VaticanNews portal reports that Robert Prevost, the individual currently occupying the chair of Peter under the name Leo XIV, issued a letter commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Bolivian Catholic University “San Pablo,” proclaiming that “truth finds its identity in the person of Jesus Christ” and invoking the discredited modernist encyclical *Veritas in Caritate* of the antipope Benedict XVI. The message, while superficially orthodox in its vocabulary, operates entirely within the framework of conciliar ecumenism and naturalistic humanism, reducing the supernatural mission of the Church to utilitarian academicism and omitting any mention of the necessity of conversion, the reality of sin, or the exclusive salvific role of the Catholic Church. This letter is not a defense of the Faith but a sophisticated exercise in modernist ambiguity, perfectly calibrated to serve the agenda of the post-conciliar sect.
The Usurper on the Throne: A Presumed Authority
The very act of issuing such a letter presupposes an authority that Robert Prevost does not possess. From the perspective of integral Catholic faith, the See of Peter has been vacant since the death of Pius XII in 1958, or at the latest, since the public and manifest heresy of John XXIII and his successors, who promulgated the apostate documents of Vatican II. As St. Robert Bellarmine teaches in *De Romano Pontifice*, “a Pope who is a manifest heretic, by that very fact ceases to be Pope and head, just as he ceases to be a Christian and member of the body of the Church.” The line of usurpers from John XXIII to Leo XIV represents a continuous defection from the Catholic faith, embracing modernist errors condemned by St. Pius X in *Pascendi Dominici gregis* and *Lamentabili sane exitu*. Therefore, any “message,” “encyclical,” or “letter” emanating from the Vatican structures is not a teaching of the Church but a propaganda piece from the conciliar sect, devoid of any binding authority. The faithful are not only not obligated to heed such communications but are morally bound to reject them as part of the “abomination of desolation” (Matt. 24:15) that has taken possession of the holy places.
The Ghost of Benedict XVI: The Heresy of *Veritas in Caritate*
The most damning aspect of Leo XIV’s letter is its explicit invocation of Benedict XVI’s encyclical *Veritas in Caritate* as a “criterion for academic and pastoral discernment.” This encyclical is a cornerstone of modernist thought, encapsulating the very errors that sedevacantism identifies as the core of the post-conciliar apostasy. It promotes a concept of “truth” detached from the unchanging dogmas of the Catholic Church, instead framing it within a dialogical, relativistic framework that is indistinguishable from the Protestant and secular humanist approach to knowledge. By holding up this document as a guide, Leo XIV reveals his true colors: he is a continuator of the modernist project, not a defender of the Faith. The “truth” he speaks of is not the objective, immutable truth revealed by God and guarded by the Magisterium, but a subjective, evolving “truth” that must be “discerned” in dialogue with the world. This is the antithesis of the Catholic understanding of truth, which is “not merely an intellectual ideal or an abstract concept,” as Leo XIV himself states, but which he then proceeds to empty of its supernatural content by linking it to “charity” as its “ultimate criterion.” This is a classic modernist maneuver: using orthodox terminology to smuggle in heterodox concepts. True charity is always in service of the truth, not the other way around. As Pius XI declared in *Quas Primas*, Christ is King, and His law is the standard for all human activity, including academia. The idea that “charity” can be a “criterion” for truth is a relativist inversion that subordinates divine revelation to human sentiment.
Naturalistic Humanism Masquerading as Catholic Education
The letter’s focus on the “integral formation of the person,” “human dignity,” and the “common good” is a textbook example of the naturalistic humanism that pervades the conciliar sect. While these phrases sound benign, they represent a fundamental shift in the Church’s mission: from the salvation of souls for eternal life to the improvement of temporal society. The true purpose of a Catholic university, as defined by the pre-conciliar Magisterium, is to form Catholic intellects capable of defending and propagating the Faith in all spheres of life, always under the guidance of the Church’s infallible teaching authority. Leo XIV’s vision, however, reduces the university to a “center for technical training” (which he claims it is not, but his description of its mission confirms it is) and a “space for producing utilitarian knowledge.” The “ultimate end” of the human person is not mentioned as the Beatific Vision, but is instead framed in terms of “the good of the societies of which, as man, he is a member.” This is the language of the United Nations, not of the Catholic Church. It echoes the condemned proposition from the *Syllabus of Errors* (Proposition 48): “Catholics may approve of the system of educating youth unconnected with Catholic faith and the power of the Church, and which regards the knowledge of merely natural things, and only, or at least primarily, the ends of earthly social life.” The omission of any mention of the necessity of the Catholic faith for true knowledge, the reality of original sin, the need for grace, and the ultimate end of man (the vision of God) reveals the profoundly naturalistic and therefore heretical character of this educational philosophy.
The Omission of the Supernatural: A Grave Accusation
Perhaps the most egregious failing of Leo XIV’s letter is its complete silence on the supernatural order. There is no mention of the necessity of conversion to the Catholic Church for salvation (*Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus*), no mention of the sacraments as the ordinary means of grace, no mention of the reality of sin and the need for repentance, and no mention of the final judgment. The “truth” that “finds its identity in the person of Jesus Christ” is presented in a purely immanent, horizontal dimension, as a principle for social harmony and academic excellence. This is the “cult of man” that St. Pius X warned against, where the supernatural is ignored in favor of a purely naturalistic anthropology. The “person” of Jesus Christ is reduced to a symbol of “love” and “service,” rather than the divine Redeemer who shed His precious Blood for the remission of sins. This silence is not accidental; it is the hallmark of modernism, which, as *Pascendi* explains, seeks to separate the “Christ of faith” from the “Christ of history,” reducing the former to a mere symbol of human aspirations. The “charity” that Leo XIV extols is not the theological virtue of charity, which is ordered toward God, but a sentimental, humanitarian “love” that is indistinguishable from secular philanthropy.
The “Seat of Wisdom” Invoked in Vain
The letter concludes by entrusting the university’s activities to the “maternal intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Seat of Wisdom.” This invocation is rendered hollow and even blasphemous by the context in which it appears. True wisdom is the fear of the Lord (Prov 9:10), and the Blessed Virgin is the Seat of Wisdom precisely because she is the Mother of God, the one who bore in her womb the Incarnate Truth. To invoke her intercession while promoting a “truth” that is detached from the unchanging dogmas of the Faith, while ignoring the necessity of conversion and the supernatural end of man, is to use her name in vain. It is a form of idolatry, where the Blessed Virgin is co-opted to legitimize a modernist agenda. The true “Seat of Wisdom” is the Catholic Church, which has always and everywhere taught the fullness of truth. The conciliar sect, with its ambiguous language and naturalistic humanism, is the antithesis of this wisdom. The faithful should reject this empty invocation and instead turn to the Blessed Virgin with confidence, asking her to protect them from the snares of modernism and to obtain for them the grace of final perseverance in the true Faith.
Conclusion: A Call to Reject the Conciliar Sect
Leo XIV’s letter to the Bolivian Catholic University is a masterpiece of modernist rhetoric, using the language of orthodoxy to advance a thoroughly heterodox agenda. It is a call for “dialogue,” “openness,” and “service” that is completely divorced from the supernatural mission of the Church. It is a fruits of the conciliar revolution, which has replaced the unchanging truth of God with the ever-changing “truth” of man. The faithful must not be deceived by the seemingly pious phrases. They must recognize this letter for what it is: a tool of the post-conciliar apostasy, designed to further entrench the errors of Vatican II and to lead souls away from the narrow path that leads to eternal life. The only response for a true Catholic is to reject the authority of Leo XIV and all the antipopes, to adhere firmly to the unchanging teaching of the pre-conciliar Magisterium, and to pray for the restoration of the true Church. As St. Pius X warned, “the progress of sciences requires a reform of the concept of Christian doctrine concerning God, creation, Revelation, the Person of the Incarnate Word, and Redemption” (Proposition 64 of *Lamentabili sane exitu*), and this is precisely the “reform” that Leo XIV and his predecessors have been implementing. Let us remain faithful to the true doctrine, and let us not be led astray by the “signs and wonders” (2 Thess 2:9) of the conciliar sect.
Source:
Pope Leo XIV: Truth finds its identity in the person of Jesus Christ (vaticannews.va)
Date: 14.05.2026