Sgt. Salemi interrogates an Italian POW, 1945‘Some Words to Catholics about Bergoglio’: A Poem by Joseph S. Salemi The Society June 19, 2024 Culture, Poetry 29 Comments . Some Words to Catholics about Bergoglio God only knows what’s left to say— Most Catholics drift from day to day, Like refugees in war or flood, Half-starved, or weltering in blood From wounds that fester with gangrene. Our stomachs turn with what we’ve seen And heard from stupid clowns in Rome Who’ve commandeered our Church’s home. It’s time to speak with burning lips As unforgiving as hard whips. The Church is screwed in most respects Because our phony “Pope” rejects Tradition, dogma, hierarchy In favor of bizarre malarkey Spouted by apostate vermin (Mostly liberal, rich, and German). He champions what perverts preach And authorizes them to teach, While globalists mold his ideas Which he disguises with veneers Of fake Franciscan homespun habits, Eco-systems, birds, and rabbits. He prates of fossil-fuel pollution (Leftist rule is the solution). So even if the Church doors open, Don’t get yourself enthused and hopin’. There isn’t that much left to lose— We still expect half-empty pews. All the troubles that we’ve got Pale before the moral rot That stems from Jorge’s witless raving, His left-wing antics, and his craving To wreck our Church and twist her so She’s turned into an NGO. If the Church is weaker, poorer, Blame the Buenos Aires Führer— If collection plates are leaner, Blame the swine from Argentina. In public he’s a plaster saint; In private, all the Swiss Guards faint Before his vicious, filthy tongue, His fits of rage. The spite he’s sprung On anyone who disobeys Or dares to think in different ways, Reveal him as a boorish lout Ever-ready to lash out At any cardinal, bishop, priest Who questions what he does. The least Criticism or rebuke (Based on Matt, Mark, John, or Luke, Canon Law, the Catechism) Makes him scream: You’re causing schism! I’m the Pope! The whole world knows When I proclaim something, it goes! Theology, Patristic texts— All that stuff just leaves him vexed. Encyclicals from former Popes— He thinks they’re just for pious dopes. Monks and nuns in cloistered states— Those are types he really hates. An altar boy’s hands clasped in prayer? Bergoglio gives a baleful stare And wrenches the kid’s hands apart. The vengeance in his hateful heart Stretches to those simple folk Whose rosaries he thinks a joke. A chaste nun or a pious friar Stimulates his silent ire; A Chinese woman grasps his wrist— Bergoglio smacks her with his fist. A Texas bishop condemns sin— Bergoglio sends two hit-men in To dump him from his rightful seat And send him packing in retreat. You think this piece of shit’s “religious”? This tyrant with his gross, prodigious Narcissistic need to reign Over a Church that’s scourged in pain? You judge your silence “Due Respect” While his foot is on your neck? You think this Peronista clone Will leave your Latin Mass alone? You think that fingers in your ears Will spare you from your deepest fears? I’m sick of those who close their eyes To honor what they should despise. . On the Heretical Antipope, Jorge Bergoglio Thanks to the truly herculean efforts of many genuine Roman Catholic scholars, canonists, and lay commentators, there is now, beyond question, very real doubt as to whether the current occupant of the Petrine See is really the Pope. And the doubt is spreading. Whether it is rooted in Benedict XVI’s canonically invalid resignation, or the blatant rigging of the 2013 conclave, or the deliberate attempt to alter Catholic teaching, or the ongoing promotion of homosexualist acceptance via appointments and favoritism, or the scandalous bows to paganism, or the endless series of stupid, heretical, and anti-Catholic effluvia coming from Bergoglio’s mouth, there is now a solid prima facie case that this aging Argentine Jesuit is an impostor. It’s no longer a “fringe” idea, as mainstream Catholic talking heads like to say. The problem is that huge numbers of otherwise good and intelligent Roman Catholics refuse to entertain the possibility, and in fact have become trenchantly dismissive of anyone who dares to bring the question up. Such Catholics have come to be called Remain-and-Resist Catholics, in that they “remain loyal” to the notion that Bergoglio is a valid Pontiff, but they “resist” his attempts to defile and disfigure the Church. My father, who was an interrogator of Axis POWs during the Second World War, said that many prisoners, both German and Italian, admitted that they had no particular fondness for either Hitler or Mussolini or their actions, but were loyal to them for patriotic reasons, or simply because they could see no alternative to obedience. They were happy that they had been captured, and simply wanted the war to end so that they could return home to their private lives. I have come to think that Remain-and-Resist Catholics are in many ways like those Axis prisoners of war. The soldiers went into battle out of reflexive patriotism, and they did not resist Axis authority because there was no sense in doing so. The R&R loyalty to Bergoglio is merely reflexive, and the “resistance” to him is purely theoretical or private. Like Pilate, they’ve washed their hands of the whole matter. The basic thought seems to be this: “Bergoglio is the Pope, and Catholics always obey the Pope.” This is a petitio principii fallacy, since the question at debate is whether Bergoglio is or isn’t the Pope. It hasn’t been concluded yet, and the argument seems to be going very badly for the R&R types, who more and more appear to resemble Custer’s Seventh Cavalry at the end of a bad day. The recognition of a public apostate like Bergoglio as the rightful Roman Pontiff is the linchpin that holds the entire Remain-and-Resist madhouse together. In a whirlpool of freaky insanity, loyalty to Bergoglio is the R&R crowd’s lifeboat, to which they cling like frightened children. Most of them are simply hoping that Bergoglio dies soon, and that things will go back to normal. The situation is both ludicrous and pathetic. The R&R crowd will privately bitch and moan about nearly everything that mars the post-Vatican 2 Conciliar Church—its skewed doctrines, its questionable saints, its wretched liturgy, its no-fault annulments, its hatred of the Latin Mass… everything, that is, except the Pope! Good grief. Why does Bergoglio have a get-out-of-jail-free card, when he is the living embodiment of Vat 2’s failure? And why should anyone naively think that the Church will return to sanity after his death? You can’t get them to answer these questions. Instead they’ll go on about obedience, and respect for the office of the papacy, and how “It’s not our place to judge or decide.” This last response is particularly galling, because it is really just a disguised way of saying “We shouldn’t even think about the issue”—an opinion that some Italian R&R types have actually turned into a position called “Sedemenefreghismo,” which means “I don’t give swiving hump whether the Roman See is vacant or not.” (The Italian phrase non me ne frega means “I don’t give a f—k about it”) As Ann Barnhardt has pointed out, this is a confession of pure indifference and acedia. You don’t care whether then man sitting in the Papal Chair is a fraudulent usurper or not? You don’t care that you’re enabling a man whose clear purpose is to wreck Catholicism? You don’t want to think about—much less discuss—the issue? I think it ought to be discussed, for the simple reason that we live in a world where far too many important questions are corralled into a taboo zone of silence, and where unspoken Categorical Imperatives clamp down our tongues like scold’s bridles. It’s crucially important, because Bergoglio has already wrecked the institutional Church so badly that it very likely will never be the same, and he has packed the College of Cardinal and the hierarchy with his clones, so that the demolition work will continue well into the future. Unless we scream to high heaven that this man is an Antipope, and that all of his decrees, synods, appointments, and statements HAVE NO MAGISTERIAL FORCE AT ALL for Roman Catholics, then we are complicit in his victory. It’s either that, or admitting that the entire concept of the Papacy was always incorrect, and is now null and void. Tertium non datur, folks. . . Joseph S. Salemi has published five books of poetry, and his poems, translations and scholarly articles have appeared in over one hundred publications world-wide. He is the editor of the literary magazine TRINACRIA and writes for Expansive Poetry On-line. He teaches in the Department of Humanities at New York University and in the Department of Classical Languages at Hunter College. NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. Trending now: 29 Responses Susan Jarvis Bryant June 19, 2024 Joe, I love this poem for its craft – the rapid-fire, crystal-clear couplets get the message across in fine poetry, but more… much more than this – it speaks the truth, loudly and unashamedly. ‘Some Words to Catholics about Bergoglio’ is a powerful poem that I hope hits home with those who can make a world of difference. Thank you! Reply Mike Bryant June 19, 2024 Joe, you know that I am a former Catholic that has an overpowering desire to speak the truth as I see it. Your poem does speak truth forcefully and fearlessly. If there is any salvation at all… it must be in the desire and opportunity to speak freely in every forum available all over this downtrodden world. This salvation, this freedom, must start with the people in the pews. Defend yourself… defund the globalists… defrock the traitors… Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 19, 2024 Susan and Mike, many thanks. You are both seeing matters clearly. In the cacophony of lies and deceptions that surround us, all that we can do is speak the truth openly and loudly in every venue we can find — without fear, without palliation, and without compromise. Reply jd June 19, 2024 Ditto to all. An excellent poem too though a tad long but the man’s sins demand it. Thank you. Reply Phil S. Rogers June 19, 2024 Wow! Quite a poem. I am not Catholic, so perhaps I have no real right to comment, but I agree with you completely. Growing up in northern Vermont, many of my friends are of Catholic French Canadian descent. Quite a few have changed over the years, the church today is not as it was when they were children. Some no longer attend services except for Christmas and Easter, and a couple have left the church completely. A tragedy. Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 19, 2024 Attendance at Novus Ordo Catholic Mass has plummeted since its inception in 1970. The Latin Masses that are still offered have heavy and loyal attendance, and these are precisely the masses that Bergoglio and his Vatican toadies are hell-bent on prohibiting. The rumors from Rome are that a world-wide and permanent cancellation of Latin masses will be issued within a few weeks. The Vatican wants to get it made official before Bergoglio croaks. Reply Julian D. Woodruff June 19, 2024 Wow, Joseph! Are you sure this “pope” doesn’t have a DOJ? Or maybe you’re past caring, in which case bravo! I do think the problem for many, incl. Vigano, Schneider, and esp. Sarah, Burke, Cordelione, and Strickland, who’ve all been lashed by Bergoglio’s vengeance, “to whom shall we go?” But, with the complete suppression of Latin as the next looming disaster, the answer appears to be “Seek, and ye shall find,” or “Knock [the old dragon out of Rome] and it shall be opened unto you.” Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 19, 2024 If the Latin Mass is prohibited, there is no other choice for traditional Catholics except to go underground, as we did in the catacombs. But once that happens, we will be officially marked as dissidents and potential terrorists by secular governments, who will come after us with no fear of offending the “official” Conciliar Church. Already the Democrat-controlled FBI has shown itself more than willing to do that. Reply Brian A. Yapko June 19, 2024 This is an astonishing poem, Joe – 86 well-wrought lines of heroic couplets which are aggressive and brutally candid. Most importantly, the poem throws down the gauntlet to the Catholic community to fully understand not only the nature of the present occupant of the Throne of St. Peter, but the implications of unquestioning, sheeplike acceptance of his role. It is one thing for Mr. Bergoglio to be heretical. It is an entirely different thing for this heresy to be enabled by the masses. Now I’m not Catholic so I don’t feel I have the right to chime in on this. But I can certainly express concern for an institution that is veering sharply leftward as a result of Bergoglio’s influence. I can certainly see the implications to the survival of Roman Catholicism as a result of his decisions to cut ties with tradition and his watering down or eliminating theologically important concepts. I can certainly be alarmed by his embrace of concepts and doctrines which are anathema to traditional Roman Catholics and Christians in general. Such corruption is something I have seen in a great many churches, including the Episcopal. And the deterioration of the churches runs parallel to the breakdown that is occurring throughout Western civilization. Discipline dies. Values die. Entropy erodes everything. Passivity in such a context is fatal. I am a strong believer in not enabling wrong behavior. It is wrong to pretend that the occupant of the White House is not senile and to look the other way at the fact that the country is being run by an unconstitutional regency. It is wrong to enable the illness of transgenderism because we feel sorry for people who have been sorely manipulated. Enabling is wrong. It is wrong to give free fentanyl and methamphetamine to addicts. It’s easy to just coast and do what feels good. But it’s wrong. And this is where spines come in. Powerful work, Joe. If the West is to be salvaged, it can only occur based on truth and on people working up the guts to stop enabling the gaslighting. The West can only be saved if people do the right thing. Not the easy thing, but the right thing. Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 19, 2024 My deepest gratitude to you, Brian. As you know, it was your encouragement and support that convinced me to submit this poem and essay to the SCP. I hesitated for some time, but it was the news of the coming prohibition of the Latin Mass that finally pushed me to act. What embitters me is that there will still be R&R Catholics who will act as “Popesplainers,” and come up with intricately specious reasons as to why we still need to be loyal to a man who is actively working to destroy Catholicism. Reply Margaret Coats June 20, 2024 Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus. Infallibly defined dogma which means, remain in the Church Bergoglio has left, because that’s where salvation is. Joseph, you demand a healthy discussion in place of a silent status quo. This has been going on among the faithful since Pope Benedict’s resignation, which some very ordinary Catholics loudly refused to accept. As you say, by this time there are many respected voices doing what you are doing, by pointing out the exit doors the Argentine has taken. The ways out of the Church are heresy, schism, and apostasy, as we were informed centuries ago by Saint Robert Bellarmine in his discussion of this possible heretical pope. You mention Bergoglio’s heresies, among which the most prominent are denials of moral teaching so severe as to contribute to widespread moral rot. You mention schism in the disdain for, and contradiction of, undoubtedly legitimate Vicars of Christ in the past. You mention schism also pertaining to the present, when orthodox prelates and priests are punished or removed for sustaining religion. There is schism as well in rejecting hierarchy as established by Christ, as was done in the execrable worldwide Synod promoting egalitarianism. You mention apostasy in the acceptance of pagan practice and oppressive secular globalism. Outside the Church as he is, the current occupant of the papal soglio clings only to a false concept of the Papacy he does not possess, and to the virtue of obedience that enables him to stay in power. You mention these things as well, Joe. The poem is a great tool for starting serious discussion in the Church. May Catholics and others learn what the Papacy is as established by Christ, foreseen in the Old Testament and outlined in the New. May all learn to identify the vice of servility, which is obedience in excess. That means study as well as prayer. It means seeking the one, true, visible, indefectible Church where she may be found, even if underground. It means sustaining her with resources of word and wealth. It means strengthening and encouraging weak brothers and sisters. It means disrupting imposition of what is harmful to the salvation of souls and the glory of God. Reply R M Moore June 20, 2024 Dear Joseph Salemi, What you write is true. So, let’s look at what happens in Matthew 8:24-27. You might know, it’s the part where Jesus falls asleep while the waves rock the boat and the disciples panic. Aquinas had collected explanations in Catena Aurea, some of which read: CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xxviii.) He took His disciples with Him, and in a boat, that they might learn two lessons; first, not to be confounded in dangers, secondly, to think lowly of themselves in honour. That they should not think great things of themselves because He kept them while He sent the rest away, He suffers them to be tossed by the waves. Where miracles were to be shewn, He suffers the people to be present; where temptations and fears were to be stilled, there He takes with Him only the victors of the world, whom He would prepare for strife. PSEUDO-ORIGEN. (ubi sup.) Therefore, having entered into the boat He caused the sea to rise; And, lo, there arose a great tempest in the sea, so that the boat was covered by the waves. This tempest did not arise of itself, but in obedience to the power of Him Who gave commandment, who brings the winds out of his treasures. (Jer. 10:13.) There arose a great tempest, that a great work might be wrought; because by how much the more the waves rushed into the boat, so much the more were the disciples troubled, and sought to be delivered by the wonderful power of the Saviour. CHRYSOSTOM. They had seen others made partakers of Christ’s mercies, but forasmuch as no man has so strong a sense of those things that are done in the person of another as of what is done to himself, it behoved that in their own bodies they should feel Christ’s mercies. Therefore He willed that this tempest should arise, that in their deliverance they might have a more lively sense of His goodness. This tossing of the sea was a type of their future trials of which Paul speaks, I would not have you ignorant, brethren, how that we were troubled beyond our strength. (2 Cor. 1:8.) But that there might be time for their fear to arise, it follows, But he was asleep. For if the storm had arisen while He was awake, they would either not have feared, or not have prayed Him, or would not have believed that He had the power to still it. Read that last line again. Now for those who are baptized in the Catholic Church, get down on your knees, repent, go to frequent Confession, do the duties according to you state in life and pray unceasingly. No one does that much any more. The clergy need prayers too, as they certainly are not being well formed in diocesan seminaries scholastically. Prayer is direct communication with the Author of Grace, which the demons fear. Reply Roy Eugene Peterson June 20, 2024 Powerful poem with penetrating truth prying open the can of worms now inhabiting the papal throne. Your amazing classical poet skills are in full display of meter, rhyme, and message. Every Roman Catholic should read this and question the reason why they “remain-and-resist.” I was particularly touched by your father debriefing former Nazis and Mussolinites and learning the reasons why they continued on as soldiers when they had no love for their fuhrer. The couplets are extensive and are like a great staccato symphony that still rings in my ears. I also learned a lot that has been going on behind the scenes. You are truly one of a kind with your ability to communicate so fluidly and deftly, your devotion to detail, and your amazing perspective. You are doing God’s work! Keep the faith and keep the resistance. Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 20, 2024 To Margaret, R.M. Moore, and LTC Peterson: Thank you all for your detailed and erudite comments. I deeply appreciate them. Many good Roman Catholics have not left the Church, even though they are being persecuted and demeaned by the present antipope and his ecclesiastical toadies. The antipope and the toadies are the ones who have left, even while they posture as Roman Catholics. Reply R MMoore June 22, 2024 You are welcome, Joseph S. Salemi! Yael June 20, 2024 Great poetry, which carries strong meaning and a message. The essay is very interesting too, as it provides a glimpse behind the scenes as it were for us non-Catholics. To the extent that I have anything resembling an opinion on Catholicism, it is shaped by my reading of the Holy Bible. In my Bible I read the definition of religion: “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” James 1:27 And the words of Jesus in Matthew 23: “But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.” The more I read and understand the Bible, the less I understand the religious institutions and denominations in this world. And I’m so happy I do get to read the Bible and speak about it without being persecuted, imprisoned, or burned at the stake for it. Thank God for liberty of conscience! Reply Cynthia Erlandson June 20, 2024 As an Anglican, I don’t know all the detailed ins and outs of your church’s particular situation; but I get the gist, and can certainly identify and commiserate, as the situation in the Anglican church is just as messy and disheartening overall. I thank God for small traditionalist outposts where we can find them. I did enjoy the poem, particularly some of your appropriately outrageous rhymes. Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 20, 2024 Yael and Cynthia, many thanks for your comments. The scriptural quotes were on point, and I have always had a soft spot for High-Church Anglicanism. Reply Adam Sedia June 21, 2024 How can I describe the emotions welling up within me when reading this? A strange mixture of anger, knowing that everything you say is 100% true without any hyperbole, and comfort, knowing that I am far from alone in feeling this way. Your poem is clearly written for those who are somehow not yet persuaded that Bergoglio is an antipope and a usurper of the Chair of Peter – not to mention an apostate. The moment that clarified everything for me was even before traditionis custodes: it was him worshipping the pagan Andean idol in Saint Peter‘s Gardens. If any prior pope had tried that, the people of Rome would have stormed the Vatican, hacked him to pieces, and thrown him into the Tiber. That he was even able to dare such a thing without consequences speaks more of the faithful than anything. Truly, we’ve gotten the church we deserve. Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 21, 2024 Thank you, Adam. Your words are precious to me, because I wanted to give voice to the close-to-explosion level of anger that is building in R&R circles, but which is still being held in check by residual pro forma respect. It is becoming less and less possible, intellectually, to recognize Bergoglio as a valid pope. I’m glad my poem has had some effect. Reply C.B. Anderson June 21, 2024 As several others have already complained, I don’t really have a dog in this fight — except for the fact that I am a beneficiary of the many pillars of Western Civilization. May the Lord be with you, Joseph, as you light a candle in the face of the encroaching Dark, and let not your courage be diminished by the forces marshalled against you. Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 21, 2024 Many thanks, Kip. I appreciate your words. We Catholics are only at the beginning of a very savage and merciless battle. Just a couple days ago, as a follow-up to the announcement of the prohibition of Latin Masses, the Vatican’s Dicastery summoned Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano (one of the most important defenders of traditional Catholicism) to a kangaroo-court “trial” on charges of schism and heresy. This “trial” will be no different from the corrupt legal farce in New York that just recently went after President Trump. But the purblind R&R Catholics still have their fingers in their ears, and are mindlessly repeating “Fwanciss is the Pope! Fwanciss is the Pope!” That’s why Bergoglio is going to shoot them like fish in a barrel. Reply Joshua C. Frank June 21, 2024 Thank you, Joe, for this. His many appalling transgressions need to be shouted on the rooftops to all who think he’s actually worth listening to. My family and I laughed out loud with some of the lines. Everything you’re saying about him in the poem is already a matter of public record, but that’s precisely why it’s so powerful. You’re absolutely right that he’s an impostor: assuming all these things he’s said and done are real (you never know with news anymore), he’s certainly pretending to be Catholic. I tried to put up with him for ten years… and then Fr. Frank Pavone getting defrocked, while bishops who preach abortion and transgenderism get promoted to high places, was the final straw for me. I saw a meme that said, “I was once willing to give my life for what I believed this country stood for. Today, I would give my life to protect my family from what this country has become.” That’s where I am with both my country and my Church. People wonder why I stay with the Church despite having come to this point, but the reason is because, as a Catholic, I don’t believe in divorce. It is no more right for a man to divorce the Church than to divorce his wife. I once heard someone say, “How can Protestants be against divorce when their whole religion is all about divorcing the Church?” Whoever said this is absolutely right on the money. Indeed, Protestants tried answering him, but all of their excuses were exactly the same things people say to justify divorce. I don’t know whether or not he’s illegitimate as you say, but either way, in my view, is just as bad as the other. If he is legitimate, then it means the Papacy can go astray, and we can’t rely on what any pope has said. If not, then it’s up to us to decide whether a pope is “real,” and we can’t rely on what any pope has said. Unless all of these stories about him are complete fabrications, and we have no access to what the pope really thinks, so we still can’t rely on what any pope has said, or the culture of death (as Pope St. John Paul II called modern culture) is somehow more pleasing to God than what the Catholic faith has always taught, in which case why have a pope at all, since the culture of death hates hierarchy so much? In my view, nothing calls the papacy or the Catholic faith into question more than Pope Francis and the fact that God has allowed him to commandeer His Church. The solution, it seems, is that the unchangeable Deposit of Faith is independent of who the pope is, just as the validity of the Constitution of the United States is independent of who the president is, and so in times like this, we have to look to the faith, not to the pope. After all, the common man hearing from the pope directly (as opposed to through the priest, who heard it from the bishop, etc.) is a very recent phenomenon. Scripture and Church teaching are from God; the rest is simply the word of man, a bunch of opinions about the Word of God. Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 22, 2024 Dear Joshua — We are all in a state of pain over this situation. Like you, I believe in the unchangeable Deposit of Faith that the Church stands as guardian for, and I believe the words of Christ that “the gates of hell shall not prevail against” the Church. For those very two reasons I am certain that Bergoglio is an antipope, for if he were indeed the validly elected Vicar of Christ, then those words of Christ would be false, and the Deposit of Faith would be corrupted. It’s a matter of simple, elementary logic. Thinking that Bergoglio can be the Pope is like thinking that Heinrich Himmler could be the head of B’nai B’rith. Reply Alan Orsborn June 22, 2024 Joseph, this excellent poem with the enlightening commentary together explain better than anything else I have ever read the current struggle that traditional Catholics face within their own Church. But my first thought about you and what you had written (my first thoughts are generally in Latin, I think about ancient Rome a lot) testiculos habet et bene pendectes. As an Orthodox Christian convert I have supported my brothers and sisters in the Catholic Church, literally including some of my own family members, in their struggle to remain faithful to the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. But the forces that are decimating the Western Church are even now attacking the heart of Orthodox Christianity, and the corrupt deep church is now pursuing Archbishop Viganò, beloved by Christians of every tradition and confession. We must open our eyes. We must struggle. We must push back. We will win. IC XC NIKA Reply Joseph S. Salemi June 22, 2024 Thank you, Alan. I’m not an especially brave man, so I don’t think it’s a question of my testicles — what I have is boiling, lava-hot anger, and that’s something that will make the meekest and mildest guy dangerous. Yes — the Bergoglianist Vatican is already planning to go after the Eastern Rite Catholics and force them into modernist orthodoxy, just as they have recently done with the ancient rites in India. This is a massive, widely spreading poison. Reply Julia Griffin July 6, 2024 How you Christians love each other! I hold no particular brief for the Pope, but this hysterical denunciation of him chills my blood. Caritas is surely more important even than the traditional Latin mass. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 6, 2024 Julia, thank you for your comment. It’s always good to hear alternative viewpoints. You’ll note that I am the first one in the comments section to indulge in the “hysterical denunciation” that chills your blood, and for that reason I feel compelled to explain. Christian love of humankind is of course important. But let’s not forget the words of Jesus: “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword…” Jesus regularly put the pharisees straight and followed God’s word instead of their doctrine… this is the very reason he was crucified. Many with faith in God do not agree with the current pope – for very good reason, in my humble opinion. What is wrong with calling out an authority in the name of His Truth? Is that not the true meaning of being a Christian? Reply Joseph S. Salemi July 6, 2024 Ms. Griffin — Where was the “caritas” for Archbishop Vigano, who has just been excommunicated for being a genuine Roman Catholic? Or for Cardinal Burke, or Bishop Strickland, or Henry Sire, all pretty much demeaned for the same reason? Or are they not to be welcomed into the Vat-2 Conciliarist Church of accompaniment and inclusion? You may not hold a brief for Bergoglio, but if you recognize him you are his enabler. Reply Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Susan Jarvis Bryant June 19, 2024 Joe, I love this poem for its craft – the rapid-fire, crystal-clear couplets get the message across in fine poetry, but more… much more than this – it speaks the truth, loudly and unashamedly. ‘Some Words to Catholics about Bergoglio’ is a powerful poem that I hope hits home with those who can make a world of difference. Thank you! Reply
Mike Bryant June 19, 2024 Joe, you know that I am a former Catholic that has an overpowering desire to speak the truth as I see it. Your poem does speak truth forcefully and fearlessly. If there is any salvation at all… it must be in the desire and opportunity to speak freely in every forum available all over this downtrodden world. This salvation, this freedom, must start with the people in the pews. Defend yourself… defund the globalists… defrock the traitors… Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 19, 2024 Susan and Mike, many thanks. You are both seeing matters clearly. In the cacophony of lies and deceptions that surround us, all that we can do is speak the truth openly and loudly in every venue we can find — without fear, without palliation, and without compromise. Reply
jd June 19, 2024 Ditto to all. An excellent poem too though a tad long but the man’s sins demand it. Thank you. Reply
Phil S. Rogers June 19, 2024 Wow! Quite a poem. I am not Catholic, so perhaps I have no real right to comment, but I agree with you completely. Growing up in northern Vermont, many of my friends are of Catholic French Canadian descent. Quite a few have changed over the years, the church today is not as it was when they were children. Some no longer attend services except for Christmas and Easter, and a couple have left the church completely. A tragedy. Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 19, 2024 Attendance at Novus Ordo Catholic Mass has plummeted since its inception in 1970. The Latin Masses that are still offered have heavy and loyal attendance, and these are precisely the masses that Bergoglio and his Vatican toadies are hell-bent on prohibiting. The rumors from Rome are that a world-wide and permanent cancellation of Latin masses will be issued within a few weeks. The Vatican wants to get it made official before Bergoglio croaks. Reply
Julian D. Woodruff June 19, 2024 Wow, Joseph! Are you sure this “pope” doesn’t have a DOJ? Or maybe you’re past caring, in which case bravo! I do think the problem for many, incl. Vigano, Schneider, and esp. Sarah, Burke, Cordelione, and Strickland, who’ve all been lashed by Bergoglio’s vengeance, “to whom shall we go?” But, with the complete suppression of Latin as the next looming disaster, the answer appears to be “Seek, and ye shall find,” or “Knock [the old dragon out of Rome] and it shall be opened unto you.” Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 19, 2024 If the Latin Mass is prohibited, there is no other choice for traditional Catholics except to go underground, as we did in the catacombs. But once that happens, we will be officially marked as dissidents and potential terrorists by secular governments, who will come after us with no fear of offending the “official” Conciliar Church. Already the Democrat-controlled FBI has shown itself more than willing to do that. Reply
Brian A. Yapko June 19, 2024 This is an astonishing poem, Joe – 86 well-wrought lines of heroic couplets which are aggressive and brutally candid. Most importantly, the poem throws down the gauntlet to the Catholic community to fully understand not only the nature of the present occupant of the Throne of St. Peter, but the implications of unquestioning, sheeplike acceptance of his role. It is one thing for Mr. Bergoglio to be heretical. It is an entirely different thing for this heresy to be enabled by the masses. Now I’m not Catholic so I don’t feel I have the right to chime in on this. But I can certainly express concern for an institution that is veering sharply leftward as a result of Bergoglio’s influence. I can certainly see the implications to the survival of Roman Catholicism as a result of his decisions to cut ties with tradition and his watering down or eliminating theologically important concepts. I can certainly be alarmed by his embrace of concepts and doctrines which are anathema to traditional Roman Catholics and Christians in general. Such corruption is something I have seen in a great many churches, including the Episcopal. And the deterioration of the churches runs parallel to the breakdown that is occurring throughout Western civilization. Discipline dies. Values die. Entropy erodes everything. Passivity in such a context is fatal. I am a strong believer in not enabling wrong behavior. It is wrong to pretend that the occupant of the White House is not senile and to look the other way at the fact that the country is being run by an unconstitutional regency. It is wrong to enable the illness of transgenderism because we feel sorry for people who have been sorely manipulated. Enabling is wrong. It is wrong to give free fentanyl and methamphetamine to addicts. It’s easy to just coast and do what feels good. But it’s wrong. And this is where spines come in. Powerful work, Joe. If the West is to be salvaged, it can only occur based on truth and on people working up the guts to stop enabling the gaslighting. The West can only be saved if people do the right thing. Not the easy thing, but the right thing. Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 19, 2024 My deepest gratitude to you, Brian. As you know, it was your encouragement and support that convinced me to submit this poem and essay to the SCP. I hesitated for some time, but it was the news of the coming prohibition of the Latin Mass that finally pushed me to act. What embitters me is that there will still be R&R Catholics who will act as “Popesplainers,” and come up with intricately specious reasons as to why we still need to be loyal to a man who is actively working to destroy Catholicism. Reply
Margaret Coats June 20, 2024 Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus. Infallibly defined dogma which means, remain in the Church Bergoglio has left, because that’s where salvation is. Joseph, you demand a healthy discussion in place of a silent status quo. This has been going on among the faithful since Pope Benedict’s resignation, which some very ordinary Catholics loudly refused to accept. As you say, by this time there are many respected voices doing what you are doing, by pointing out the exit doors the Argentine has taken. The ways out of the Church are heresy, schism, and apostasy, as we were informed centuries ago by Saint Robert Bellarmine in his discussion of this possible heretical pope. You mention Bergoglio’s heresies, among which the most prominent are denials of moral teaching so severe as to contribute to widespread moral rot. You mention schism in the disdain for, and contradiction of, undoubtedly legitimate Vicars of Christ in the past. You mention schism also pertaining to the present, when orthodox prelates and priests are punished or removed for sustaining religion. There is schism as well in rejecting hierarchy as established by Christ, as was done in the execrable worldwide Synod promoting egalitarianism. You mention apostasy in the acceptance of pagan practice and oppressive secular globalism. Outside the Church as he is, the current occupant of the papal soglio clings only to a false concept of the Papacy he does not possess, and to the virtue of obedience that enables him to stay in power. You mention these things as well, Joe. The poem is a great tool for starting serious discussion in the Church. May Catholics and others learn what the Papacy is as established by Christ, foreseen in the Old Testament and outlined in the New. May all learn to identify the vice of servility, which is obedience in excess. That means study as well as prayer. It means seeking the one, true, visible, indefectible Church where she may be found, even if underground. It means sustaining her with resources of word and wealth. It means strengthening and encouraging weak brothers and sisters. It means disrupting imposition of what is harmful to the salvation of souls and the glory of God. Reply
R M Moore June 20, 2024 Dear Joseph Salemi, What you write is true. So, let’s look at what happens in Matthew 8:24-27. You might know, it’s the part where Jesus falls asleep while the waves rock the boat and the disciples panic. Aquinas had collected explanations in Catena Aurea, some of which read: CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xxviii.) He took His disciples with Him, and in a boat, that they might learn two lessons; first, not to be confounded in dangers, secondly, to think lowly of themselves in honour. That they should not think great things of themselves because He kept them while He sent the rest away, He suffers them to be tossed by the waves. Where miracles were to be shewn, He suffers the people to be present; where temptations and fears were to be stilled, there He takes with Him only the victors of the world, whom He would prepare for strife. PSEUDO-ORIGEN. (ubi sup.) Therefore, having entered into the boat He caused the sea to rise; And, lo, there arose a great tempest in the sea, so that the boat was covered by the waves. This tempest did not arise of itself, but in obedience to the power of Him Who gave commandment, who brings the winds out of his treasures. (Jer. 10:13.) There arose a great tempest, that a great work might be wrought; because by how much the more the waves rushed into the boat, so much the more were the disciples troubled, and sought to be delivered by the wonderful power of the Saviour. CHRYSOSTOM. They had seen others made partakers of Christ’s mercies, but forasmuch as no man has so strong a sense of those things that are done in the person of another as of what is done to himself, it behoved that in their own bodies they should feel Christ’s mercies. Therefore He willed that this tempest should arise, that in their deliverance they might have a more lively sense of His goodness. This tossing of the sea was a type of their future trials of which Paul speaks, I would not have you ignorant, brethren, how that we were troubled beyond our strength. (2 Cor. 1:8.) But that there might be time for their fear to arise, it follows, But he was asleep. For if the storm had arisen while He was awake, they would either not have feared, or not have prayed Him, or would not have believed that He had the power to still it. Read that last line again. Now for those who are baptized in the Catholic Church, get down on your knees, repent, go to frequent Confession, do the duties according to you state in life and pray unceasingly. No one does that much any more. The clergy need prayers too, as they certainly are not being well formed in diocesan seminaries scholastically. Prayer is direct communication with the Author of Grace, which the demons fear. Reply
Roy Eugene Peterson June 20, 2024 Powerful poem with penetrating truth prying open the can of worms now inhabiting the papal throne. Your amazing classical poet skills are in full display of meter, rhyme, and message. Every Roman Catholic should read this and question the reason why they “remain-and-resist.” I was particularly touched by your father debriefing former Nazis and Mussolinites and learning the reasons why they continued on as soldiers when they had no love for their fuhrer. The couplets are extensive and are like a great staccato symphony that still rings in my ears. I also learned a lot that has been going on behind the scenes. You are truly one of a kind with your ability to communicate so fluidly and deftly, your devotion to detail, and your amazing perspective. You are doing God’s work! Keep the faith and keep the resistance. Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 20, 2024 To Margaret, R.M. Moore, and LTC Peterson: Thank you all for your detailed and erudite comments. I deeply appreciate them. Many good Roman Catholics have not left the Church, even though they are being persecuted and demeaned by the present antipope and his ecclesiastical toadies. The antipope and the toadies are the ones who have left, even while they posture as Roman Catholics. Reply
Yael June 20, 2024 Great poetry, which carries strong meaning and a message. The essay is very interesting too, as it provides a glimpse behind the scenes as it were for us non-Catholics. To the extent that I have anything resembling an opinion on Catholicism, it is shaped by my reading of the Holy Bible. In my Bible I read the definition of religion: “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” James 1:27 And the words of Jesus in Matthew 23: “But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.” The more I read and understand the Bible, the less I understand the religious institutions and denominations in this world. And I’m so happy I do get to read the Bible and speak about it without being persecuted, imprisoned, or burned at the stake for it. Thank God for liberty of conscience! Reply
Cynthia Erlandson June 20, 2024 As an Anglican, I don’t know all the detailed ins and outs of your church’s particular situation; but I get the gist, and can certainly identify and commiserate, as the situation in the Anglican church is just as messy and disheartening overall. I thank God for small traditionalist outposts where we can find them. I did enjoy the poem, particularly some of your appropriately outrageous rhymes. Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 20, 2024 Yael and Cynthia, many thanks for your comments. The scriptural quotes were on point, and I have always had a soft spot for High-Church Anglicanism. Reply
Adam Sedia June 21, 2024 How can I describe the emotions welling up within me when reading this? A strange mixture of anger, knowing that everything you say is 100% true without any hyperbole, and comfort, knowing that I am far from alone in feeling this way. Your poem is clearly written for those who are somehow not yet persuaded that Bergoglio is an antipope and a usurper of the Chair of Peter – not to mention an apostate. The moment that clarified everything for me was even before traditionis custodes: it was him worshipping the pagan Andean idol in Saint Peter‘s Gardens. If any prior pope had tried that, the people of Rome would have stormed the Vatican, hacked him to pieces, and thrown him into the Tiber. That he was even able to dare such a thing without consequences speaks more of the faithful than anything. Truly, we’ve gotten the church we deserve. Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 21, 2024 Thank you, Adam. Your words are precious to me, because I wanted to give voice to the close-to-explosion level of anger that is building in R&R circles, but which is still being held in check by residual pro forma respect. It is becoming less and less possible, intellectually, to recognize Bergoglio as a valid pope. I’m glad my poem has had some effect. Reply
C.B. Anderson June 21, 2024 As several others have already complained, I don’t really have a dog in this fight — except for the fact that I am a beneficiary of the many pillars of Western Civilization. May the Lord be with you, Joseph, as you light a candle in the face of the encroaching Dark, and let not your courage be diminished by the forces marshalled against you. Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 21, 2024 Many thanks, Kip. I appreciate your words. We Catholics are only at the beginning of a very savage and merciless battle. Just a couple days ago, as a follow-up to the announcement of the prohibition of Latin Masses, the Vatican’s Dicastery summoned Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano (one of the most important defenders of traditional Catholicism) to a kangaroo-court “trial” on charges of schism and heresy. This “trial” will be no different from the corrupt legal farce in New York that just recently went after President Trump. But the purblind R&R Catholics still have their fingers in their ears, and are mindlessly repeating “Fwanciss is the Pope! Fwanciss is the Pope!” That’s why Bergoglio is going to shoot them like fish in a barrel. Reply
Joshua C. Frank June 21, 2024 Thank you, Joe, for this. His many appalling transgressions need to be shouted on the rooftops to all who think he’s actually worth listening to. My family and I laughed out loud with some of the lines. Everything you’re saying about him in the poem is already a matter of public record, but that’s precisely why it’s so powerful. You’re absolutely right that he’s an impostor: assuming all these things he’s said and done are real (you never know with news anymore), he’s certainly pretending to be Catholic. I tried to put up with him for ten years… and then Fr. Frank Pavone getting defrocked, while bishops who preach abortion and transgenderism get promoted to high places, was the final straw for me. I saw a meme that said, “I was once willing to give my life for what I believed this country stood for. Today, I would give my life to protect my family from what this country has become.” That’s where I am with both my country and my Church. People wonder why I stay with the Church despite having come to this point, but the reason is because, as a Catholic, I don’t believe in divorce. It is no more right for a man to divorce the Church than to divorce his wife. I once heard someone say, “How can Protestants be against divorce when their whole religion is all about divorcing the Church?” Whoever said this is absolutely right on the money. Indeed, Protestants tried answering him, but all of their excuses were exactly the same things people say to justify divorce. I don’t know whether or not he’s illegitimate as you say, but either way, in my view, is just as bad as the other. If he is legitimate, then it means the Papacy can go astray, and we can’t rely on what any pope has said. If not, then it’s up to us to decide whether a pope is “real,” and we can’t rely on what any pope has said. Unless all of these stories about him are complete fabrications, and we have no access to what the pope really thinks, so we still can’t rely on what any pope has said, or the culture of death (as Pope St. John Paul II called modern culture) is somehow more pleasing to God than what the Catholic faith has always taught, in which case why have a pope at all, since the culture of death hates hierarchy so much? In my view, nothing calls the papacy or the Catholic faith into question more than Pope Francis and the fact that God has allowed him to commandeer His Church. The solution, it seems, is that the unchangeable Deposit of Faith is independent of who the pope is, just as the validity of the Constitution of the United States is independent of who the president is, and so in times like this, we have to look to the faith, not to the pope. After all, the common man hearing from the pope directly (as opposed to through the priest, who heard it from the bishop, etc.) is a very recent phenomenon. Scripture and Church teaching are from God; the rest is simply the word of man, a bunch of opinions about the Word of God. Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 22, 2024 Dear Joshua — We are all in a state of pain over this situation. Like you, I believe in the unchangeable Deposit of Faith that the Church stands as guardian for, and I believe the words of Christ that “the gates of hell shall not prevail against” the Church. For those very two reasons I am certain that Bergoglio is an antipope, for if he were indeed the validly elected Vicar of Christ, then those words of Christ would be false, and the Deposit of Faith would be corrupted. It’s a matter of simple, elementary logic. Thinking that Bergoglio can be the Pope is like thinking that Heinrich Himmler could be the head of B’nai B’rith. Reply
Alan Orsborn June 22, 2024 Joseph, this excellent poem with the enlightening commentary together explain better than anything else I have ever read the current struggle that traditional Catholics face within their own Church. But my first thought about you and what you had written (my first thoughts are generally in Latin, I think about ancient Rome a lot) testiculos habet et bene pendectes. As an Orthodox Christian convert I have supported my brothers and sisters in the Catholic Church, literally including some of my own family members, in their struggle to remain faithful to the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. But the forces that are decimating the Western Church are even now attacking the heart of Orthodox Christianity, and the corrupt deep church is now pursuing Archbishop Viganò, beloved by Christians of every tradition and confession. We must open our eyes. We must struggle. We must push back. We will win. IC XC NIKA Reply
Joseph S. Salemi June 22, 2024 Thank you, Alan. I’m not an especially brave man, so I don’t think it’s a question of my testicles — what I have is boiling, lava-hot anger, and that’s something that will make the meekest and mildest guy dangerous. Yes — the Bergoglianist Vatican is already planning to go after the Eastern Rite Catholics and force them into modernist orthodoxy, just as they have recently done with the ancient rites in India. This is a massive, widely spreading poison. Reply
Julia Griffin July 6, 2024 How you Christians love each other! I hold no particular brief for the Pope, but this hysterical denunciation of him chills my blood. Caritas is surely more important even than the traditional Latin mass. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 6, 2024 Julia, thank you for your comment. It’s always good to hear alternative viewpoints. You’ll note that I am the first one in the comments section to indulge in the “hysterical denunciation” that chills your blood, and for that reason I feel compelled to explain. Christian love of humankind is of course important. But let’s not forget the words of Jesus: “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword…” Jesus regularly put the pharisees straight and followed God’s word instead of their doctrine… this is the very reason he was crucified. Many with faith in God do not agree with the current pope – for very good reason, in my humble opinion. What is wrong with calling out an authority in the name of His Truth? Is that not the true meaning of being a Christian? Reply
Joseph S. Salemi July 6, 2024 Ms. Griffin — Where was the “caritas” for Archbishop Vigano, who has just been excommunicated for being a genuine Roman Catholic? Or for Cardinal Burke, or Bishop Strickland, or Henry Sire, all pretty much demeaned for the same reason? Or are they not to be welcomed into the Vat-2 Conciliarist Church of accompaniment and inclusion? You may not hold a brief for Bergoglio, but if you recognize him you are his enabler. Reply
