Francis Schuckardt
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Traditionalist Catholic
Traditionalist Catholic
Traditionalist Catholics are Roman Catholics who believe that there should be a restoration of many or all of the liturgical forms, public and private devotions and presentations of Catholic teachings which prevailed in the Catholic Church before the Second Vatican Council...
independent bishop
Episcopi vagantes
Episcopi vagantes are persons who have been consecrated as Christian bishops outside the structures and canon law of the established churches, and who are not in communion with any generally recognized diocese...
and the first known bishop of the sedevacantist movement
Sedevacantism
Sedevacantism is the position held by a minority of Traditionalist Catholics who hold that the present occupant of the papal see is not truly Pope and that, for lack of a valid Pope, the see has been vacant since the death of either Pope Pius XII in 1958 or Pope John XXIII in 1963.Sedevacantists...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Sedevacantism holds that Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
—sometimes going back to include John XXIII— and his successors are not valid Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
s. Schuckardt founded the Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen
Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen
The Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen is a Sedevacantist Traditionalist Catholic religious congregation dedicated to promoting the message of Our Lady of Fatima and devotion to the Virgin Mary according to the teachings of St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, whom they regard as their...
(CMRI) and the Tridentine Latin Rite Catholic Church (TLRCC), considered by some former members as being a cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
.
Early life
Schuckardt was born in Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
on July 10, 1937 to Frank and Gertrude Schuckardt. Francis graduated from O'Dea High School
O'Dea High School
O'Dea High School is a Catholic boys' high school located on Seattle's First Hill, in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle. The school is named after Edward John O'Dea who was bishop of Seattle when the school was built....
in 1954 and from Seattle University
Seattle University
Seattle University is a Jesuit Catholic university located in the First Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, USA.SU is the largest independent university in the Northwest US, with over 7,500 students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs within eight schools, and is one of 28 member...
in 1959 with a bachelor's degree in education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
and linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
. After college, he enrolled in the seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
but dropped out before the year ended due to ill health. He began teaching high school in Seattle and worked as a linguistic research analyst.
The Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima
In 1958 Schuckardt joined the Blue Army of Our Lady of FatimaBlue Army of Our Lady of Fatima
The Blue Army of Our Lady of Fátima is a public international association of the Christian faithful that has as its general purpose "the promotion of the authentic teaching of the Roman Catholic Church and the strict adherence to the tenets of the Gospel; the personal sanctification of adherents...
, a group devoted to spreading the message of Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...
. In 1961, Schuckardt was stricken with typhoid
Typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...
; this was the beginning of a long succession of illnesses. He was in and out of a coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
for eight days. He experienced a remarkable recovery which he attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
. In January 1963, he was hospitalized with thrombophlebitis
Thrombophlebitis
Thrombophlebitis is phlebitis related to a thrombus . When it occurs repeatedly in different locations, it is known as "Thrombophlebitis migrans" or "migrating thrombophlebitis".-Signs and symptoms:...
of the legs. The infection had spread and doctors decided to amputate. The illness reversed itself to which Schuckardt again attributed to a miracle resulting from a promise he made to Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...
, promising her that he would use his legs to travel and spread her message. He gained considerable fame as a charisma
Charisma
The term charisma has two senses: 1) compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion in others, 2) a divinely conferred power or talent. For some theological usages the term is rendered charism, with a meaning the same as sense 2...
tic speaker for the Blue Army and was elected to its International Council in 1963 at the age of 26. Schuckardt was the only member of the Council who was not a national chairman. He was subsequently appointed to the position of International Secretary.
Tridentine Latin Rite Catholic Church
About the time of his departure from the Blue Army, Schuckardt began giving lectures throughout the United States, promoting devotion to the Virgin Mary as well as speaking out against the various doctrinal changes that were, he claimed, the result of the Second Vatican CouncilSecond Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
.
He said that after a long and hard struggle, accompanied by much prayer and research, he concluded that from the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
emerged a "new" religion which was not truly “Catholic” (Open Letter to members of the Fatima Crusade, ca. 1968), and that Paul VI was a false Pope, that is, an illegitimate due to personal heresies. He also criticized the liturgical
Liturgy
Liturgy is either the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to its particular traditions or a more precise term that distinguishes between those religious groups who believe their ritual requires the "people" to do the "work" of responding to the priest, and those...
reforms of Vatican II and the teachings on ecumenism
Ecumenism
Ecumenism or oecumenism mainly refers to initiatives aimed at greater Christian unity or cooperation. It is used predominantly by and with reference to Christian denominations and Christian Churches separated by doctrine, history, and practice...
as severe departures of "true" Catholic doctrine.
In 1967, Schuckardt founded a community of nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
s, Religious Brothers, and priests
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
known as the Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen
Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen
The Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen is a Sedevacantist Traditionalist Catholic religious congregation dedicated to promoting the message of Our Lady of Fatima and devotion to the Virgin Mary according to the teachings of St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort, whom they regard as their...
(abbreviated as CMRI), initially approved by the Bishop of Boise, Idaho
Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise
The Diocese of Boise is an ecclesiastical territory of the Catholic Church in the northwestern U.S., encompassing the entire state of Idaho. It is led by a bishop who serves as pastor of the cathedral, the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Boise...
. With his rejection of the reforms and authority of what he considered to be the "new Catholic Church," or the Novus Ordo (New Order), he formed an organization known as the Tridentine Latin Rite Catholic Church (TLRCC). He insisted that this is not a "new church," but the same Catholic Church that existed for almost two millennia prior to the changes imposed by Vatican II. His followers refer to the Church generally recognized as the Roman Catholic Church as the "Modern Catholic Church" or the "Post-Vatican Council II Church". They labelled Paul VI the "arch-heretic of Rome" and referred to the mainstream Church as "the Church of the Beast". "Who would be so bold or so foolish as to call these bishops Catholic or to pretend that they possess any legitimate authority? Including the arch-heretic in Rome?"
Schuckardt and an associate Denis Chicoine
Denis Chicoine
Denis Chicoine was a Traditionalist Catholic priest who assisted Francis Schuckardt in founding the Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen and served as Superior General of the Congregation from 1984 to 1989.- Early life :...
began a national lecture
Lecture
thumb|A lecture on [[linear algebra]] at the [[Helsinki University of Technology]]A lecture is an oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical information, history,...
circuit advocating a return to traditional Catholicism. Due to their outspoken rejection of the Second Vatican Council and embrace of sedevacantism
Sedevacantism
Sedevacantism is the position held by a minority of Traditionalist Catholics who hold that the present occupant of the papal see is not truly Pope and that, for lack of a valid Pope, the see has been vacant since the death of either Pope Pius XII in 1958 or Pope John XXIII in 1963.Sedevacantists...
, Schuckardt and his followers were denounced by the Roman Catholic Church. However several traditional-minded Catholic priests (some Jesuits and diocesan priests) had joined Schuckhardt and would provide the Fatima Crusade with the traditional, Roman Rite
Roman Rite
The Roman Rite is the liturgical rite used in the Diocese of Rome in the Catholic Church. It is by far the most widespread of the Latin liturgical rites used within the Western or Latin autonomous particular Church, the particular Church that itself is also called the Latin Rite, and that is one of...
of the sacraments
Sacraments of the Catholic Church
The Sacraments of the Catholic Church are, the Roman Catholic Church teaches, "efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. The visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper...
and the Mass
Tridentine Mass
The Tridentine Mass is the form of the Roman Rite Mass contained in the typical editions of the Roman Missal that were published from 1570 to 1962. It was the most widely celebrated Mass liturgy in the world until the introduction of the Mass of Paul VI in December 1969...
. In his public discourses (which were preserved on audiotape), then-Brother Schuckardt reminded his followers that, despite the apostasy of Vatican II, Christ
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
would most certainly provide for legitimate apostolic succession
Apostolic Succession
Apostolic succession is a doctrine, held by some Christian denominations, which asserts that the chosen successors of the Twelve Apostles, from the first century to the present day, have inherited the spiritual, ecclesiastical and sacramental authority, power, and responsibility that were...
in "the Catholic Church." He is on record as saying that he "never expected" himself "to be part of that succession".
Episcopal Consecration
In 1969, Daniel Quilter BrownDaniel Q. Brown
Daniel Quilter Brown is an American Old Roman Catholic bishop. He was a Roman Catholic layman who left the Catholic Church in the late 1960s because he was dissatisfied with the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. Brown was consecrated a bishop in 1969 by Hubert A. Rogers.In 1971 he consecrated...
received episcopal consecration as an Old Catholic (English-line Old Catholic) bishop in the line of Arnold Harris Mathew
Arnold Mathew
Arnold Harris Mathew was the first Old Catholic bishop in the United Kingdom.Mathew was a suspended Roman Catholic priest before joining the Old Catholic movement...
. Brown had been born and raised a Roman Catholic, but became disenchanted with the reforms of Vatican II, and had chosen to become an Old Roman Catholic bishop in order to perpetuate valid episcopal orders, believing that the Old Catholics still retained valid Orders. Despite the fact that Bishop Brown obtained his consecration in the Old Catholic Church, he and his followers called themselves Roman Catholics and refused to use the title of "Old Catholic." Shortly after his consecration, he broke all ties and communications with the Old Catholics.
Bishop Brown soon became acquainted with Brother Schuckardt and tried to persuade him to accept ordination from him. Later he proposed to consecrate Brother Schuckardt to the episcopacy in addition to ordaining him to the priesthood. After Bishop Brown had repented of having received consecration from the Old Catholics, Brother Schuckardt agreed to receive consecration from Bishop Brown: "[T]hese past months have been spent in intense soul searching and continuous prayer to know and follow God's holy will. Thus I could not give you a reply until I felt fairly certain in my heart and mind. Now, finally, in concluding our novena in honor of the Annunciation, I have come to a decision. It is with holy trepidation that I accept your offer..." Between October 28 and November 1, 1971, Schuckardt was ordained and consecrated a bishop in a rented ballroom in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, as they were not welcome in the churches of the Catholic Church.
At first Bishops Brown and Schuckardt worked peaceably together, but shortly thereafter went their separate ways. The Seattle Times references a letter written in 1973 by Bishop Brown in which he charges: "Your group has become a personal cult of Francis Schuckardt and cannot call itself Catholic."
A Spokesman Review article states that Schuckardt claimed to be the only true Catholic bishop. Schuckardt's officials deny that he ever made such a claim, and point to the fact that he directed his clergy to diligently search for Roman Catholic Bishops that might qualify as legitimate in his eyes.
Between 1974 and 1979 Schuckardt ordained Denis Chicoine and five other clerics to the priesthood, who in turn helped him preserve the traditional Catholic Faith primarily through the continued lecture circuit. The denomination was incorporated in 1978 as the "Tridentine Latin Rite Catholic Church", primarily to distinguish it from the "Vatican II church" ("Tridentine" relates to the 19th Ecumenical Council, the Council of Trent
Council of Trent
The Council of Trent was the 16th-century Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It is considered to be one of the Church's most important councils. It convened in Trent between December 13, 1545, and December 4, 1563 in twenty-five sessions for three periods...
[also called Tridentium], which was held from 1545-63.) By 1977 the group had grown so large that they were able to purchase a former 735 acres (3 km²) Jesuit seminary, Mount Saint Michael, just north of Spokane, Washington
Spokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
. The movement continued to grow, eventually sending priests to various parts of the world including Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and the Holy Land. According to a church publication, by 1981 the group had about 120 Sisters, 6 active priests, 61 Clerics and Brothers, a K - 12th grade boys and girls school, and a variety of organizations for the Church, including a convent for the mentally and neurologically impaired and a guild to aid the elderly and terminally ill. The same publication stated that running the church would be enough for a strong bishop, let alone one who "is so physically ill, maliciously slandered and persecuted, betrayed at every turn, exhausted with work and His solicitude for his flock." In addition to Mount Saint Michael
Mount Saint Michael
Mount Saint Michael is a traditional Catholic church in Spokane, Washington. It serves as the home of Saint Michael's Academy and as a parish center for traditionalist Catholics in the Spokane area. It is staffed by the priests, brothers and sisters of the Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen...
, they also owned over 18 other properties, collectively worth about eight million dollars.
Criticism
Brown consecrated Francis Schuckardt without a pontifical mandate (i.e. permission from the PopePope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
), which is normally required by the Code of Canon Law
Canon law (Catholic Church)
The canon law of the Catholic Church, is a fully developed legal system, with all the necessary elements: courts, lawyers, judges, a fully articulated legal code and principles of legal interpretation. It lacks the necessary binding force present in most modern day legal systems. The academic...
under penalty of excommunication. However, traditionalists cite over a dozen historical instances where Bishops were legitimately consecrated in a period of sede vacante. Traditionalists also point out the superiority of the essential doctrine of Apostolic Authority over the changeable dictates of ecclesiastical law, and hold that Christ would not leave his flock without shepherds.
Lawrence Welsh, the Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Spokane
Roman Catholic Diocese of Spokane
The Diocese of Spokane is a diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the U.S. state of Washington. Headquartered in Spokane, the diocese encompasses Okanogan, Ferry, Stevens, Pend Oreille, Lincoln, Spokane, Adams, Whitman, Franklin, Walla Walla, Columbia, Garfield and Asotin Counties...
, wrote of Francis Schuckardt in the Inland Register (a diocesan newspaper): "Bishop Schuckardt has received no mission from the church universal and does not accept the unity of the apostolic office. Yet these are some of the very elements which make the Church Roman Catholic." In another section Bishop Welsh adds "[T]hey deny the teaching authority of the Second Vatican Council and the last four Popes. Implicitly Bishop Schuckardt has set himself up as the final and last arbiter of Catholic tradition."
As related in a Spokesman Review article from 1983, Schuckardt is quoted as saying: "Some of our teachers, studying the French revolution, saw the origins of the red, white, and blue, which was adopted then. The red represented the thousands of bishops and priests who were nailed to the church doors."
Many of Schuckhardt's beliefs and policies drew criticism, including:
- The dress code for women, which was modest. Women were required to have long dresses and counseled to keep their heads covered at all times.
- His belief that smoking was a "gravely sinful vice".
- The segregation of men and women at church functions.
- The expectation that members walk backwards out of church.
- The requirement for children to attend the church schools.
- Rarely granting permission to attend college, since none existed that Schuckardt considered as being Catholic.
- The restriction of television programming and censorship of reading material.
- The prohibition of dating until out of high school. Those interested in marriage had to attend the "Cana Cell" and were required to follow established rules and guidelines regarding courtship.
Chicoine's Charges
On June 3, 1984, Rev. ChicoineDenis Chicoine
Denis Chicoine was a Traditionalist Catholic priest who assisted Francis Schuckardt in founding the Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen and served as Superior General of the Congregation from 1984 to 1989.- Early life :...
made several public charges from the pulpit against Bishop Schuckardt, related in a Spokesman Review article on August 26, 1984.
The newspaper article cited Chicoine's claims: "After we re-obtained possession of the Priory, and started to go through the boxes of mail that had been accumulated over the years and simply stacked in corners we found a large amount of cash and over $15,000 in out-of-date uncashed checks." "For the past several years several things in the Community have been in complete and utter chaos." and that "The vast majority of chaos is caused by Bishop Schuckardt's inability to physically function" due to pain, lack of sleep, and medications.
"Chicoine has also charged that Schuckardt was sexually involved with some of his male assistants. He said he has several sworn statements." The article quotes Chicoine: "I have in my possession sworn statements by several persons whom Bishop Schuckardt told personally that he was the Pope. These persons were told not to tell myself or other priests and clerics since we did not have the grace to accept it."
Schuckardt left his Spokane mansion within days after Chicoine made his accusations public. Chicoine found that he had the backing of the vast majority of the religious and laity alike, and took charge of the Fatima Crusade.
Schuckardt's Response to the Charges
The Schuckardt faction denies they are a cult.- Regarding the charge of sexual impropriety, the Spokesman Review of August 26, 1984 quotes Bishop Schuckardt says "Schuckardt denied the allegations. He said the charges are part of a plot by Chicoine to discredit him and seize control of the church... (The charges) sicken me because there's not a word of truth to it at all." Schuckardt's defenders point out the difficulty of proving a negative. How does one prove that an accusation is false, when by its very nature it excludes the possibility of either physical evidence or witnesses? Furthermore, it is accepted science that sexual predators are incurable, therefore if Bishop Schuckardt was a sexual predator, as some claim, surely over the last 21 years at least one more accusation would have surfaced, especially when considering that there have been people who left the Schuckardt faction between 1984 and 2004 who are very hostile towards him; but no new accusations have surfaced. In 1987 all of the Religious men, seminarians and boys that were boarding with the seminarians, were individually questioned by the Sheriff's Department and the FBI regarding this particular accusation, but nothing of concern was found (Calif. Case #87-2823). They further claim that even if the accusations were true, the authority given to the Church by Christ is not contingent upon the personal sanctity or impeccability of the hierarchy exercising that authority.
- Regarding Chicoine’s allegation of Bishop Schuckardt’s incompetency. Neither civil nor ecclesiastical law (Canon 12, Canons 1648 – 50,…) allow legal actions to be taken against an incompetent person. Since Chicoine’s public accusations of incompetency, Bishop Schuckardt squared off with him in various courts of law in California, Washington, Utah, Canada. Never once did Chicoine raise the incompetency issue in any legal proceeding nor did any court of law ever question the Bishop’s competence, despite the fact that the Bishop took the stand in many of these legal actions.
- Schuckardt denies that ever declared himself to be the Pope. Some of his followers, however, believe him to be so based upon their belief that he is the "last true Catholic bishop" in the world and upon the teaching of the Catholic Church that the Church must have a Pope, except during periods of interregnumSede vacanteSede vacante is an expression, used in the Canon Law of the Catholic Church, that refers to the vacancy of the episcopal see of a particular church...
. - The dress code "by traditionalists' standards" was strict, but the dress code was not based upon "traditionalists' standards" but upon compliance with the standards set forth by Pope Pius XI and Pope Pius XII regarding "Mary-like" standards of modesty.
- Representatives of the TLRCC assert that women were not required to cover their heads except when in Church, they were, however, encouraged to have them covered whenever in public, in imitation of the Virgin Mary, whom tradition tells us always had her head covered in public.
- Men and women are indeed obliged to occupy the opposite sides while in Church. This custom goes back to the earliest days of the Catholic Church and was taught by the Fathers of the Church. St. Augustine roundly condemns those who would criticize this practise.
- Bishop Schuckardt did teach that smoking was against the 5th Commandment: "we all know that Rome doesn't issue decrees on every moral matter… Rome has not issued a decree against the use of heroin or LSD, but that does not absolve the local Bishops and clergy from condemning the use of it." (Fatima Crusader Bulletin, Issue 71)
- The practice of walking backwards out of church was optional, not mandatory; and when impractical, not done, as was the case when classes of students left as a group. It was encouraged, however, in an effort to keep to the ideals outlined by Pope Pius XI, on the Kingship of Christ.
- By forbidding members to attend college without good cause, Schuckardt asserts that he was conforming to the teachings contained in an encyclical of Pope Pius XI, which states: "Catholic children may not attend non-Catholic, neutral, or mixed schools... and it pertains exclusively to the Ordinary of the place to decide... under what circumstances and with what precautions against the danger of perversion, attendance at such schools may be tolerated."
- Bishop Schuckardt allowed only discerning adults to watch television, and even then only with a great deal of caution. He claims this is in keeping with a statement of Pope Pius XII regarding the evils that television presents to Catholics.
- Regarding Chicoine’s allegation of finding large amounts of cash and out-of-day checks, the Spokesman Review quoted Bishop Schuckardt as saying “an assistant failed to properly handle the matter and that he was unaware of the problem.”
The Schuckardt faction considers the Chicone faction in schism
Schism (religion)
A schism , from Greek σχίσμα, skhísma , is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization or movement religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a break of communion between two sections of Christianity that were previously a single body, or to a division within...
. Since both Bishop Schuckardt and Rev. Chicoine acknowledged no higher Church authority than Bishop Schuckardt himself, there was no lawful means whereby Rev. Chicoine could depose him and take control of the Tridentine Latin Rite Catholic Church as he did. Schuckardt formally excommunicated Chicoine on June 30, 1984. In the August 26 Spokesman Review article, Chicoine is quoted as saying: "We contend that it is not a valid excommunication. If he is incompetent, which we believe we've proved, then his acts are null and void." Chicoine died on August 10, 1995 and is buried at Mount Saint Michael
Mount Saint Michael
Mount Saint Michael is a traditional Catholic church in Spokane, Washington. It serves as the home of Saint Michael's Academy and as a parish center for traditionalist Catholics in the Spokane area. It is staffed by the priests, brothers and sisters of the Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen...
. His excommunication
Excommunication
Excommunication is a religious censure used to deprive, suspend or limit membership in a religious community. The word means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
by Bishop Schuckardt was never revoked.
Legal battles between Chicoine and Schuckardt
In an article by Tim Hanson that appeared in the Spokesman Review article on August 26, 1984 Schuckardt is quoted as saying: "If there is some way I can just let the people know we didn't run away. We were sent away. We were thrown out of our home. If there was anyway we could have stayed there, we would have. They must know that it was made impossible." The article goes on to state that On June 7, 1984 Chicoine filed a lawsuit in Superior court asking that Schuckardt and 10 of his associates be prohibited from returning to the church property at Mount St. Michael's or Schuckardt's mansion at E2314 South Altamont Blvd. As a result of this lawsuit, a document was served at his mansion. The article states: "Schuckardt said last week he thought the document was an eviction notice rather than an order to appear in court. He also believed an arrest warrant had been issued." Bruce Erickson, a Spokane attorney representing Chicoine stated: "There wasn't any warrant out for his arrest. I or the court or the sheriff's department can't force them to read the documents". Schuckardt left the mansion during the second week of June. The article went on "[N]either Schuckardt nor a legal representative appeared in court. The court therefore issued an order banning the bishop from church property." Spokane County sheriff detectives confirmed that no warrant exists for Schuckardt. The court later ruled that Bishop Schuckardt had never been given proper legal notice of the pending action and overturned its original judgment against him and a handful of his followers.After leaving Spokane, they moved around and finally settled in Greenville, California. “One of the main reasons we move is because of the harassment we’ve been getting from Chicoine” stated loyal Bishop Schuckardt follower, Brother Mary Fidelis, “They’re trying to do anything they can to destroy us, literally. We fear harm, physical harm, coming to the Bishop. We wouldn’t put anything past them.” As further reported by Jim Sparks in the Spokesman Review "In Greenville, Calif., 102 miles (164.2 km) northwest of Reno Nevada, Schuckardt appears to be king once again."
Schuckardt and his followers continued to operate as the Tridentine Latin Rite Catholic Church while Chicoine reincorporated the group at Mount Saint Michael as the Latin Rite Catholic Church on June 14, 1984.
On May 9, 1987 a Plumas County, California Sheriff's Department SWAT team, with support from the California Highway Patrol, conducted a raid on the TLRCC Deputies searched Bishop Schuckardt's house and those of the Brothers and the nuns while a CHP helicopter hovered overhead to look for automatic weapons which the Chicoine faction falsely told them they possessed. They found illegal drugs along with precious metals in quantity, $75,000 in cash and about eight handguns and rifles in the three separate homes. Rather than going through a lengthy and expensive trial, Bishop Schuckardt accepted a plea bargain of attending a one-day drug-diversion class in exchange for all charges being dismissed against him.
All charges against the others arrested with Bishop Schuckardt were dismissed without prejudice. They furthermore obtained a “Factual Declaration of Innocence” regarding the same.
The Chicoine faction subsequently filed civil suits in five different states wherein the Schuckardt faction had assets, claiming that these assets belonged to his church, but lost all of these cases. The Schuckardt faction also challenged the civil suit filed by the Chicoine faction in Washington in 1984 and agreed to a settlement before the trial began in 1993. The settlement heavily favored the Chicoine faction. Nine years of legal wrangling finally came to an end, with the Chicoine faction getting the lion’s share of the Fatima Crusade’s assets.
Later life
For the remainder of his life Schuckardt lived in the Seattle area. As reported November 2005, the TLRCC has about 100 members in the area. The article states "At the heart of the mysterious group lies its founder, Francis Konrad Schuckardt, a charismatic leader who considers himself to be the true Pope, according to members of the group." The church has no public address or telephone number.In 2002 a reporter from The Seattle Times
The Seattle Times
The Seattle Times is a newspaper serving Seattle, Washington, US. It is the largest daily newspaper in the state of Washington. It has been, since the demise in 2009 of the printed version of the rival Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Seattle's only major daily print newspaper.-History:The Seattle Times...
attempted to obtain an interview with Schuckardt for an article, but requests were denied because of health reasons, although the reporter was allowed to conduct an extensive interview with 6 Church members and given access to Church services.
In 2006 Schuckardt consecrated Andrew Jacobs (Brother Mary Fidelis) and Joseph Belzak (Brother John Francis Marie) as bishops.
In April 2006, Schuckardt was diagnosed with terminal cancer and died on November 5, 2006.
Further reading
- Church near Seattle struck by scandalMSNBC Scarborough Country November 23, 2005