Letter #48, 2023 Tuesday, February 21: Traditionis Custodes

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Letter #48, 2023 Tuesday, February 21: Traditionis Custodes

[2023-02-21]

[Engleză]

(“Of tradition the guardians” = “The Guardians of Tradition”)

Today, which happens to be the day of masks and partying called Mardi Gras (“Fat Tuesday”), with the prayer and fasting of Lent beginning tomorrow, Ash Wednesday, the continuing process of eliminating the venerable old Mass “of all time” from the ordinary life of the Church took a large further step forward.

At noon today in Rome, the Vatican press office released a short text called a “rescript,” in which Pope Francis officially confirmed that permission to celebrate the old Mass may not be granted by Catholic diocesan bishops around the world, but that all such decisions must pass through Rome in order to receive approval.

Extraordinary.

Especially as it concerns the Mass.

What is the Mass?

The Mass is the intersection of time with the timeless.

The Mass is the memory (“Do this in memory of me”), and more than the memory, of Jesus.

The Mass is the memory, and more than the memory, of the culminating and defining and — though long past (2000 years!) yet eternally present — events, and sorrows, and triumphs of Jesus’ life.

The memory, and more than the memory, of His victory, even as he wore a crown of tawdry, dry, and painful thorns.

“This is my body.”

It is the memory, and more than the memory, of how Jesus lived and loved, of how he was whipped and nailed and died with a parched throat, of how he was steadfast, “loving even unto the end”…

It is the memory, and more than the memory, of the Logos whose presence the core, the heart, of every human person longs for with an unutterable, inexpressible, unquenchable longing, as a lover longs…

for the presence of the beloved,

received and receiving,

in an ontological union

which is a communion.

To “be”

together,

in one another’s Presence…

To gaze upon one another,

and to see the other

gazing back…

The spark of recognition,

The encounter that

transcends death…

The Mass is the locus of this encounter.

And for centuries, in villages and cities, in monasteries and cathedrals, millions of human souls entered into the mystical presence of Christ by being present at the Mass.

And for centuries, in villages and cities, in monasteries and cathedrals, millions of human souls entered into the mystical presence of Christ by being present at the Mass.

The form of that Mass, its language, prayers and actions, had been set in 1570, at the end of the Council of Trent, but it was not just 400 years old (it was 400 years from that codification in 1570 until the introduction of the new Mass in 1969 under Paul VI), but in fact rooted in the far more ancient traditions dating from St. Gregory the Great in the 600s (Pope from 590 to 604), and even drawing upon the traditions from the prior centuries, back to the catacombs, back to the breaking of the bread of the communities in Rome and Corinth and Ephesus and… Jerusalem.

The psalms prayed at the beginning of the Mass were from the pen and lips of King David, their poetic power erupting from the soul of the very human, very sorrowful, very repentant great king of Israel.

Here’s what the incomparable Michael Fiedrowicz (link) says about Psalm 42 (the Psalm of David prayed at the opening of the old Mass):

“Prayed alternately between the priest and acolyte, the psalm Judica meis predestined to accompany by prayer the approach to the altar and to emphasize the sacrificial character of the celebration of the Eucharist on account of the verse within it that serves as the antiphon: Introibo ad altare Dei (“I will go in to the altar of God,” Psalm 42:4). The very first words spoken by the priest after the sign of the Cross show how the Holy Mass is directed toward the altar, that is, toward the sacrifice, and therefore toward God. But also in its entirety this psalm — the prayer of someone who is afflicted, who is far from the sanctuary and confidently longs to be able to participate once more in the feasts of the Lord — is most suitable for becoming the voice of the Church, which, beset by the interior and exterior afflictions of this world, longs to come before God, to be led by Him, and joyously to give Him thanks in praise of His faithfulness. Moreover, the psalm reflects the basic structure and interior dynamic of the celebration of the Mass, insofar as here can be found again the classical teaching of the three states of the spiritual life — purgative, illuminative, and unitive. Interior purification and the separation from the secular world necessary for this are emphatically expressed in the first verse: Discerne causam meam de gente non sancta, ab homine iniquo et doloso erue me (“Judge me, O God, and discern my cause from the unholy nation, rescue me from the unjust and deceitful man”) which corresponds to the act of repentance in the Confiteor. The plea of the third verse, Emitte lucem tuam et veritatem tuam (“Send forth your light and your truth”) finds fulfillment especially in the Mass of Catechumens with the proclamation of the Epistle and Gospel. Unity with God is finally articulated in the fourth verse, Introibo ad altare Dei, which refers to the sacrificial action and Holy Communion in a special way.” (The Traditional Mass: History, Form, and Theology of the Classical Roman Rite)

It is not about the Latin.

It is about the meaning.

It is about King David, and about his descendant, a thousand years later, Jesus, heir to his throne.

It is about the beauty

the splendor in a universe of matter

of man’s search for the living God,

man’s longing for the life-giving God.

As Pope Benedict wrote in 2007, “What was sacred to previous generations remains sacred and great to us; it cannot suddenly be completely forbidden or even harmful.”

This decision of Pope Francis, urged on by his advisors, means that the local diocesan bishops have lost their autonomy in guiding the liturgical affairs of their dioceses as they believe in conscience would be most pastorally beneficial for their parishes and families.

It is an abrupt and massive centralization, and opposed to what the late Pope Benedict taught during many decades, and codified in Summorum Pontificum on July 7, 2007, when he said that it was the right of every priest in the Church to celebrate the Mass in the way had been celebrated for centuries before the Council.

In the pages and articles below, you have the words of other writers, not mine, on these matters. I hope these articles help you to better understand what is occurring… —RM

(to be continued)

Special Note: If you wish to support these letters, and such video conversations, please click here. Your contribution is essential to support this type of free content. We cannot continue to do it without you! —RM
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TRANSLATION — Rescriptum ex Audientia — From Yesterday’s Audience of Francis with Card. Roche regarding details of implementation of Traditionis Custodes (link)

RESCRIPTUM EX AUDIENTIA SS.MI, 21.02.2023

[B0150]

The Holy Father, at the Audience granted on Feb. 20 to the undersigned Cardinal Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, confirmed the following about the implementation of his Motu Proprio Traditionis custodes of July 16, 2021.

These are dispensations reserved in a special way to the Apostolic See (cf. C.I.C. can. 87 §1):

— the use of a parish church or the erection of a personal parish for the celebration of the Eucharist using the Missale Romanum of 1962 (cf. Traditionis custodes art. 3 §2);

— the granting of license to presbyters ordained after the publication of Motu proprio Traditionis custodes to celebrate using the Missale Romanum of 1962 (cf. Traditionis custodes art. 4).

As stipulated in Article 7 of Motu proprio Traditionis custodes, the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments exercises the authority of the Holy See in the above-mentioned cases, supervising the observance of the provisions.

Should a diocesan bishop grant dispensations in the two cases mentioned above, he is obliged to inform the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, which will evaluate the individual cases.

Moreover, the Holy Father, confirms — having already expressed his assent in the audience of November 18, 2021 — what was established in the Responsa ad dubia with the attached Explanatory Notes of December 4, 2021.

The Holy Father also ordered that this Rescript be published in L’Osservatore Romano and subsequently in the official commentary of the Acta Apostolicae Sedis.

From the Vatican, February 20, 2023

Arthur Card. Roche
Prefect

Many articles appeared today explaining the significance of this decision.

Here are three:

1. AP
Pope intervenes again to restrict celebration of Latin Mass (link)

By Nicole Winfield

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis has intervened for the third time to crack down on the celebration of the old Latin Mass, a sign of continued friction with Catholic traditionalists.

Francis reasserted in a new legal decree published Tuesday that the Holy See must approve new celebrations of the old rite by signing off on bishops’ decisions to designate additional parish churches for the Latin Mass or to let newly ordained priests celebrate it.

The decree states that the Vatican’s liturgy office, headed by British Cardinal Arthur Roche, is responsible for evaluating such requests on behalf of the Holy See and that all requests from bishops must go there.

For weeks, Catholic traditionalist blogs and websites have reported a further crackdown on the old Latin Mass was in the works, following Francis’ remarkable decision in 2021 to reimpose restrictions on its celebration that were relaxed in 2007 by then-Pope Benedict XVI.

Francis said at the time that he was acting to preserve church unity, saying the spread of the Tridentine Mass had become a source of division and been exploited by Catholics opposed to the Second Vatican Council, the 1960s meetings that modernized the church and its liturgy.

Roche’s office followed up a few months later to double down on the Vatican’s position with a series of questions and answers that made clear that celebrating some sacraments according to the old rite was forbidden.

The new decree doesn’t restrict the celebration further but merely repeats what was previously declared. Its insistence on Roche’s authority in the process appeared aimed primarily at quashing traditionalist claims that the cardinal had exceeded his mandate. Francis signed off on the decree Monday during a private audience with Roche.

Francis’ crackdown on the old Mass outraged his conservative and traditionalist critics, many of whom have also attacked him for his focus on the environment, social justice and migrants.

Francis says he preaches the Gospel and what Jesus taught, and has defended the restrictions by saying they actually reflect Benedict’s original goal while curbing the way his 2007 concession was exploited for ideological ends.

Joseph Shaw, chairman of the Latin Mass Society in Britain, which promotes the old Mass, called the new document “grave” since it confirmed that bishops need explicit permission from Roche’s office to use parish churches for Tridentine Masses.

In a series of tweets, Shaw noted that when the office has been asked for such permissions to date, the office “has typically been restricting the number of locations and giving the permission for only two years.”

He said that would lead to uneven access to the old Mass, where it would be easy to find alternative locations in some places but impossible in others.

[End Nicole Winfield article from Feb 21]

2. Catholic News Agency
Traditionis custodes: Cardinal says only Vatican can dispense from certain obligations (link)

By Hannah Brockhaus

Rome Newsroom, Feb 21, 2023 / 07:07 am

The head of the Vatican’s liturgy office said Tuesday that dispensations from two of the rules in Traditionis custodes can only be granted by the Vatican, not by the diocesan bishop.

The Feb. 21 rescript (a form of official clarification in response to a question or request) from Cardinal Arthur Roche said Pope Francis had confirmed that a dispensation to use or erect a parish church for the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass in a diocese is “reserved in a special way to the Apostolic See.”

Permission for a priest ordained after July 2021 to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass can also only be granted by the Vatican, the document states.

The rescript says that Roche’s office, the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, exercises the authority of the Holy See to uphold or dispense from these two obligations.

“Should a diocesan bishop have granted dispensations in the two cases mentioned above he is obliged to inform the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, which will evaluate the individual cases,” Roche said.

Rumors of new restrictions against the Traditional Latin Mass have circulated for weeks. Pope Francis published the motu proprio Traditionis custodes, which restricted the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass, in July 2021.

In December 2021, the Vatican issued an explanatory note and “responsa ad dubia” (“answers to doubts”), responding to questions about some of the legal provisions of Traditionis custodes and further restricting its celebration.

[End Hannah Brockhaus article from Feb 21]

3. Where Peter Is
Pope confirms Cardinal Roche on Traditionis Custodes (link)

By Mike Lewis · February 21, 2023

Today at noon in Rome, the Vatican Press Office published a rescript confirming that dispensations from the July 16, 2021, motu proprio Traditionis Custodes are reserved to the Apostolic See. The document, published in Italian and signed by Cardinal Arthur Roche, the Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments (DDW), was approved by the pope during a private audience with Cardinal Roche yesterday, February 20.

A rescript, defined by Canon 59 §1 in the Code of Canon Law, is an administrative act that “grants a privilege, dispensation, or other favor at someone’s request.” This rescript provides papal confirmation that dispensations from the articles of Traditionis Custodes prohibiting the use of parish churches and the erection of personal parishes for the celebration of the Mass according to the 1962 Missal (cf. Art. 3§2) and granting permission for priests ordained after July 16, 2021 to celebrate the older form of the Mass (cf. Art. 4) are “reserved in a special way to the Apostolic See.” Additionally, bishops who have already issued dispensations without consulting the DDW must notify the dicastery as soon as possible regarding these dispensations.

Furthermore, the rescript reasserts what was already stated in Traditionis Custodes — that the DDW “exercises the authority of the Holy See in the above-mentioned cases, supervising the observance of the provisions.” This is in line with the analysis I published on Friday.

This document clears up the confusion raised by papal critics, including anonymous canonists mentioned in a February 10 article in The Pillar, who argued that Cardinal Roche was not exercising the authority granted to his office by the pope, but was “out over his skis” and participating in “a violation of natural justice” by implementing the pope’s directives “in ways that defy their plain meaning.”

Contrary to the arguments put forth by many papal critics, the document confirms that the authority of the DDW regarding these matters was “stipulated in Article 7 of Motu proprio Traditionis custodes.” This is in line with the statements of Cardinal Roche in his Responsa ad Dubia of December 21, 2021, as well as multiple letters from his dicastery to individual bishops. It reasserts that the DDW “exercises the authority of the Holy See in the above-mentioned cases, supervising the observance of the provisions.”

The Pillar’s editors and others who oppose the pope’s initiatives centered their arguments around the notion that the Responsa did not represent an authoritative interpretation of Traditionis Custodes, despite having explicit papal assent. The rescript rebuts this thesis, stating that “the Holy Father, confirms — having already expressed his assent in the audience of November 18, 2021 — what was established in the Responsa ad Dubia with the attached Explanatory Notes of December 4, 2021.”

The document concludes with the pope’s order that the Rescript be published in L’Osservatore Romano (the official Vatican newspaper) and is the official commentary of the Acta Apostolicae Sedis (as an official act of the Apostolic See).

The new rescript seems to settle this matter, but those seeking to undermine Pope Francis are always looking for new loopholes.

[End Mike Lewis article from Feb 21]

Sursa: www.InsideTheVatican.com

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