Naturalism and Omission of Supernatural Realities in Reporting Priest’s Murder
Naturalism and Omission of Supernatural Realities in Reporting Priest’s Murder
Catholic News Agency reports the sentencing of Kierre Williams to life imprisonment for the December 2023 murder of “Father” Stephen Gutgsell at St. John the Baptist Parish in Fort Calhoun, Nebraska. The article emphasizes the legal outcome, emotional reactions from the victim’s family, and biographical details about Gutgsell, including his ordination in 1984 and pastoral work. Washington County Chief Deputy Attorney Erik Petersen claimed the crime “shattered the innocence” of the town, while Gutgsell’s sister lamented his absence as “stolen from his family and parish.” The funeral occurred at St. Cecilia Cathedral in Omaha under the auspices of the “Archdiocese of Omaha.”
Suppression of Sacramental Reality and Priesthood’s Supernature
The article’s naturalistic framing reduces the murder to a criminal act devoid of theological significance. De fide Catholic doctrine teaches that a priest’s life belongs not to himself but to Christ, whose priesthood he participates in through sacra potestas (sacred power) (Council of Trent, Session XXIII). By omitting whether Gutgsell received last rites—Extrema Unctio—the report implicitly denies the primacy of supernatural grace. Pius XII’s Mediator Dei (1947) stresses that the priest’s identity is “configured to Christ the Eternal High Priest,” yet the article treats him as a mere victim of violence, not an alter Christus whose murder constitutes sacrilege.
Doubtful Orders and Conciliar Sect’s Invalid Ministries
Gutgsell’s 1984 “ordination” occurred under the post-conciliar rite, which Cardinal Ottaviani’s 1969 Intervenors’ Study declared “substantially deficient” due to its suppression of sacrificial language. As Paul IV’s 1968 Pontificalis Romani invalidly altered the form of Holy Orders, Gutgsell’s priestly status remains dubious. His involvement in “adult education” and “Bible study” reflects the conciliar sect’s shift from depositum fidei to anthropocentric dialogue condemned by St. Pius X in Pascendi Dominici Gregis (1907). The article’s praise of his ministries ignores their likely contamination by modernist pedagogy that equates Scripture study with Protestant hermeneutics.
Naturalistic Justice vs. Divine Law
Prosecutor Petersen’s claim that the murder “shattered the innocence” of Fort Calhoun substitutes secular sentimentalism for the Church’s teaching on original sin and spiritual warfare. The Catechism of Pope Pius X defines innocence as “the state of grace lost by Adam’s sin, restored only through baptism”. By reducing the crime to a violation of communal peace, the article echoes the naturalism condemned in Pius IX’s Syllabus of Errors (Proposition 39). True Catholic justice would demand recognition of the murderer’s need for sacramental penance, yet Williams’ spiritual fate goes unmentioned—a silence revealing the conciliar sect’s abandonment of souls.
Funeral Rites in a Schismatic Structure
Gutgsell’s funeral at St. Cecilia Cathedral—a building now controlled by apostate authorities—raises grave concerns. The 1917 Code of Canon Law (Canon 1240) prohibits ecclesiastical burial for those dying “extra communionem Ecclesiae” (outside Church communion). Since the “Archdiocese of Omaha” adheres to the Novus Ordo’s errors, its rites lack validity. The article’s uncritical reportage legitimizes a pseudo-church that Canon Law defines as “a sect alien to the One True Church” (1917 CIC, Canon 731 §2).
Martyrdom Denied: From Sacrifice to Sentiment
Hupf’s statement that Gutgsell was “stolen” ignores the traditional distinction between murder and martyrdom. True martyrdom requires odium fidei (hatred of the faith), as affirmed by Benedict XIV in De Servorum Dei Beatificatione, yet the article provides no evidence Williams acted out of anti-Catholic animus. This omission reflects Vatican II’s relativistic ecumenism, which obscures the Church’s militant nature. Pius XI’s Quas Primas (1925) declares Christ’s kingship over all nations, yet the conciliar sect reduces clergy to social workers—a demotion evident in this report’s human-centered narrative.
Source:
Iowa man receives life in prison for 2023 stabbing of Nebraska priest (catholicnewsagency.com)
Date: 14.11.2025