Y espero que él, el Papa León, pueda entender esto y actuar en consecuencia, y conceder a toda la Iglesia. – Bishop Schneider
What if the very cornerstone of Catholic worship, something held sacred for centuries, is quietly being persecuted within the Church itself? This isn’t a theory. It’s the stark, unvarnished truth presented with a voice of unwavering conviction: a bishop who has chosen to break the silence on an issue too long left in the shadows, while many Church leaders opt for comfortable quietude or diplomatic ambiguities.
Bishop Athanasius Schneider has issued a direct, heartfelt appeal to Pope Leo XIV, a plea that should stir the conscience of every Catholic and challenge the leadership in Rome. It touches on a subject that affects the entire Church, yet is often discussed only in hushed tones, if at all.
In a recent interview delivered before a group of international students gathered to study Latin and the traditional liturgy, Bishop Schneider delivered a message that, if taken seriously, demands attention.
Unlike many Church leaders who tread carefully when discussing liturgy, Bishop Schneider speaks with refreshing honesty. He doesn’t rely on diplomatic language or vague phrases. For him, the liturgy is not just a matter of preference or policy; it is, as he puts it, the work of the Holy Spirit. It may be restricted, misunderstood, or even suppressed in some places, but it cannot be destroyed.
He’s referring, of course, to the traditional Latin Mass, a form of worship that has come under increasing pressure in dioceses around the world. Since the publication of Traditionis Custodes, restrictions have become more formalized and, in many cases, more severe.
But Bishop Schneider didn’t soften his words. He described the situation plainly: the Church’s ancient liturgy is being persecuted. And yet, he reminded us of history, just as the truth endured during the Arian crisis of the early Church.
He believes that Divine Providence will ultimately bring restoration and peace between tradition and leadership. What’s most striking is his tone, not combative, but profoundly fatherly. He acknowledges the deep pain many faithful feel, especially those who have grown up with the traditional Latin Mass and now find themselves treated like second-class Catholics, their spiritual heritage questioned.
For them, it’s not just a question of preference; it’s about identity, belonging, and the spiritual home they’ve known for years. And so, rather than calling for a dramatic reversal of recent policies, Bishop Schneider makes a reasoned and respectful appeal. He urges Pope Leo to take a prudent step: to consult the College of Cardinals and consider issuing a new document, one that would give full pastoral freedom to the traditional Latin Mass. Because, as he gently insists, the children of the Church who have been nourished by this liturgy deserve to be welcomed, not marginalized.
For Bishop Schneider, every pope has a sacred responsibility to act not as a distant ruler, but as a true father. A true father protects all his children, especially when some are mistreated by their older siblings within the family of the Church. In this context, his message is clear: the pope must defend those faithful who are attached to the traditional Latin Mass, especially when they face restrictions or rejection from certain bishops.
This isn’t a call for compromise or negotiation. Schneider believes bishops should not have the authority to limit access to the Church’s traditional liturgy.
What he’s asking for is not a concession, but a sign of generosity, a concrete expression of spiritual fatherhood. In his view, this is not merely a pastoral gesture; it is an act of justice. Why? Because the traditional Latin Mass, he insists, is not about nostalgia or personal taste. It’s not about clinging to old customs for the sake of tradition itself.
It’s a theological treasure that carries deep meaning and reflects the very heart of the Church’s identity and mission. And right now, its continued existence depends, in his words, on whether the Pope has the courage to restore peace between tradition and the Church’s present leadership.
But Bishop Schneider’s insight goes even deeper. To him, the crisis surrounding the liturgy is not just about the form of the Mass; it points to something more foundational. He believes the true issue lies in a shift in how the Church sees itself: a change in ecclesiology.
That took root or perhaps accelerated after the Second Vatican Council. In his experience, liturgical restrictions are just a symptom of a larger divide. Schneider says that over the years, the faithful have been repeatedly told that the traditional Latin Mass no longer fits with the Church’s new vision or new ecclesiology. And if that message is taken seriously, it carries a disturbing implication: that the Church’s doctrine itself has quietly changed without openly admitting it.
This, he warns, has left a deep and unhealed fracture between the Church as it was understood for centuries and the Church as it now presents itself. The fact that a liturgy celebrated for centuries is now seen as a threat to unity rather than as a source of it is, in his view, a betrayal of continuity. It’s as if the Church were trying to forge a new identity by forgetting its own past, by erasing the sacred memory that once defined its spiritual life.
For Bishop Schneider, recovering that memory is not about going backward. It’s about restoring the full richness of the Church’s soul, affirming its perennial identity. He underlines that liturgy is not just a surface ritual; it is the visible fruit of a deeply rooted faith. And if the root is damaged or cut off, the fruit will inevitably wither.
In his calm but direct style, Bishop Schneider doesn’t merely criticize policy. He points to the heart of the issue: the removal of tradition as a living, guiding force in the life of the Church. Without that foundation, he believes the Church risks drifting into instability and theological confusion. And those who attempt to navigate this crisis without addressing the doctrinal disconnect, no matter how well-intentioned, are, in his words, setting themselves up for failure.
Then came a moment that left the room in thoughtful silence. In one of the most unexpected and striking parts of his reflection, Bishop Schneider criticized a growing trend in the Church: the habit of declaring souls in heaven too quickly and too casually. He referred to this as a kind of sentimental theology, well-meaning but spiritually imprecise and theologically misleading.
It wasn’t said with anger but with conviction. His concern was clear: in our desire to comfort, we may be losing sight of truth. And for Schneider, that truth matters because, without it, even the most beautiful intentions can lead us away from the faith as it was handed down through the ages.
Bishop Schneider continued with a reflection that has become increasingly relevant in recent years. He pointed out a pattern that many have quietly noticed: even before the funeral rites have concluded, it has become almost routine to publicly declare that the deceased is already in heaven. This habit, now firmly embedded in many homilies and official Church communications, has become especially noticeable at high-profile funerals.
It reached a new height, he notes, with Pope Leo’s public words following the death of his predecessor, Pope Francis. In that moment, Pope Leo stated that Francis had returned to the house of the Father and now looked down on us from heaven.
Bishop Schneider did not deliver his response with harshness or emotional intensity but with calm clarity. His concern was not rooted in personal opinion but in profound theology. He described this kind of immediate beatification by language as a serious oversight, a failure in true charity toward the soul of the deceased.
Why? To declare someone in heaven without any formal process, without careful reflection, without prudence or spiritual discernment, bypasses the entire purpose of the Church’s traditional understanding of judgment, mercy, and the afterlife.
This, Schneider emphasized, is not merely a matter of liturgical style or pastoral tone. It’s a theological issue, one that strikes at the heart of Catholic doctrine concerning the last things: death, judgment, Heaven, and Hell.
By too quickly assuming salvation, we may unintentionally discourage the faithful from offering prayers for the departed soul, a spiritual work of mercy that the Church has upheld for centuries as an act of profound love. In Schneider’s view, it is not compassion to declare someone’s eternal reward with certainty; rather, true compassion is to pray to commend the soul to God’s boundless mercy and to trust in His justice without presuming the outcome.
Bishop Schneider did not hesitate to speak plainly. He stated that, in his view, the late Pope should be considered to be in Purgatory, especially given the weight and complexity of certain public actions during his pontificate, which have led to significant doctrinal confusion and spiritual unrest.
The bishop emphasized that this is not a harsh judgment but a theologically grounded perspective rooted in the Church’s own teachings on the afterlife, which clearly articulate the reality of purification after death for souls not yet perfectly sanctified.
For Schneider, the problem is twofold. First, when public figures are immediately spoken of as being in heaven, it sends a confusing message to the faithful. It implies that everyone, regardless of the moral or theological challenges they may have left unresolved, automatically receives heavenly glory. This risks distorting the Catholic understanding of particular judgment and the necessity of repentance and purification.
Second, and perhaps even more concerning to Schneider, is that the soul of the deceased may be deprived of what it truly needs: prayer. If the faithful are led to believe that no further intercession is necessary, then the very spiritual support that the Church has always offered for the dead is quietly withheld.
This, he warned, comes dangerously close to a practical denial of Purgatory itself, subtly undermining a core tenet of Catholic belief and practice. Schneider pointed to the way the modern funeral liturgy is often celebrated today, particularly in its revised form. The focus, he said, tends to rest almost entirely on themes of welcome and eternal joy, emphasizing immediate entry into heaven, while neglecting the traditional themes of purification, judgment, and post-mortem atonement.
In doing so, a vital element of Catholic teaching is obscured: that death is not always the end of the journey, but often the beginning of a final stage of grace where souls are purified and prepared to enter fully into the presence of God.
Without this understanding, the faithful lose not only clarity of doctrine but also the precious opportunity to practice mercy through prayer for the dead, an act of charity with immense spiritual power for both the living and the departed.
Bishop Schneider’s words leave little room for misunderstanding. To ignore the spiritual condition of souls, especially at the time of death, is not compassion; he warned, it is a betrayal of the faith. When we refrain from praying for the deceased simply because they were admired, beloved, or held positions of power, we fail in one of the most essential acts of Christian charity.
Even a pope, he reminded the faithful, does not bypass the judgment of God. Every soul, regardless of status, must pass through that moment of truth. For this reason, the Church has always taught the importance of offering prayers, sacrifices, and penance for the departed. These are not outdated customs but acts of profound love that flow from a deep trust in God’s mercy and justice.
Offering comforting phrases may soothe the emotions of the moment, but Schneider warns that consoling language alone does little for the eternal soul of the deceased.
What is truly needed is not empty reassurance, but concrete spiritual support through intercession.
In closing, Bishop Schneider offered a message of hope and courage. He called on the faithful to hold firm, to persevere in their faith without fear and without compromise. “Do not be discouraged,” he said, “by confusion or hostility. Remain rooted in the traditions of the Church and pray without ceasing for the Pope, for the Church, and for every soul in need. Trust in Divine Providence,” he urged, “and do not abandon the treasure you have received.”
The Church does not need clever strategies or constant reinvention. What it needs now, more than ever, is fidelity to the truth, to the faith of the saints, and to the God who has never abandoned His people.
That, Bishop Schneider believes, is the way forward. And it begins with each of us, in our daily lives and our unwavering commitment to Christ.
Bishop Schneider’s appeal is more than a commentary on liturgy. It’s more than a concern about policy or reform.
It’s a call to remember who we are as Catholics, what we believe, what we have received, and what we are called to protect in a world where convenience often replaces conviction, and where emotional comfort is mistaken for spiritual truth. His words land with unusual weight. He doesn’t raise his voice; he doesn’t dramatize, and yet what he says strikes to the heart: the Church is in danger, not primarily because of enemies from without, but because of confusion from within.
This confusion, as he sees it, is not simply a misunderstanding about styles of worship; it is a deeper, more troubling rupture, a forgetting of the Church’s own foundations. When we treat the traditional Latin Mass as a threat rather than a treasure, we risk erasing not just a rite, but a profound legacy. And that legacy isn’t about aesthetics or nostalgia. It’s about the living faith of generations who handed it down, believing it to be sacred, unchanging, and divinely inspired.
To watch the liturgy, once regarded as the Church’s highest form of worship and its very lifeblood, now face restrictions and suppression, is, for many, a deep, painful wound. But Bishop Schneider encourages the faithful not to let that wound fester into despair.
Instead, he urges clarity, honesty, courage, and above all, fidelity. His reflections on death and judgment remind us of a truth we rarely hear today: that love for a person does not mean presuming their salvation. It means praying for them, accompanying them, interceding for them before God’s mercy.
In the case of a pope, a leader, a teacher, how much more do we owe them our fervent prayers? To speak of a departed soul as though it is already in heaven without invoking the possibility of purification isn’t just theologically careless; it also deprives that soul of the help the Church has always offered, cutting off the spiritual lifeline of intercessory prayer.
Schneider’s point is that we must rediscover our sense of profound spiritual responsibility for others and for ourselves, recognizing that true compassion extends beyond earthly sentiment to eternal needs.
But his message isn’t one of doom. It’s a clear, challenging call to renewal in an age of constant, dizzying change. Schneider reminds us that not everything must be reinvented. Some things must simply be remembered. And once remembered, they must be lived with authenticity and courage.
He closes not with criticism but with powerful encouragement. Persevere. Do not be afraid. Hold fast to the truth, not with aggression or arrogance, but with quiet confidence in God’s providence.
If the Church seems shaken, if tradition seems marginalized, do not lose heart. What is true does not disappear. It may be hidden; it may be tested, but it endures because God Himself sustains it.
This fidelity is not passivity. It is not about withdrawing or becoming bitter. It is about loving the Church enough to suffer with her, to pray for her, to hope for her, and to trust that God will, in His time, bring healing and clarity.
And so, what can we take from Bishop Schneider’s words today, July 1? First, that clarity matters. We must speak honestly about the challenges we face, not to stir division, but to seek truth and understanding.
Second, that prayer is essential not only for ourselves, but especially for those who have gone before us, even those who held the highest offices. Saints are not made by popularity. They are recognized through lives of heroic virtue and ultimately by God’s judgment.
Until then, every soul deserves the grace of our intercession.
Third, tradition is not the enemy of progress. It is the foundation of identity. A Church that cuts itself off from its past loses more than ritual. It loses its memory, its stability, and ultimately, its very soul.
Finally, we are not alone. In every age of trial, God has raised up voices prophetic, courageous, and faithful to remind His people of what truly matters. Bishop Schneider may not speak with thunder, but his words echo the same call that has sustained the Church for centuries: Do not abandon the treasure you have received. Remain faithful.
The path ahead may not be easy, but truth does not require easy roads. It requires conviction, and God, in His mercy, will never abandon those who walk in fidelity.
So, wherever you are, whether in a bustling city parish or a quiet rural chapel, whether you attend the new rite or the old, hold fast to the faith. Pray deeply, speak with charity, and above all, trust that even now, God is guiding His Church just as He always has.
Thank you for watching. If this message moved you, please consider sharing it and continue to pray for the Church, for Pope Leo, and for the restoration of unity and truth.
Till next time, stay rooted, stay faithful, and may God bless you.