Why the Pope is Boosting Latin Mass
Pastor Dale Morgan
Saturday, Jul. 07, 2007
Why the Pope is Boosting Latin Mass
By Jeff Israely/Vatican City
Time Magazine
After months of intense speculation, Pope Benedict XVI has eased
restrictions on the Catholic Church's traditional Roman Latin Mass — a
move that could raise controversy both within the Church, and in its
interfaith relations, given the fact that the old Roman rites include a
Good Friday prayer for the conversion of Jews to Catholicism.
The decree, called a /motu proprio/, or personal initiative of the
Pontiff, was made public Saturday along with an explanatory letter to
the world's bishops acknowledging the recent "news reports" and
"confusion" about the lifting of restrictions for access to the old
rite. Known as the Tridentine rite — delivered in Latin with the priest
usually facing the altar, his back to the congregation — the old Mass
(though never banned) had effectively been replaced, following the
mid-1960s reforms of the Second Vatican Council, by a liturgy recited in
the vernacular. Some Vatican insiders caution that Benedict's new ruling
will simply ease restrictions on access to the old liturgy, which has
continued to be followed by a small minority of traditionalists. But
others predict that the decree could turn into the most explosive
internal Church policy of Benedict's papacy, bound to undercut decades
of reform and sharpen divisions among the faithful. Here's why both may
be true.
*What changes*
The old Tridentine rite was never actually abolished, but local bishops
had to grant approval for a priest to say the Mass. Benedict's ruling
authorizes parish priests to celebrate the Tridentine rite if a "stable
group of faithful" requests it, without needing their bishop's
permission. It also permits the old rite for weddings, funerals and
other liturgical proceedings.
*Why now*
For more than a year, Vatican insiders knew Benedict was keen to ease
restrictions on the Tridentine mass. Indeed, in the first months of his
papacy, he'd met with leaders of the "schismatic" followers of the late
ultratraditionalist Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who'd split with the
Vatican over the introduction of the vernacular and other Vatican II
reforms. In his explanatory letter, Benedict says this decree alone will
not heal the rift, which is on "a deeper level." So the Pope seems to be
showing the ultratraditionalists — who want to undo all the Vatican II
reforms — that he will move, but only so far, to accommodate their
concerns. Benedict also acknowledged the document required many months
of "reflection, numerous consultations and prayer."
Bishops in the West, particularly in France, had shared their concerns
that widening access to the old Mass would deepen the rifts and create
splinter movements among their followers. The Pope also listened to
concern about how this document could affect inter-faith affairs, given
the inclusion of the Good Friday prayer calling for the conversion of
Jews. Though much less offensive than a reference to "perfidious Jews"
that Pope John XXIII eliminated in 1962, some Jewish leaders are bound
to ask why, after years of growing mutual respect, the Pope would not
simply excise the conversion prayer.
The Pope says he knows some wonder if the document calls into question
the very heart of the Second Vatican Council. "This fear," Benedict
declares, "is unfounded." As for the precise timing of the release of
the document, one can wonder (with a wink) if it's more than coincidence
that it came out just before Benedict zips out of Rome for a three-week
mountain retreat.
*Why it may not be as big a deal as it seems*
In practical terms, the vast majority of Catholics — even among the most
traditionalist — are unlikely to relinquish the vernacular Mass. The
number of priests who have the language skills or liturgical training
for the old Latin Mass is small, and likely to get smaller. Undoubtedly
reflecting his own personal experience, the 80-year-old Pope cites
Catholics for whom the Tridentine rite "had been familiar to them from
childhood." As those generations pass there may be ever fewer faithful
who are attached to the old Mass, and Benedict is simply providing a
sort of bridge for the current over-50 crowd.
*Why it may be an even bigger deal than it seems*
The symbolic weight of this decision may actually be heavier than the
practical effect. Church progressives, and indeed some conservatives,
are asking why Benedict went out of his way to reopen a hot-button issue
that, for the vast majority of Catholics, has long been settled. With
traditionalists emboldened and progressives feeling under siege, the
Church hierarchy and local bishops may wind up caught in the crossfire.
Still, on a more substantive level, Benedict's real long-term objective
may be a sort of "counter-reform" of the alternative practices of the
new Mass rather than a widespread return to the old one. He says the
Vatican II reform "was understood as authorizing or even requiring
creativity, which frequently led to deformations of the liturgy which
were hard to bear." This document is certainly a clear warning to those
progressives who have their own ideas about reforming the Mass.
*What it says about Pope Benedict*
The Pope, in any case, does seem to have an affinity for the old Latin
Mass, as he does generally for the Church's ancient Roman traditions.
His explanatory letter states: "What earlier generations held as sacred,
remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden
entirely forbidden or even considered harmful." Still, even as he
continues to show his traditionalist stripes, Benedict wants all corners
of the Church to know that he is open to at least listen to their input.
What remains to be seen is whether this latest decree is ultimately more
about the future, or simply the past.