Orthodox Roman Catholic Movement

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The Orthodox Roman Catholic Movement (ORCM) is a Traditionalist Catholic group of priests founded by Robert McKenna and Francis E. Fenton,^[1] acting on the suggestions of Joaquín Sáenz y Arriaga and was the U.S. organization parallel to the Mexican organization Unión Católica Trento, founded by Sáenz along with Moisés Carmona and Adolfo Zamora. Fenton was a founding member of the "conservative" John Birch Society, and was on its American Opinion Speakers Bureau. The Orthodox Roman Catholic Movement established twenty-seven chapels in North America in which the Tridentine Mass is offered.^[2][3]

Origins[]

Originally a diocesan priest, Fenton became alarmed at the Vatican II reforms of the liturgy and resulting attacks on traditional Catholic Doctrine being implemented in the U.S., and in March of 1970 he left his Diocese rather than participate in what he saw as the destruction of the Faith.

Fenton continued celebrating his beloved Tridentine Mass but now in a private home in Sandy Hook, Connecticut, and as more traditional-minded Catholics heard about this private Mass, the number of people attending it continued to grow until it was obvious that a larger facility, and one more closely resembling a church, would be needed for the future. In March 1972 members of "the group" acquired a chapel in Brewster, New York. Later they purchased a building that was formerly a Protestant church in Monroe, Connecticut, where in January 1973 they installed as pastor the Dominican priest Robert McKenna, who had recently joined Fenton and his newly formed "Orthodox Roman Catholic Movement".

By fall 1975, the ORCM had gained , , and ("Dan Jones"), the English Benedictine , and some other priests, totaling eleven, and services were being held in California, Colorado, Florida, New Jersey and New York. A growth period followed, and by 1979 a circuit system set up among the eleven priests offered the Tridentine Mass in sixteen states.^[2][4]

The ORCM was an active movement, and from its presses came several books and numerous pamphlets on the Mass, modest dress, freemasonry, obedience to the Pope, and modern trends in the Catholic Church. The movement stood firm on its interpretation of Pope Pius V's legislation Quo primum tempore and its belief that the Mass of Paul VI's was doctrinally unsound, was influenced by Protestant ideas, and was thus following Martin Luther's and Cranmer's gradual, but radical changes to the liturgy.

Controversy[]

Controversy followed the ORCM from the beginning. Fenton's membership in and vocal support for the John Birch Society led to continual criticism from Catholics who agreed with Fenton's assessment of what was happening to the Church, but did not want to be associated with a political organization that was fighting the same kind of attack on tradition in the National arena. While many respected the "conservative" stance of the Society, including its strong opposition to Communism, they disapproved of Fenton's involvement in a non-Catholic organization, believing that this distracted followers from the more central concerns of the Traditionalist Catholic movement. But Fenton saw it as a single attack against Church and State by the same enemy, and refused to approach the situation as two separate battles, one religious, and one secular.

Internal disputes[]

In the late 1970s internal disputes that had grown within the movement became public. Fenton and McKenna came into conflict over the latter's addition to the ORCM's board. A two-year battle for control of the ORCM led to a split with McKenna coming out in control (1981). It is alleged that one of the ORCM's wealthy patrons instigated and funded the McKenna faction's takeover of the ORCM. It is not known whether Fenton was ejected or if he resigned when he lost control over it.

After this, Fenton retreated to Colorado Springs, along with Placid White, where fellow-Birchites William and harbored them, and where he founded the and began to publish The Athanasian, named after Athanasius of Alexandria, Patriarch of Alexandria, Egypt, who had been forced into exile by the Arian heretics.

A small group continued to follow him into the 1990s, including . For a time, Fenton was associated with the Society of Saint Pius V. Current information on the Fenton group is not available; the website Traditio.com gives the day of Fenton's death as August 3, 1995, two years after the Athanasian last mentioned him.^{[citation needed]}

Among present or former ORCM members, besides McKenna (in 1986), it seems that Paul Marceau too had been consecrated a bishop, for he is credited with having performed the consecration of the Church of Our Lady of Fatima at Spring Hills, Florida^[5] (That church is presently presided over by independent bishop , who belongs to the Carlos Duarte Costa succession.)

The remnants of the movement exist nominally but it no longer has the vibrant life that it had before the displacement of Fenton. Under Fenton, the movement was not merely organized to provide Masses, but also had an active intellectual component, which died out with his displacement.

Current leadership[]

Prior to his death in 2015, McKenna headed the movement from its headquarters in Monroe, Connecticut, and reported several chapels and missions with regularly scheduled masses. Since McKenna himself had become Sedeprivationist from the time of his episcopal consecration, the present ORCM is also considered Sedeprivationist and no longer a Sedevacantist Theory body. At some point before his death, Bishop McKenna retired from his duties at Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel in Monroe, CT. due to health concerns.

McKenna died on December 16, 2015. The future of the movement is uncertain, with at least some parishes having been given to the Society of Saint Pius X.^[6]

References[]

External links[]

• Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel - History