Homily by Mgr. Schneider on the 30th Anniversary of the Death of Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira
We offer you the article published on the website of L’Associazione Tradizione Famiglia Proprietà (TFP), which reports the homily delivered by Bishop Athanasius Schneider O.R.C., Auxiliary Bishop of Mary Most Holy in Astana, during the Holy Mass celebrated in Rome in suffrage of the soul of Dr. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira (1908-1995), on the 30th anniversary of his death.
In his homily, the Prelate painted a luminous portrait of the founder of TFP, presenting him as an authentic athlete of Christ, knight of the Catholic faith and ardent apostle of Our Lady.
L.V.
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On the 30th anniversary of the passing of Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira
by H.E. Mgr. Athanasius Schneider
Praised be Jesus Christ! On the eve of the 30th anniversary of the day Dr. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira concluded his pilgrimage here on earth, we offer this sacrifice of Holy Mass for the repose of his noble soul. How can we summarise his life? He loved the Church, for he was a ‘vir catholicus, totus apostolicus, plene romanus’, words he chose to characterise his person and his life and which are now his epitaph. Dr. Plinio said: ‘The quality I most appreciate in myself is being a son of the Holy Roman Catholic Apostolic Church. What I most admire in people is their consistency in the Catholic faith’ (Meu Itinerário Espiritual. Compilação de relatos autobiográficos de Plínio Corrêa de Oliveira, volume 1, São Paulo 2021, page 192). These words of Dr. Plinio remain remarkable and deeply touching: "I want the last act of my intellect to be an act of faith in the papacy, and the last act of my will to be an act of love for the papacy. For thus I will die in the peace of the elect, united with Mary, my Mother, and through her with Jesus, my God, my King and my most gracious Redeemer" (Minha Vida Pública. Compilação de relatos autobiográficos de Plínio Corrêa de Oliveira, São Paulo 2015, page 605).
With Dr. Plinio, Divine Providence, in a very difficult time, gave His militant Church an exceptional and intrepid example, who in the spirit of the Apostle Paul – he who was born in the city of São Paulo in Brazil – fought and ran in the arena of this world as a true athleta Christi, as a new knight of Catholicism. In the past, the title athleta Christi was granted by the Popes to men who led military campaigns in defence of Christianity. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira led one of the most significant spiritual campaigns in defence of Christianity in the 20th century, and thus truly deserves the title of athleta Christi. Dr. Plinio said: "All true greatness is a reflection of the greatness of Our Lord. Outside of Him there is no greatness, but a reflection of His greatness. [...] Everything in my mentality, in my way of being, is presided over by the idea of sacrality" (Meu Itinerário Espiritual. Compilação de relatos autobiográficos de Plínio Corrêa de Oliveira, volume 2, São Paulo 2021, page 156; page 167). The generations of early Christians were significantly called ‘the people of the athletes of Christ’ (cf. Cassiodorus, Historia ecclesiastica tripartita 2, 1).
The athleta Christi of the 20th century embodied the spirit of synthesis, which is a distinctive feature of the Catholic spirit, namely: intransigence and refusal to compromise with evil in any form of revolution against God, inflexibility and militancy for the truth and kingship of Christ, aspiration for all that is great in goodness, truth, beauty and sacrality, together with true humility, with the spirit of smallness, of supernatural charity. Under the iron armour of a knight was hidden the soul of a child, with an innocent heart, with a heart that loved his mother: first he loved his own mother, who transmitted the Catholic faith to him, then Holy Mother Church and above all Mary, the heavenly Mother.
Dr. Plinio, himself a member of the Third Order of Carmelites from a young age, lived deeply the spirit of the prophet Elijah, the spirit of ardent zeal in the struggle for the glory of God. And it was a special sign of Divine Providence that Dr. Plinio left the battlefield of the militant Church definitively on the feast day of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, 3rd October. St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, the doctor of the path of spiritual childhood and meekness, nevertheless had a fighting spirit, loving and venerating in a special way St. Joan of Arc, the ‘Maid of Orleans.’ The ‘Little Flower’ even dressed in armour with a sword, representing St. Joan of Arc in a play. Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus had a firm determination to fight for Jesus in the salvation of souls and to die as a martyr, and she desired, ‘like Joan of Arc, to whisper the name of Jesus on the burning stake.’ In a prayer, Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus said: "O Lord, Joan, your virgin and courageous Bride, said: 'We must fight before God gives victory. O my Jesus, I will fight for your love until the evening of my life.’ Dr. Plinio lived this synthesis of spiritual childhood and the militant spirit of an athleta Christi, following the example of the ‘Maid of Orleans’ and the ‘Little Flower."
"The deepest and most central focus of all Dr. Plinio's thoughts and activities was his ardent and tireless commitment to working for the triumph of Our Lady. He wanted to do much more than simply serve Our Lady: he wanted her to be served universally. A triumph is an overwhelming victory. His determination to devote himself to the concrete ideal of a regenerated Christian civilisation motivated him throughout his life. He summed up this dedication to Our Lady's triumph with these inspiring words: ‘When I was still very young, I contemplated with rapture the ruins of Christianity. I entrusted my heart to them; I turned my back on my future and made that blessed past my future.’ The great St. Louis Marie de Montfort predicted this future order and called it the Kingdom of Mary, a period of great graces shaped by the faith and spirit of the Mother of God" (John Horvat, Thirty Years Later: Plinio Correa de Oliveira – A Counter-Revolutionary Focused on Our Lady's Triumph: Crusade Magazine, September/October 2025, 12).
Dr. Plinio summed up the essence of all his thinking and his courageous works in the arena of battle for God in the following words: "If the Counter-Revolution is the struggle to destroy the Revolution and build a new Christianity, resplendent with faith, humble hierarchical spirit and unblemished purity, it is clear that this will be done above all through a profound action in hearts. Now, this action is the specific work of the Church, which teaches Catholic doctrine and makes it loved and practised. The Church is, therefore, the very soul of the Counter-Revolution" (Revolution and Counter-Revolution, chapter 12, 5). The splendour of the Catholic faith, the spirit of humility and unblemished purity must therefore distinguish the work left by Dr. Plinio and everyone who considers himself his spiritual son or who wants to continue his work. Dr. Plinio said: ‘What I have cultivated most is the Faith. Because Faith is the root of all spiritual life. And those who have a living faith have a flourishing spiritual life. It is necessary to have a passion for the things of the Faith’ (Meu Itinerário Espiritual, volume II, page 141).
Dr. Plinio had a great and tender devotion to Our Lady. He was particularly devoted to Our Lady of Fatima, whose message is closely linked to the chastisements and events that will lead to her reign. Devotion to Our Lady of Good Counsel of Genazzano also played a special role in Dr. Plinio's life and thought, as this devotion speaks of the trust necessary to overcome the storms and battles to get there. We hope that what Dr. Plinio once said may now become a reality for him and also for each one of us who, in the depths of our souls, desire to be what Dr. Plinio considered his greatest distinction, namely, to be Catholic, totally apostolic, and fully Roman. He said: "Let us ask Our Lady to make us many Elijahs, so that when we present ourselves in Heaven and St Peter asks us, “Who are you?”, we can answer, “Zelo zelatus sum pro Domino Deo exercituum”. Then the gates of Heaven will open for us, the gates of hell will tremble, and when we cross the heavenly threshold, in that immense throne room that is Heaven, where the Queen of Heaven and Earth will welcome us affably, we will hear: “My son, you have fought for me, enter into the glory of God!”" (pages 121-122). Amen.
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