Thinking about the sad events of the last week, I could not help but be struck by the complete failure of negotiations on both sides. The back-and-forth leading up to the July 1 SSPX consecrations in Écône felt like the tortured counseling session of a couple who have already decided to divorce but are giving marriage counseling the old college try merely to save appearances. This is a suspicion I would like to examine here by looking at the behavior of both sides leading up to the consecrations on July 1.
Any kind of successful negotiation requires compromise from both sides, otherwise it is not a negotiation at all but just dictation of terms, two sides shouting at each other. From my perspective, I did not see any meaningful compromise in these discussions, especially from the Society but also from Pope Leo. It's like they tried nothing and were all out of ideas. We shall consider each in turn.
