Saint John Henry Cardinal Newman to the rescue!

I was reading Cardinal Newman's On Consulting the Faithful in Matters of Doctrine and came across a fascinating quote.


"I see, then, in the Arian history a palmary example of a state of the Church, during which, in order to know the tradition of the Apostles, we must have recourse to the faithful; for I fairly own, that if I go to writers, since I must adjust the letter of Justin, Clement, and Hippolytus with the Nicene Doctors, I get confused; and what revives and re-instates me, as far as history goes, is the faith of the people. For I argue that, unless they had been catechised, as St. Hilary says, in the orthodox faith from the time of their baptism, they never could have had that horror, which they show, of the heterodox Arian doctrine. Their voice, then, is the voice of tradition; {214} and the instance comes to us with still greater emphasis, when we consider—1. that it occurs in the very beginning of the history of the "Ecclesia docens," for there can scarcely be said to be any history of her teaching till the age of martyrs was over; 2. that the doctrine in controversy was so momentous, being the very foundation of the Christian system; 3. that the state of controversy and disorder lasted over the long space of sixty years; and that it involved serious persecutions, in life, limb, and property, to the faithful whose loyal perseverance decided it.

It seems, then, as striking an instance as I could take in fulfilment of Father Perrone's statement, that the voice of tradition may in certain cases express itself, not by Councils, nor Fathers, nor Bishops, but the "communis fidelium sensus.""

The problem of the Synodal Path, is that the voice of the laity, at least, as it is interpreted by the Synod elite and certainly the voice of the laity in Germany is not the voice of tradition but the voice of anti-tradition.  The Pope is anti-tradition to his very core.

Anti-tradition will break the link with Christian revelation, that is Christ Crucified.  No spiritual good will come from it and much harm. 

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