this particularly profound,” former Disney child actor turned Catholic commentator Murray Rounds said in an X post.
A Spanish priest cleverly responded to Martin by noting that “the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass has proven controversial in some US dioceses, and among some bishops, but, apparently, not in the Diocese of Rome or for its bishop” — a reference to a Latin Mass offered by Cardinal Raymond Burke in St. Peter’s last year.
Traditional priest Fr. Nicolás E. Despósito urged Catholics not to be shocked by the news but rather to recall that “the real problem isn’t girls at the altar; it’s the apostasy at the top: Salvation outside the Church, blessings for sodomites, ‘God wills all religions,’ and communion for adulterers.”
Pope Leo’s Sunday Mass at Santa Maria Regina Pacis in the coastline neighborhood of Ostia was the first time he offered Mass at a parish church in Rome. At least one of the female servers was wearing Adidas sneakers.
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| The Catholic Trumpet [Video]: SSPX - Hermeneutered by Dialogue |
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Posted by: Stone - 02-14-2026, 06:05 PM - Forum: The Catholic Trumpet
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Hermeneutered by Dialogue: The Neo-SSPX Continues Its Tango with the Conciliar Church
Dear Resistance,
If what was good yesterday is good today, and what was evil yesterday is still evil today, Catholics are forced to ask a simple, unavoidable question.
That question is addressed directly and without compromise in the newest video released on The Catholic Trumpet YouTube channel.
In 1991, Bernard Tissier de Mallerais and Richard Williamson of the SSPX consecrated Licínio Rangel in Brazil — without negotiations, without agreements, without recognition, without appeasement of the Conciliar Church. That act was defended as necessary and Catholic.
Today, in 2026, we see Father Pagliarani and the Neo-SSPX leadership meeting with Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, architect of documents that undermine Our Lady’s role as Co-Redemptrix and Mediatrix of all Graces.
That is not resistance. That is collaboration.
History has already shown the pattern.
Within one year of his consecration, Bishop Rangel reconciled with Rome and accepted the Novus Ordo. Bishop Rifan followed: acceptance of the New Mass, altar girls, and Vatican II in practice.
The lesson is devastating: valid episcopal consecrations do not preserve the Faith when doctrine is surrendered.
We do not lack bishops. We lack faith and doctrinal fidelity.
This trajectory did not begin yesterday. The GREC meetings of 1994–1995 initiated structured dialogue with Modernist Rome — engagement without condemnation, discussion without clarity — a Hegelian tango now spanning more than three decades.
The rupture became formal in 2012 with the Doctrinal Declaration and General Chapter, abandoning Archbishop Lefebvre’s principle of “no practical agreement without a prior doctrinal agreement.”
Everything since has been damage control — not reversal.
Until the Neo-SSPX:
• Condemns the GREC trajectory
• Rejects the 2012 Doctrinal Declaration
• Repudiates Ecclesia Dei and Cardinal Hoyos’ conditions
• Purges conciliar sacramental dependency
• Openly condemns Vatican II as Marcel Lefebvre did …new consecrations are merely spectacle.
+Archbishop Lefebvre ordered his Bishops to provide the sacraments, and to pass down and preach the Faith of Eternal Rome.
The question remains: Will we hold the Faith — or negotiate with its destroyers?
In the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts,
- The Catholic Trumpet
Quote:“Anyone who loves the Truth hates Error. This hatred of Error is the touchstone by which one recognizes love for the Truth. If you do not love the Truth, you may say, up to a certain point, that you love It and even believe It; but be sure that, in this case, you will lack a horror of that which is false, and by this sign you will recognize that you do not love the Truth. When a man who loves Truth ceases to love It, he does not begin by declaring his defection from It: he begins by detesting Error less.” -Ernest Hello, L’Homme
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