These Last Days News - January 12, 2026
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At Consistory, Cardinal Zen Calls Synodality ‘Ironclad Manipulation’ and ‘Insult’ to Bishops...

Worse to Come
   "And if you think you have seen carnage now already in the Church, the worst is yet to come, unless you follow the rules given by My Mother many years ago, of prayer, atonement, and sacrifice." - Jesus, June 18, 1986

ONLY SATAN SEEKS CHANGE
"There is no time or change in Heaven. The Father never changes. It is only satan who seeks change to disturb, corrupt, and degrade. Satan roams wherever there is darkness of spirit. He will debase mankind in a manner so foul that you will know that no human could conceive of such vileness of sin.” – Our Lady, March 22, 1975

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EdwardPentin.Substack.com reported on January 10, 2026:

By Edward Pentin

Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun delivered a forceful critique of synodality at the extraordinary consistory of cardinals this week, decrying the process as an “ironclad manipulation” that was an “insult to the dignity of the bishops.”

The bishop emeritus of Hong Kong also described the “continual reference to the Holy Spirit” during the 2021-2024 Synod on Synodality as “ridiculous and almost blasphemous.”

The cardinal, 93, made his remarks during one of two free discussion periods during the Jan. 7-8 consistory that drew together 170 of the 245 members of the College of Cardinals in Pope Leo XIV’s first major meeting with the sacred college since his election.

In impassioned comments, first reported Jan. 9 by The College of Cardinals Report, the bishop emeritus criticized Pope Francis for bypassing the college of bishops while at the same time Francis insisted it was an appropriate means for “understanding the hierarchical ministry.”

The cardinal questioned the ability of any pope to listen to the entire People of God and whether the laity represent the People of God. He asked if the bishops elected to take part in the synodal process had been able to carry out a work of discernment.

“The ironclad manipulation of the process is an insult to the dignity of the bishops, and the continual reference to the Holy Spirit is ridiculous and almost blasphemous,” Zen said. “They expect surprises from the Holy Spirit. What surprises? That he should repudiate what he inspired in the Church’s two-thousand-year tradition?”

The cardinal also observed apparent inconsistencies in the synod’s final document: That it was declared to be part of the magisterium and yet it said it did not establish any norms; that although it stressed unity of teaching and practice, it said these could be applied according to “different contexts;” and that each country or region “can seek solutions better suited to its culture and sensitive to its tradition and needs.”

The cardinal also pointed to what he called “many ambiguous and tendentious expressions in the document,” and asked if the Holy Spirit guarantees that “contradictory interpretations will not arise.”

Zen openly wondered whether the results of what the document calls “experimenting and testing” of these “new forms of ministeriality” will be submitted to the Synod Secretariat and, if so, whether the secretariat will be “more competent than the bishops to judge different contexts” of the Church in various countries or regions.

“If the bishops believe themselves to be more competent, do the differing interpretations and choices not lead our Church to the same division (fracture) found in the Anglican Communion?” the cardinal asked.

Regarding the Orthodox Church, Zen said he believes their bishops “will never accept” what he called “Bergoglian synodality” as, for them, synodality is “the importance of the Synod of Bishops.”

Pope Francis, he said, “exploited the word synod, but has made the Synod of Bishops — an institution established by Paul VI — disappear.” Zen’s remark was an apparent reference to how the late pope had reshaped the institution by giving non-bishops a formal role, making the institution no longer simply an episcopal advisory body.

The Vatican press office and cardinals chosen to speak to the press made no mention of Zen’s remarks during the consistory.

In press statements, it was claimed there was no criticism of Pope Francis during the two-day meeting, although Cardinal Stephen Brislin did speak of a “divergence” of opinion, saying some cardinals wanted the concept of synodality to be further clarified.

The consistory was a closed-door meeting to which no media were admitted, and cardinals were asked to keep the proceedings confidential.

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ALL NOVELTY AND EXPERIMENTATION TO STOP
"All manner of novelty and experimentation must be removed from My Church--NOW! You have been given the rule. You have been given the way. Restore My House now, for a House in darkness wears a band of death about it. The doors will close! Souls will be starved for the light. Blood shall flow in the streets. Death shall become commonplace. Is this what you want?" - Jesus, November 22, 1975

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Directives from Heaven... https://www.tldm.org/directives/directives.htm

D36 - Bishops (Part 1) PDF
D37 - Bishops (Part 2) PDF
D38 - Priests (Part 1) PDF
D39 - Priests (Part 2) PDF
D40 - Infiltrators PDF
D211 - Changes, Part 1  PDF
D212 - Changes, Part 2  PDF
D318 - A Man-made Morality and Theology PDF

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