Traditionalist Catholic Perspective
Sedevancantists and certain other traditionalist Catholics believe that the Great Apostasy began at the time of the Second Vatican Council, or with the election of Pope John XXIII, or shortly thereafter.
Sedevacantists believe the differences between the Roman Catholic Church before and after Vatican II are essential in nature, and enough to regard the contemporary, official Catholic Church as not truly Catholic, sometimes pointing to the Church of England as a model. They also point to the precipitous drop in church attendance that occurred after the new rite of the Mass was made mandatory in the Catholic Church, along with more liberal interpretations of Church doctrine which are considered heretical in some circles.
Sedevacantists share the idea with Protestants that the Catholic Church, as represented by the Vatican is in a fallen state and no longer truly Christian. However, they differ in that they accept the Church as it existed until Vatican II, usually until the death of Pope Pius XII and all his pronouncements regarding doctrine, faith, and morals, and the rite of Mass before Annibale Bugnini's first innovations were introduced in the 1950s, whereas most Protestants believe that the Catholic Church began to fall away with the rise of the Emperor Constantine, his legalization of Christianity, and its latter establishment as the state religion of the Roman Empire. (Traditional Catholics argue that Constantine, as a pagan Emperor, would have had no authority over the Church in doctrinal matters anyway.)
Read more about this topic: Great Apostasy
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