Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Priebke Funeral- Interview with Fr.Pierpaolo Petrucci, District Superior,SSPX, Albano-2

 
D. 4 - In the light of the above, do you think Commander Priebke is a " public sinner " who should be denied a public funeral ?
 
According to the current Code of Canon Law an ecclesiastical funeral can be denied only to him who " before his death gave no sign of repentance."  I do not see how Erich Priebke could be considered unworthy of the funeral .
Never before in the Church as today, especially under this pontificate do we speak of charity and, love of neighbor.
And when it comes to putting these virtues into practice, consistent with the Gospel, even when it is not politically correct and challenges the common opinions and the media , then things change ...
The Church cannot bend to the world if you do not want to deserve the reproach of being a hypocrisy as Jesus called the Pharisees in the Gospel.
The mercy of God goes beyond political affiliations , even the most reprehensible and the most serious of sins , provided there is repentance ,which is the only prerequisite. The Church is based on external acts . A Catholic who expressed repentance for his sins, is entitled to a funeral. The inner consciousness of man , none of us can judge , but only God who has the final judgment .
The Catholic religion is one of mercy and forgiveness and not of hatred and revenge .

 
D. 5 We have seen , however, some prominent ecclesiastical personalities recognize the right of an ecclesiastical funeral for Priebke.
R. Yes, we have heard some voices in the wilderness and this is to their honor. I was very pleased to read the statements of Cardinal Cottier as well as an interview of Cardinal Montezemolo , grandson of the Colonel killed at the Fosse Ardeatine. I was moved by the testimony of some relatives of the victims who showed solidarity, after the pardon was granted and joined in the prayers for the deceased.
This alone is the Christian attitude .
D.
6 - Priebke was a faithful of the SSPX or at least occasionally frequented the chapels ?
R. No, I never met him nor has he ever attended the Society of St. Pius X . I had read that he had been baptized , and that he had received permission to leave the house while under house arrest to go for Mass.
I knew then that he was regularly following instructions of a priest.
D. 7 - Many newspapers have also reported that the funeral would not have been actually held  or at least that it would have been suspended.
How did things go into convulsions in those hours ?
R. The body came in at 17.30 but the family and friends invited to the ceremony were not able to enter because of the protesters . After several attempts , the lawyer decided to suspend the funeral .Since in those conditions he was not able to fulfill the mandate given to him by the family.
At about 19:20 ,in the presence of about twenty people, I offered Mass for the deceased with the absence of the body.
Meanwhile, the coffin was placed in a room on the ground floor where a mortuary had been set up. In the late evening , to fulfill my priestly duties , I suggested to the lawyer that the body be blessed with the funeral ceremony that the Church grants, at the end of the Mass . In his presence , and with a few other people this ceremony was held . Of this I have had occasion to speak to the Press in a recent interview with Andrea Tornelli.
 
Message incomplete
 

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