EWTN Vatican portal reports on May 6, 2026, that the usurper Leo XIV continued his catecheses on the conciliar document *Lumen Gentium*, presenting the Church as a “pilgrim people” serving the coming of God’s kingdom in history. The pontiff stated that the Church “does not identify perfectly with the kingdom of God but is its seed and beginning,” and that it must “denounce evil in all its forms” while “proclaiming salvation in Christ.” He further emphasized that “no ecclesial institution can be treated as absolute” and that institutions are called to “continual conversion, renewal of forms, and reform of structures.” This discourse, while cloaked in seemingly pious language, is a masterclass in modernist equivocation, systematically eviscerating the Church’s divine constitution, her infallible magisterium, and the social kingship of Christ the King in favor of a naturalistic, historically immanentist, and perpetually self-dissolving entity.
The “Pilgrim People” Trope: A Modernist Distortion of the Church’s Divine Constitution
Leo XIV’s assertion that the Church is a “pilgrim people of God on earth” is not merely a benign theological metaphor; it is a deliberate modernist inversion of the Church’s perennial self-understanding as a societas perfecta, a perfect society, divinely instituted, visible, and endowed with all the means necessary for her supernatural end. The Church is not merely “journeying” in a vague, existential sense; she is the Kingdom of Christ on earth, established by divine right, possessing a hierarchical constitution, and endowed with infallibility in matters of faith and morals. Pius XI, in his encyclical Quas Primas (1925), unequivocally declared: “The Kingdom of our Redeemer encompasses all men… His reign, namely, extends not only to Catholic nations or to those who, by receiving baptism according to law, belong to the Church, even though their erroneous opinions have led them astray or discord has separated them from love, but His reign encompasses also all non-Christians, so that most truly the entire human race is subject to the authority of Jesus Christ.” The Church is not a “seed” waiting to bloom into something else; she is the fullness of Him who fills all in all (Eph 1:23), the pillar and ground of truth (1 Tim 3:15). To reduce her to a “pilgrim” entity is to deny her divine origin, her perpetual stability, and her mission to teach, govern, and sanctify with authority until the consummation of the ages.
“Seed and Beginning”: The Heresy of Ecclesial Becoming
The statement that the Church “does not identify perfectly with the kingdom of God but is its seed and beginning” is a direct contradiction of Catholic ecclesiology. The Church is not a mere precursor or an embryonic form of the Kingdom; she is the Kingdom of God on earth in its visible, hierarchical, and sacramental reality. Our Lord Jesus Christ did not establish a “seed” that would evolve into something else; He established a Church with a definite constitution, a definitive deposit of faith, and a perpetual mandate. Pius IX, in his Syllabus of Errors (1864), condemned the proposition that “the Church is not a true and perfect society, entirely free—nor is she endowed with proper and perpetual rights of her own, conferred upon her by her Divine Founder” (Proposition 19). Leo XIV’s language implies an ecclesial “becoming” rather than an ecclesial “being,” a hallmark of the modernist heresy of the evolution of dogmas, condemned by St. Pius X in Pascendi Dominici Gregis (1907): “Truth changes with man, because it develops with him, in him, and through him” (Proposition 58, Lamentabili Sane Exitus). The Church’s doctrine is not a “seed” that grows and changes; it is the immutable deposit of faith, once delivered to the saints (Jude 1:3).
The Kingdom Deferred: Eschatological Evasion of Christ’s Social Reign
By stating that the kingdom’s “fulfillment will be granted to humanity and the cosmos only at the end,” Leo XIV subtly but effectively defers the establishment of God’s kingdom to a purely eschatological future, thereby evading the Church’s constant teaching on the social reign of Christ the King. Pius XI, in Quas Primas, explicitly taught that Christ’s kingdom is not merely spiritual or future but has implications for the present order: “He is indeed the author of prosperity and true happiness for individual citizens as well as for the state… Let rulers of states therefore not refuse public veneration and obedience to the reigning Christ, but let them fulfill this duty themselves and with their people, if they wish to maintain their authority inviolate and contribute to the increase of their homeland’s happiness.” The Church’s mission is not merely to “proclaim” a future kingdom but to actively work for the recognition of Christ’s kingship in all aspects of society, including laws, education, and governance. Leo XIV’s language reduces the kingdom to a distant hope, stripping it of its present, binding, and societal demands, thereby aligning with the secularist agenda of relegating religion to the private sphere.
“Denouncing Evil in All Its Forms”: The Vacuous Rhetoric of Naturalistic Humanism
The pontiff’s call to “denounce evil in all its forms” and to “take a position in favor of the poor, the exploited, the victims of violence and war” is a classic example of the modernist reduction of the Church’s mission to naturalistic humanism. While the Church has always taught the duty of charity and justice, her primary mission is the salvation of souls through the preaching of the Gospel, the administration of the sacraments, and the guidance of consciences according to the moral law. Leo XIV’s language, however, focuses exclusively on temporal, material, and social evils, without any mention of the primary evils of sin, heresy, apostasy, or the loss of the state of grace. There is no mention of the necessity of conversion to the Catholic faith, the danger of mortal sin, the reality of hell, or the urgency of preaching the Gospel for the salvation of souls. This is the religion of “man” condemned by St. Pius X in Pascendi: “The whole of religion, like the whole of faith, must be brought down to the level of a purely human phenomenon.” The Church’s mission is not to build a temporal utopia but to lead souls to eternal life. By focusing solely on social and material evils, Leo XIV reduces the Church to a humanitarian NGO, stripping her of her supernatural character and her divine mandate.
“No Ecclesial Institution Can Be Treated as Absolute”: The Self-Dissolution of Authority
Perhaps the most insidious statement in Leo XIV’s discourse is that “no ecclesial institution can be treated as absolute” and that institutions are called to “continual conversion, renewal of forms, and reform of structures.” This is a direct assault on the divine constitution of the Church and the authority of her magisterium. The Church, as a divinely instituted society, possesses authority that is not subject to perpetual revision or reform based on the “dynamics of history.” Her doctrines, sacraments, and hierarchical structure are not “fleeting images” of this world but enduring realities established by Christ for the salvation of souls. Pius IX, in his Syllabus, condemned the proposition that “Roman pontiffs and ecumenical councils have wandered outside the limits of their powers, have usurped the rights of princes, and have even erred in defining matters of faith and morals” (Proposition 23). Leo XIV’s language implies that the Church’s institutions are inherently flawed, provisional, and subject to constant revision, thereby undermining the faithful’s confidence in the Church’s teaching and governance. This is the very essence of the modernist principle of “continual conversion” applied not to individuals but to the Church herself, effectively denying her divine origin and perpetual indefectibility.
The “Communion of Saints” as a Cover for Indifferentism
Leo XIV’s reflection on the communion between Christians on earth and those in “purification or beatitude” is presented in a manner that subtly undermines the doctrine of the particular judgment, the reality of purgatory, and the necessity of praying for the dead with a view to their eternal salvation. The language is vague, sentimental, and devoid of the precision of Catholic theology. There is no mention of the necessity of the state of grace at death, the reality of eternal punishment, or the efficacy of the Holy Mass as a propitiatory sacrifice for the souls in purgatory. This vagueness is consistent with the modernist tendency to blur the distinctions between the Church Militant, Suffering, and Triumphant, and to reduce the communion of saints to a sentimental fellowship rather than a supernatural reality grounded in the merits of Christ and the intercession of the Blessed Virgin and the saints.
Conclusion: The Neo-Church as the Abomination of Desolation
Leo XIV’s catechesis is a textbook example of modernist rhetoric: it uses the language of Catholicism while emptying it of its supernatural content, reducing the Church to a historically conditioned, perpetually evolving, and socially engaged entity. It is the religion of man, not the religion of God. It is the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place (Mt 24:15), a counterfeit church that bears the name of Catholic but denies the power thereof (2 Tim 3:5). The faithful must reject this modernist counterfeit and cling to the unchanging truth of the Catholic faith, the true Church of Christ, which endures in the integral faith of those who refuse the conciliar revolution. As Pius XI declared, “His reign encompasses also all non-Christians, so that most truly the entire human race is subject to the authority of Jesus Christ.” Let us pray for the restoration of Christ’s kingship in society and the return of the true Church to her rightful place as the universal sacrament of salvation, not a pilgrim of nothing, but the pillar and ground of truth.
Source:
Pope Leo XIV: Church serves coming of God’s kingdom in history (ewtnnews.com)
Date: 06.05.2026