A Game You Can All Play!! The Roche Conundrum

In almost 'Ecclesian' fashion, Fr Hunwicke decides to have a bit of fun with Uncle Arthur Roche of Responsa ad dubia infamy. Hilarious!

From Fr Hunwicke's Mutual Enrichment

Facts: (A) In Summorum Pontificum, (7 July 2007), Benedict XVI, Pope (unless you are a sedevacantist: see below), wrote that the edition of the Roman Missal promulgated by S John XXIII was "numquam abrogatam" [never abrogated].

(B)  On 4 August 2021, Archbishop Arthur Roche wrote, in English, about the Old Rite: "which, in fact, was abrogated by Pope Saint Paul VI." [In fairness, I should make clear that this letter was "an initial response" giving "our present understanding". It does, however, carry a Protocol Number.]

Your simple man on an uncomplicated Clapham omnibus might, in his simple South London way, see these two statements as contradictory. 

Many simple yet wholesome men from Clapham have never had the benefit of a Jesuit formation!!! (We Essex Men certainly haven't.)

The Game I am inviting readers to enjoy is to make suggestions about the import of Arthur's statement (B) supra. 

To get you going, I venture to throw out some feeble suggestions of my own.

(1) Arthur has never read Summorum Pontificum.

(2) Arthur did read it; and he strongly disagreed with Pope Benedict. But, during that pontificate, he concealed his secret dissent, fearing, as we all did, the Terrible Wrath of the Great Inquisitor.

(3) Arthur did accept the canonical judgement embodied in the Decree of Pope Benedict, but has since changed his mind; he now sets himself above all the decrees of mere popes. "I'm as good a pope as anybody! I'm from Yorkshire!"

(4) Arthur did at the time accept the judgement of Pope Benedict; but his Large Mentor has since taken him aside and said "Now look 'ere, Harfur me old cock, we're going to 'ave to change the records and put it about that the Old Rite really was habrogated by Paul VI. Let's 'ave no Rigid rubbish about telling the Truth! You'd better jump promptly into line or I may 'ave to 'urrrrt you. If you really want to 'ave that dicastery and be a Cardinal ... 'nuff said ..."

(5) Arthur is an Orwellian 1984-style Winston Smith in Minitruth who conscientiously "corrects" History every time Ingsoc, Big Brother, and the Party require him to do so. That is why History is always so totally right!

(6) Arthur is a secret sedevacantist determined to undermine the post-Conciliar popes by subtle subversion and ingenious mendacity.

(7) Arthur's mind is starting to fail and he can't always quite remember ... er ... um ... things ... um ...

Over to you!