CONFUSED IN SCOTTSDALE

Help me.  Anyone.  What am I missing here?

A key Vatican official has confirmed that the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) can be reconciled with the Holy See, if its leaders accept a doctrinal statement.

Archbishop Guido Pozzo, Secretary of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, which is handling talks with the SSPX, said that the next step is up to the traditionalist group. “The reconciliation will occur when Monsignor Fellay [the SSPX superior] formally adheres to the doctrinal declaration that the Holy See presented to him,” he said.

Reports have circulated in Rome for several months that the Vatican is prepared to offer the SSPX the status of a personal prelature, with the only remaining condition being the acceptance of the doctrinal statement.

In March, Archbishop Pozzo would allow traditionalists to continue questioning the interpretation of some disputed Vatican II documents.

The Archbishop said that although the climate in talks between the Vatican and the SSPX is very positive, he could not predict when an agreement will be reached.

So, let me understand this.

Pope Francis is encouraging local Bishops (mostly in union with their National Conferences) to interpret and apply doctrinal teachings and disciplines in a way that is most suited to the needs and circumstances of those entrusted to their pastoral care, even if they differ substantially from other episcopal conferences. 

The Holy Father admits that there will be a significant diversity in the interpretations as well as in the way certain disciplinary customs are observed.  The Pope, however, accepts this diversity since the Bishops are the vicars of Jesus in their respective dioceses and, consequently, are empowered to teach, govern and sanctify the faithful under their authority and jurisdiction.

Now, the Holy Father has signaled very clearly that he is open to endowing the Society of St. Pius X with the juridic stature of a personal prelature.  Yet, he is reluctant to fully accept its members into full union with the Church until their leadership fully accepts, with no divergence, the interpretation of Vatican II documents promulgated by the Holy See.

Excuse me, but what am I missing here.

Bishops can maintain divergent interpretations of Papal teachings and doctrinal pronouncements and remain in full union with the Holy See, but SSPX can, in no way, hold to a different understanding and application of Vatican II teachings?

With each passing day, it seems, consistency and constancy are no longer virtues either admired or reflected in the statements and prescriptions ushering forth from Rome.

At what point in time, I wonder, does divergence devolve into disunity?  And, if Bishops can hold to different interpretations and applications of Papal governance, whose to say SSPX can’t, or Opus Dei can’t, or the Jesuit’s, or Dominicans, or ordinary lay folks can’t?

I am left in a state of wonderment and confusion in a way I have never been before in my life before or after my Ordination to the Priesthood.

This is what I think.  What thinkest thou?  I'd like some help understanding this!