The Pillar podcast, a prominent voice within the conciliar sect, recently aired an episode featuring JD Flynn and Ed. Condon, who discussed the Archdiocese of New York’s $800 million settlement for clerical sexual abuse, the feast of St. Joseph the Worker, and the first year of the antipope Leo XIV’s reign. The Pillar, operating from within the structures occupying the Vatican, presents itself as a source of “Great Catholic Conversation,” yet its content is a testament to the profound theological and spiritual bankruptcy of post-conciliarism. This episode, like the entire podcast, is a masterclass in the hermeneutics of continuity, attempting to normalize the abomination of desolation that is the neo-church while ignoring the immutable truths of the Faith. The very existence of such a podcast, celebrating the “papacy” of Leo XIV and discussing the machinations of the conciliar hierarchy, is a scandal and a sign of the times.
The Idolatry of the Usurper: “One Year of Leo”
A central theme of the episode is the celebration of the first year of the antipope Leo XIV’s reign. The hosts, Flynn and Condon, discuss the “new sheriff in town,” a dismissive and secular metaphor for the Vicar of Christ, or rather, the one who usurps that title. This language alone reveals the modernist mentality that has infected the conciliar sect. The true Pope is not a “sheriff” or a CEO, but the successor of St. Peter, the visible head of the Church, entrusted with the keys of the kingdom. To speak of him in such terms is to strip the papacy of its sacred character and reduce it to a mere administrative or political role.
The Pillar’s focus on the “first year of Leo” is a classic example of the conciliar sect’s obsession with personalities and temporal power, rather than the eternal truths of the Faith. The antipope Leo XIV, like his predecessors from John XXIII onward, is a manifest heretic and apostate, having embraced and propagated the errors of Vatican II, including religious liberty, ecumenism, and the democratization of the Church. His “reign” is not a cause for celebration but for mourning and prayer for the true Church. The Pillar, by treating him as a legitimate pope, participates in the great deception of the Antichrist, lending credibility to a system that has betrayed Christ and His Church.
The hosts’ discussion of Leo’s “priorities” and “style” is a distraction from the fundamental issue: the conciliar sect is not the Catholic Church. It is a counterfeit, a synagogue of Satan, as Pope Leo XIII warned in his encyclical Humanum Genus. The Pillar, by focusing on the “new sheriff,” ignores the true crisis: the absence of a true pope and the apostasy of the hierarchy. This is the essence of the hermeneutics of continuity, the attempt to present the conciliar revolution as a legitimate development of the Faith, rather than the rupture and betrayal that it is.
The Scandal of Clerical Sexual Abuse and the Failure of Justice
The episode also addresses the Archdiocese of New York’s $800 million settlement for clerical sexual abuse. While the hosts express concern for the victims, their analysis is superficial and fails to address the root causes of this crisis. The conciliar sect’s response to the abuse scandal has been characterized by a focus on financial settlements and public relations, rather than true justice and spiritual renewal. This is a natural consequence of the modernist theology that has infected the Church, a theology that prioritizes human psychology and social justice over the supernatural virtues of faith, hope, and charity.
The true Church has always taught that the primary purpose of the clergy is the sanctification of souls through the administration of the sacraments and the preaching of the Gospel. The conciliar sect, by contrast, has reduced the priesthood to a form of social work or therapy, a naturalistic and horizontal view that ignores the supernatural character of the sacred ministry. This reductionist view of the priesthood has created an environment where abuse can flourish, as the focus shifts from the spiritual to the temporal, from the salvation of souls to the management of institutions.
Furthermore, the conciliar sect’s response to the abuse scandal has been marked by a failure to apply true canonical penalties to the guilty. The Code of Canon Law of 1917, in Canon 2359 §1, prescribes deposition and deprivation of office for a cleric who has committed a crime against the sixth commandment. The conciliar sect, however, has been lenient and inconsistent in its application of penalties, often prioritizing the reputation of the institution over the welfare of the victims and the salvation of souls. This is a betrayal of the Church’s divine mission and a scandal to the faithful.
The Pillar’s discussion of the settlement is a prime example of the concilar sect’s focus on the temporal and the mundane. There is no mention of the need for true repentance, expiation, and spiritual renewal. There is no call for the guilty to be brought to justice according to the Church’s laws. Instead, the focus is on the financial cost and the public relations implications. This is the logic of the world, not the logic of the Gospel.
The Feast of St. Joseph the Worker and the Sanctification of Work
The hosts also mention the feast of St. Joseph the Worker, instituted by Pope Pius XII in 1955. While this feast is a legitimate expression of the Church’s teaching on the sanctification of work, the Pillar’s treatment of it is superficial and lacks theological depth. The feast of St. Joseph the Worker is not merely a celebration of labor or a response to communist May Day celebrations, as is often claimed. It is a profound reminder that all human work, when united with the sacrifice of Christ, can become a means of sanctification and a path to holiness.
The true Church has always taught that work is not a curse but a participation in the creative action of God. As Pope Leo XIII wrote in his encyclical Rerum Novarum, “The Church, by the very fact that she is the guardian of the law of God, must strive with all her might that the law of God may be the guide and norm of human life, both public and private, and that the duties of religion may be the foundation of all other duties.” The feast of St. Joseph the Worker is a reminder that work must be ordered to the glory of God and the salvation of souls, not merely to the accumulation of wealth or the satisfaction of human desires.
The Pillar’s treatment of the feast is a missed opportunity to delve into the rich theology of work in the Catholic tradition. Instead, it is reduced to a mere mention, a footnote in a podcast dominated by discussions of the conciliar hierarchy and its scandals. This is symptomatic of the conciliar sect’s loss of the supernatural sense of the Faith, a loss that has led to a naturalistic and horizontal view of the Church’s mission.
The Hermeneutic of Continuity and the Betrayal of Tradition
The entire episode is a testament to the conciliar sect’s embrace of the hermeneutic of continuity, the attempt to present the conciliar revolution as a legitimate development of the Faith. The hosts, Flynn and Condon, are products of this system, and their analysis is colored by its assumptions. They see the conciliar sect as the true Church, and they interpret all events through this lens. This is the great deception of the Antichrist, the attempt to present a counterfeit church as the genuine article.
The true Church, the Church of all ages, is founded on the rock of Peter and guided by the Holy Spirit. She is the pillar and foundation of truth, as St. Paul teaches (1 Tim. 3:15). The conciliar sect, by contrast, is a human institution, built on the sand of modernist theology and the shifting sands of contemporary culture. It is a church of man, not a church of God. The Pillar, by lending its voice to this deception, participates in the great apostasy of our times.
The faithful must reject the hermeneutic of continuity and embrace the hermeneutic of rupture, the recognition that the conciliar revolution was a betrayal of the Faith and a rupture with Tradition. They must cling to the unchanging truths of the Faith, as taught by the Church Fathers, the ecumenical councils, and the pre-conciliar Magisterium. They must seek out true priests and bishops, men who profess the integral Catholic faith and who are not afraid to condemn the errors of Vatican II. They must attend the true Mass, the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass as codified by St. Pius V, and receive the true sacraments, which are the channels of grace and the means of salvation.
Conclusion: A Call to Reject the Conciliar Sect
The Pillar podcast, in this episode and in its entire body of work, is a symptom of the profound crisis facing the conciliar sect. It is a voice of the establishment, a defender of the status quo, and a promoter of the hermeneutic of continuity. It is not a voice of the true Church, but a voice of the synagogue of Satan. The faithful must reject this voice and cling to the unchanging truths of the Faith.
The conciliar sect is not the Catholic Church. It is a counterfeit, a fraud, and a deception. The faithful must recognize this and act accordingly. They must seek out the true Church, the Church of all ages, and they must profess the integral Catholic faith. They must reject the errors of Vatican II and the modernist theology that has infected the conciliar sect. They must pray for the restoration of the true Church and the coming of a true pope, a successor of St. Peter who will defend the Faith and crush the head of the serpent.
As Pope Pius IX taught in the Syllabus of Errors, “The Roman Pontiff can, and ought to, reconcile himself, and come to terms with progress, liberalism and modern civilization” (Proposition 80). This proposition, condemned by the true Church, is the very program of the conciliar sect. The Pillar, by promoting this program, participates in the great apostasy of our times. The faithful must reject this apostasy and cling to the Faith of our fathers, the Faith that was once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 1:3).
Source:
Ep. 259: All hands on deck? (pillarcatholic.com)
Date: 02.05.2026