Liberalisation of Traditional Mass on Course

Click here for a link to The New Liturgical Movement reporting on a recent meeting of the Ecclesia Dei commission. The 'universal indult' in the form of a Motu Proprio has been rumoured for some time, but there seems more and more reason to suspect that it is something tangible. Allegedly, the commission have finished the text of the Motu Proprio, and now all remains is for Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos (the president of the commission) to present it to the Holy Father for dissemination.

To explain to readers who have no idea what I'm talking about: In 1969 the Church authorised a new missal to be used by the Latin Church, in accordance with the initial wishes of the Second Vatican Council and the subsequent work of a liturgical commission. This missal (or Novus Ordo, the Mass of Paul VI) was substantially different from the Mass being said up to that time in many important ways, but nevertheless was promptly enforced throughout the Catholic world. Many individuals continued saying the old Mass; England in particular having special permission to do so. This special permission, although becoming more widespread and encouraged by Pope John-Paul II, was vehemently opposed by many bishops. This led to more and more hostility.

I would like to point out that in 1988, when the Society of St. Pius X (established by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, left, and dedicated to the Catholic traditions of the Church pre-Vatican II) were ex-communicated, the issues were far-ranging and more complex than simply the use of the old Mass. To cut a long story short, the Ecclesia Dei commission was set up to monitor the licit traditional orders then being set up (like the Institute of Christ the King and the Fraternal Society of St. Peter) as well as to try and encourage full communion with the SSPX.

Now the issue is being discussed, after nearly 20 years of the Ecclesia Dei indult, of whether to more easily allow and encourage the use of the old Mass. The old Mass can be traced back as an organic development from the time of Pope St. Gregory the Great from the 7th Century. It is the Missal codified by St. Pius V, as commissioned by the Council of Trent, to standardise the western Rite, and therefore also lately known as the Tridentine Mass, with the most recent publication in 1962. Currently anyone wanting to offer this Mass publically must receive permission from their local ordinary. Unfortunately many bishops feel threatened by traditionalists, and opposed to the old Mass being said at all. Therefore many dioceses do not offer any, at least not on a regular basis or on Holy Days, which would otherwise enable Catholics to observe their faith in the same way as their ancestors. This is despite Pope John-Paul II's statement in Ecclesia Dei Aflicta that:

Moreover, respect must everywhere by shown for the feelings of all those who are attached to the Latin liturgical tradition by a wide and generous application of the directives already issued some time ago by the Apostolic See for the use of the Roman Missal according to the typical edition of 1962.

I am very excited about the possibility of the old Mass being liberalised. It will mean that Catholics will be able to have freer access to the traditional mass which is a part of our heritage. It is encouraging to read the writings of our current Holy Father, before he became Pope. As Cardinal Ratzinger, he stated (in the extended interview Salt of the Earth):

Unfortunately for us, there is a nearly limitless tolerance for spectacular and adventurous alterations, while effectively there is none at all for the older liturgy. We are in this way surely on the wrong path... Personally, I maintain that there is needed a more generous attitude in granting the old Rite to those who desire it. You just can’t see what could be so dangerous or unacceptable in that. A community calls itself into question when it suddenly considers forbidden what until just a little before seemed sacred and when it makes the very desire for it seem reprehensible. Why must these things still be believed? Isn’t it possible that what is being enjoined today will be forbidden tomorrow?

So if he will use his convictions to guide his papacy, then traditionalists certainly have a lot to look forward to, as do Catholics who simply yearn for more reverence in the Liturgy.

I have been a member of the Latin Mass Society for over a year now, and am excited at the prospect that I could soon begin to act as a representative for the Birmingham area. We are lucky enough in our Archdiocese to have His Grace Vincent Nichols, who is very friendly towards the traditional practices of the Church. We have an old Mass offered every Sunday and Holy Day in both Birmingham and Oxford Oratories, and many others in surrounding counties. But with regards to Birmingham itself, I think there is a huge potential to encourage and unite those Catholics who are faithful to the old Mass, and who knows, even one day have Mass celebrated at St. Chad's Cathedral from the magnificent high altar once again!