by Fr Brendan Boyce, FSSP J.R.R. Tolkien (source) The 20th century, as every competent analysis concludes, was largely one of marked – and deleterious – upheaval at almost every level of human experience: social, political, technological, military and, yes, religious. And yet, amidst the horrors of the age, like a lamp shining in the darkness, this same century saw the flourishing of Catholic literary endeavour of, at times, a most poignant expression. There are Catholic literary giants of the 20th century who need no introduction; individuals such as G.K. Chesterton, Hilaire Belloc and Evelyn ..read more

Amidst our own personal and national hardships, we can easily forget our fellow FSSP parishioners in other parts of the world. Don’t miss the latest interview with Fr. Angelo Van der Putten, the head of the FSSP’s Nigerian mission Nne Enyemaka in Umuaka. Father gives a candid and somewhat sobering assessment of the mission’s latest successes but also intense challenges in a nation troubled by corruption and violence. The entire interview can be read on our Mission Tradition site. –ed.    Mission Tradition: Father, thank you for making time to speak with me. What’s the latest news fr ..read more

The FSSP’s international headquarters in Fribourg has released the following statement: Official communiqué of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter – Fribourg, March 1st, 2024. Following a request from the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, Pope Francis invited Fr. Andrzej Komorowski, Superior General of the FSSP, to meet with him. He received him in private audience at the Vatican on Thursday, February 29, 2024, accompanied by Fr. Benoît Paul-Joseph, Superior of the District of France, and Fr. Vincent Ribeton, Rector of St. Peter’s Seminary in Wigratzbad. The meeting was an opportunity for the ..read more

by Fr. William Rock, FSSP Ivan Kramskoi’s Christ in the Wilderness (source) The Gospel for the First Sunday of Lent is St. Matthew’s account of Our Lord’s 40-day fast in the desert and His subsequent temptation by the devil (4:1-11).  This is a fitting Gospel to have proclaimed on the solemn inauguration of Lent (which officially started the Wednesday previous) as Lent, the Church’s own 40-day period of fast, is patterned on the fast recounted in this Gospel pericope.  Our Lord’s fast was itself prefigured by the 40-day fasts of Moses (Exo 24:12-18) and Elias (3 Kin 19:3-8), the acco ..read more

In the midst of uncertainty in the Church and the world, the Fraternity of St. Peter will be renewing its consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary on February 11th. Our future remains uncertain after the motu proprio Traditionis custodes of July 2021, and there is no better place for us to go than to our Mother. Please join the members of the FSSP in praying a novena to Our Lady from February 2nd, the Feast of the Candlemas, to February 11th, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. The novena consists of at least one decade of the Rosary daily followed by the Memorare. The intention is for the Priest ..read more

by Fr. William Rock, FSSP St. Blaise Healing a Boy from the Life of Saint Blaise, St Blaise, Kaufbeuren, Germany (source) Many Catholics are no doubt familiar with the blessing of throats performed on the feast of St. Blaise (February 3rd), one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, who miraculously healed “a boy, whose life was despaired of by the physicians, on account of his having swallowed a bone, which could not be extracted from his throat,” as it is stated in his biography from Matins.1  The blessing involves having blessed candles joined in the shape of a cross held to the throat while th ..read more

Italy in March 1860 – the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia (yellow), the Papal States (green), the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (red) by Fr. William Rock, FSSP Many readers of the Missive are no doubt aware of the devotion found in traditional circles to Blessed Karl of Austria and his wife, Servant of God Zita.  This devotion is founded primarily on the recognition of their virtues, but there is the strong influence of what they represent.  As the last Catholic Emperor and Empress, their lives and deaths represent a delineation between a previous order of the world and the present one.&n ..read more

Italy in March 1860 – the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia (yellow), the Papal States (green), the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (red) by Fr. William Rock, FSSP Many readers of the Missive are no doubt aware of the devotion found in traditional circles to Blessed Karol of Austria and his wife, Servant of God Zita.  This devotion is founded primarily on the recognition of their virtues, but there is the strong influence of what they represent.  As the last Catholic Emperor and Empress, their lives and deaths represent a delineation between a previous order of the world and the present one ..read more

Fr. James Bartholomew Buckley was born on November 29, 1937, in New York City. His parents, John Francis Buckley and Mary Catherine Lyons were Irish immigrants from County Galway. He attended St. Luke’s grade school in the south Bronx, graduating in June 1951. In the fall of 1951, he entered Mother of the Savior, a Junior Seminary run by the Salvatorian Fathers in Blackwood, New Jersey. After graduating in May 1957, he entered the Salvatorian Novitiate in Colfax, Iowa on September 7th, 1957. After professing his first religious vows on September 8th, 1958, he began his studies in Philosophy a ..read more

Advent is a great time to refresh your memory on the traditional liturgical year! Fr. William Rock has written an excellent set of Extraordinary Guides  to the various church seasons, available on our website here: Extraordinary Thoughts: Guides to the Liturgical Year   ..read more