On the other hand.
It isn't my fight, but for years I've followed Fr. Z with some interest, finding his apostolate rather mysterious - especially now since he is even more a free agent without an assignment. Monks like that are considered gyrovagues and were not held in great esteem by stable monastics. Fr. Pavone is apparently in the same situation. Fr. Z seems to feel he was targeted and is a bit 'persecuted' - did he say persecuted? Not sure, but it is my impression, esp. since he lost his position in the Madison diocese.
Recently Where Peter Is did a post pretty much in response to a challenge Fr. Z threw out, to come up with some sort of compendium in defense of Benedict's assertion there is only one pope, along with "a defense of all that Francis is, has said, and has done." The WPI post: Fr. Z, Challenge Accepted. Fr. Z thought the author was 'nasty'. I didn't.
This after devoting his time online urging readers to go to Canon212 to participate in a poll regarding the question of 'one pope and who it is'. An unscientific poll on a site at enmity with Pope Francis and mockingly critical of the Pope Emeritus. Fr. Z apparently follows, endorses sites like that - as well as mad/rad-trad, Ann Barnhardt. He claims others call his attention to sites like these, and or articles which mention his blog, otherwise he wouldn't know about their existence. Knowing how hands on he is with his online connections, or network, he knows who links to him and/or writes about him. In his response to the Mike Lewis piece, he claims he never heard of him - yet he mentions him by name in a post dated 14 August 2020. Just saying.
Anyway. I'm not sure priests like this are persecuted per say, except to say they can be wounded in the culture wars, which they so vigorously engage in, and in some cases, profit from. (Polling and fund drives seem to be quite profitable for them.) Fr. Z and others like him, go after priests and women religious they don't like or whom they deem liberal-progressive-heterodox-heretics, with a vengeance. When the winds of criticism blows their way, they claim persecution and suffering verging on 'white martyrdom'. It seems a bit disingenuous.
That said, Fr. Z more or less responded to the Mike Lewis post(s) on Where Peter Is, who took up Fr. Z's challenge for supporters of what Benedict said, as well as the fact that Francis is Pope, to "put together their own compendium as a defense of all that Francis is, has said, and has done." Fr. Z didn't accept Lewis' response, because it wasn't a compendium - in book form. Writing:
"Lewis: “Fr. Zuhlsdorf, we [sic] respond to your challenge with the work of this website.” “…with the work of this website”. Okay. But that isn’t a response to the challenge I issued." - Fr. Z Of gauntlets, spaghetti wall art, and St. Robert Bellarmine
We shall see what WPI's response is, but Lewis is correct, his entire website is dedicated to the support of the papacy of Pope Francis and the legitimacy of the retirement of Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI. An endeavor conducted by faithful Catholic laymen in a time when some clerics have more or less rejected the legitimate authority of the Pope and Vatican II.
