Bishop Athanasius Schneider: We have to recognize this. This is a truly rare case in the entire history of the Church. We must state simply that our current doctrinal and moral crisis in the papacy is unprecedented. It is a crisis of the papacy itself, and of course, it also affects the episcopacy, though such doctrinal crises have occurred very rarely throughout Church history.
Over the 2,000 years of the Church, there have been several moral crises—such as in the 10th century with the *Saeculum Obscurum*, and among some Renaissance popes. These were scandals and stains on the papacy, but they were primarily moral, not doctrinal. A pope living immorally does great harm, but doctrinal confusion is even more grievous because it undermines the foundations of the faith among the people of God.
Instances of doctrinal confusion originating from the papacy are very rare. The first was Pope Liberius in the fourth century, during the Arian crisis. He yielded and signed an ambiguous formula of faith. It was not directly heretical, but ambiguity always causes confusion. Liberius was the first pope in Church history who was not canonized; all his predecessors, from St. Peter to him, were canonized as martyrs or confessors of the faith. He also abandoned St. Athanasius and consented to his excommunication.
Another significant doctrinal issue occurred in the 14th century with Pope John XXII. In his ordinary magisterium, his daily speeches and homilies, he de facto spread an error, claiming that the souls of the saints and the purified would not enjoy the beatific vision until the Last Judgment, when Christ comes again and God creates a new heaven and earth. This contradicts Jesus’ words to the good thief: “Today you will be with me in Paradise.”
Some resisted, but most clergy were fearful of losing their positions. Only one cardinal actively resisted, alongside some laypeople, notably the King of France and the Sorbonne University, who condemned this teaching. It is even said, though I cannot confirm, that the King of France declared he would have burned the Pope as a heretic if he had persisted in Paris. Thankfully, Pope John XXII repented before his death, retracted his errors, and convened the College of Cardinals to acknowledge his correction.
Interviewer: Can I ask a question? When John XXII fell into heresy and even preached it, did he lose his office?
Bishop Athanasius Schneider: No. It was not formal heresy. The Church had not yet dogmatically defined that all who are justified immediately enter the beatific vision, though it is evident in Scripture. To be formally declared a heretic requires obstinate persistence in error despite admonitions. Pope John XXII eventually repented. His successor, Pope Benedict XII, formalized the correct teaching as dogma of faith, correcting what his predecessor had undermined.
Such cases are rare. After the 14th century, we now face a situation in the 21st century that is, in its gravity, comparable to these previous instances. But just as God intervened in the past, He will intervene now. Our role is to persistently admonish, pray, and perform acts of reparation. Laypeople and bishops alike must accompany admonitions with prayer. We are one body in Christ; when one member suffers, all suffer. Today, the head of the Church, the visible head, is suffering or weakened, and we must help through prayer and reparation, so that the supernatural circulation of grace in the Mystical Body of Christ reaches these afflicted parts.