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IT’S COMING - MOTU PROPRIO - 7 JULY (07-07-07)
On Wednesday afternoon the Secretary of State, Tarcisio Card. Bertone gave the Motu Proprio to 30 bishops from around the world on Wednesday afternoon in the Apostolic Palace. The bishops were explicitly chosen and invited for this. (I am guessing that they were heads of Bishops Conferences.) Pope Benedict XVI later came to the meeting. The document is three pages long, though what the format is in not revealed. The Pope’s accompanying letter is four pages.
It is clear from the way this was done that the Holy Father wanted to make sure that bishops got this document in this way, rather than having to read about it in the paper. I assume that what will happen now is that these bishops, if they are heads of conferences, will return home and distribute the document to the bishop members of the conference.
[UPDATE: They are not only heads of conferences: H.E. Archbp. Raymond Burke of St. Louis and H.E. Sean Card. O’Malley of Boston was there, whether because of this meeting or a coincidental meeting is not clear.]
The general publication is 7 July. Review the FIVE RULES.
Many thanks to Kath.net to whom I solemnly tip my biretta for the newsflash. o{]:¬)
27. Juni 2007, 18:35
Motu proprio zur ‘Alten Messe’ am 7. Juli
Kardinalstaatsekretär Tarcisio Bertone übergab am Mittwoch in Rom das Schreiben an 30 Bischöfe – Kardinal Lehmann in Rom – Papst bei Vorstellung dabei – 3-Seiten-Dokument und 4-Seiten-Begleitbrief – Von Paul Badde / Die Welt
Vatikan (www.kath.net/DieWelt)
Das Dokument, mit dem Papst Benedikt XVI. die alte tridentinische Liturgie aus eigenem Willen (lat.: „motu proprio“) für die gesamte katholische Kirche wieder freigibt, ist am Mittwochnachmittag rund 30 Bischöfen aus aller Welt in der Sala Bologna des Apostolischen Palastes von Kardinalstaatsekretär Tarcisio Bertone übergeben worden.
Die Bischöfe waren eigens dafür nach Rom eingeladen worden. Am Ende der Begegnung, in der das Papier zusammen mit einem erläuternden Begleitbrief vorgestellt wurde, kam auch Benedikt XVI. selbst zu der Vorstellung. Eine Diskussion der Entscheidung war jedoch nicht mehr vorgesehen. Das Dokument stellt auf knapp drei Seiten lang eine Epochenwende der katholischen Messfeiern dar.
Der Begleitbrief umfasst gut vier Seiten. Aus Deutschland war Kardinal Karl Lehmann, der Vorsitzende der deutschen Bischofskonferenz, zu der Übergabe eingeladen. Alle Umstände des Vorgangs machen deutlich, wie sehr dem Papst daran gelegen war, dass die Bischöfe den brisanten Inhalt „in einem besonderen Akt kollegialen Entgegenkommens“ von ihm selbst und nicht aus der Presse oder anderen Medien erfahren sollten.
Die allgemeine Veröffentlichung beider Dokumente ist für den 7. Juli vorgesehen. Die Erläuterungen des Begleitbriefs halten noch einmal ausdrücklich die Einheit des römischen Ritus fest. Der eine Ritus wird sich jedoch ab jetzt in eine ordentliche und eine außerordentliche Form gliedern, die sich fortan gegenseitig befruchten sollen.
Die ordentliche Form wird weiterhin der neue Ritus sein, den Papst Paul VI. 1969 mit einem beispiellosen Federstrich verfügt hat. Als außerordentliche Form bleibt nun aber auch der lateinische Ritus erlaubt, den Papst Johannes XXIII. zum letzten Mal 1962 im offiziellen „Missale Romanum“ niederlegte, dessen Grundzüge zum letzten Mal im Konzil von Trient (1545 – 1563) festgelegt worden waren.
Partial translation.
Believe Fr. Z when he says he has a solid lead! o{];¬)
Deo gratias, Alleluia! Tom
Comment by TJM — 27 June 2007 @ 11:04 amFather Z,
Is yours a translation of that which was published on Kath.net? or is this some other information – it seems almost too direct to be true! Besides, isn’t 7 Jul a Saturday? Would that be unusual to release a document on a Saturday?
Comment by Sacerdos in Aeternum — 27 June 2007 @ 11:08 amHow reliable is this source?
Comment by Zach — 27 June 2007 @ 11:09 amSacerdos in Aeternum,
If my memory serves me right, the staff in Vatican City work a half-day on Saturdays.
Comment by JB — 27 June 2007 @ 11:11 amjust finished my translation
Comment by Gerald Augustinus — 27 June 2007 @ 11:12 amhttp://closedcafeteria.blogspot.com/2007/06/official-motu-proprio-on-july-7th.html
DEO GRATIAS!
Comment by David — 27 June 2007 @ 11:23 amIt would be interesting to know who these 30 bishops are and what rational guided thier selection. Are they the 30 most “difficult” bishops? the 30 most influential in difficult geographic areas? 30 evenly distributed around the globe?
Comment by Dan — 27 June 2007 @ 11:26 amAAAAAHHH It is done!
Comment by Hammerbrecher — 27 June 2007 @ 11:26 amTranslation now on kathnet
http://www.kath.net/detail.php?id=17154
Comment by Paul, South Midlands, UK — 27 June 2007 @ 11:30 amCardinal Lehmann, who was there, is head of the German bishops conference
Comment by Gerald Augustinus — 27 June 2007 @ 11:30 amThere is a news report that 51 bishops are to receive the pallium on June 29. My guess is that many of the 30 were from this group, perhaps those who happened already to be in Rome.
Comment by Dan — 27 June 2007 @ 11:33 amDeo Gratias!
I wonder how long before the name and/or text leaks…
Comment by Bede — 27 June 2007 @ 11:36 amI have a setting of Non Nobis, Domine, all ready to sing for the occasion, so now all I need is a choir to sing it. A quartet would do.
Comment by Chris Garton-Zavesky — 27 June 2007 @ 11:40 amFr. Z,
Comment by Jim — 27 June 2007 @ 11:50 amI trust you will be one of the first to whom the document is leaked.
So we all know what this means.
Amendment to 2007 traditional liturgical calendar:
Comment by C.M. — 27 June 2007 @ 11:50 amJuly 8 – Commemoration, Sunday in the Octave of the Motu Proprio
Wonderful! I do love the image of Cardinal Lehmann having explained to him exactly what the Pope is going to do. I wonder who the other bishops were. It sounds as though they were intended to be a geographically representative group, who could then inform their regional confreres.
The Holy Father’s wisdom in all this does shine through, it must be said. Not only has he planned the promulgation for the perfect day for the consumption of champagne. He has also made it very hard for the bishops to make a public fuss, by treating them with every possible consideration throughout the process of making and announcing his decision. Doubtless, many of them will now be considering already how obstructive they can get away with being, but I think the Pope has gone a long way towards drawing their sting in advance.
Incidentally, I highly recommend babelfishing the German text above; the results are particularly amusing.
Comment by Cerimoniere — 27 June 2007 @ 11:51 amFather, Your fears are allayed. You will not be on the road as the motu proprio comes into the world. I, on the other hand, will be driving south to Canada over the next two days – which days are sure to see some interesting press items as the inevitable leaks occur. Should we keep the “Widow” on ice until the 7th?
Comment by Denis Crnkovic — 27 June 2007 @ 12:01 pmCeremoniere: I do love the image of Cardinal Lehmann having explained to him exactly what the Pope is going to do.
Rule #2.
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 27 June 2007 @ 12:05 pmDenis: What I would like to do is fly back to Rome for the press conference. I have Vatican Press Office credentials. But… whew! Not cheap at short notice.
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 27 June 2007 @ 12:08 pmA very glorious day.
You might want to consider posting this to Drudge and your local TV Stations so that the message can get out there. If the general public and be made aware of this, then it will be harder for certain bishops to hide it under the rug. Also for those in the US remember that news on a Friday or Saturday is not well reported.
Comment by Joseph — 27 June 2007 @ 12:08 pmFr. Z didn’t dilly dally in getting the “package” out of the fridge.
Comment by Hammerbrecher — 27 June 2007 @ 12:08 pmSo do we start drinking now, or wait til the 7th? :-)
And as an interesting coincidence, Sunday July 8th, the day after the MP is published, I will be attending my very first TLM in Atlanta. (trip to Atlanta for Mass was planned a few days ago.)
Comment by Janet — 27 June 2007 @ 12:12 pmThat first Latin Mass will be doubly sweet in the light of this news!
The translation on Kath.net is mine, so you just know it’s true :oP We started cooperation, translation-wise, a few weeks ago. They tend to get news pretty early, aided of course by being in Europe. I check them before I go to sleep, which is always late. I’ll be in Austria for the Pope’s visit, where I’ll be on the kath.net bus :)
Comment by Gerald Augustinus — 27 June 2007 @ 12:18 pmFr Z,
You crack me up with you tipping of the biretta! You solemnly do it; happily do it. You could get into adverb mania—jauntily tip the biretta. Just as I was chuckling over that, I see the picture at the end. I sure hope you don’t try to drink all of that. But if you do, best to stay away from the blogosphere.
Comment by John — 27 June 2007 @ 12:26 pmFr. Z.,
I’m right in the middle of studying for the Missouri Bar Exam, which requires that we memorize a ton of legal rules and such, and now you’re asking me to review your Five Rules as well? I come onto this blog to take a break from studying, not to be bombarded with more! :)
But seriously, my most heartfelt thanks on providing excellent commentary and guidelines throughout all these months of anticipation. You are a priest who truly embodies the right attitude that one should take towards both liturgical tradition and love for the Holy Father (even if you didn’t realize the requirement for the shoe buckles until a few weeks ago.) Keep up the great work!
Comment by ThomasMore1535 — 27 June 2007 @ 12:28 pmCommemoration, Sunday in the Octave of the Motu Proprio
Sure, why not? After all, the Orthodox have the “Sunday of Orthodoxy” comemmorating the day on which the ikons were returned to the churches.
Comment by dcs — 27 June 2007 @ 12:35 pmSo, how long can we expect to wait until the contents of the MP are leaked?
Comment by JB — 27 June 2007 @ 12:41 pmI assume that what will happen now is that these bishops, if they are heads of conferences, will return home and distribute the document to the bishop members of the conference.
I can imagine when the head of conferences get back to their respective conferences and handing the motu propio with tipex all over it or saying that it got lost on the aeroplane or some dog ate it.
Comment by Andrew — 27 June 2007 @ 12:43 pmGLORIA IN EXCELSIS DEO!
Comment by NIels R — 27 June 2007 @ 12:45 pmGloria in excelsis Deo!!
Fábio
Comment by Fabio G. Durante — 27 June 2007 @ 12:57 pmSão José dos Campos, Brazil
Et in terra Champagne hominibus
Comment by Peter — 27 June 2007 @ 12:58 pmAndrew: I can imagine when the head of conferences…
I can imagine them obediently carrying out the Pope’s will.
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 27 June 2007 @ 1:02 pmChris G-Zavesky – I sing alto …
Comment by berenike — 27 June 2007 @ 1:07 pmExactly 5 minutes after reading the MP I will be placing my request for a Traditional Latin Mass with my local parish priest (me and at least 30 of my friends).
Comment by Arieh — 27 June 2007 @ 1:11 pmTime to do the paraliturgical happy dance.
Which raises an interesting question—since it’s an American show, would Ren and Stimpy’s song be translated as “Beata, beata, laetitia, laetitia”?
Comment by Maureen — 27 June 2007 @ 1:11 pmMaureen!
Now I cannot get Ren& Stimpy out of my head!
(Strange mental picture of Ren in Roman chasuble furiously angry at Stimpy, resplendent in gold dalmatic “You Eeeeediot!! Never light Benediction candles for a low Mass
“)
Comment by Tim Hallett — 27 June 2007 @ 1:18 pmMaureen and Tim:
Now you’ve both got me singing (well humming, anyway) and laughing out loud.
The people I work with have definitively decided that I’m loopy.
Joy!
Comment by Bede — 27 June 2007 @ 1:27 pm07/07/07 – from the perfect number.
Was this a coincidence though, or chosen for a reason?
Comment by Joe — 27 June 2007 @ 1:30 pmHeh, heh….
Btw, it seems that July 7 (besides being the feast of Blessed Pope Benedict XI, St. Bonitus the abbot of Monte Cassino, several members of a family of Anglo-Saxon princess abbesses, and such great Irish saints as St. Palladius the bishop before Patrick and St. Maolruain* the abbot of Tallaght) is the day of commemoration of the translation of the relics of St. Fermin to Pamplona.
Yes, my friends, the same day as the Running of the Bulls.
Somebody somewhere has a sense of humor….
- For St. Maolruain, “The locals maintained a long-standing custom of processing house-to-house, dancing jigs, and drinking, on his feast, until it was suppressed by the Dominicans in 1856”.
Comment by Maureen — 27 June 2007 @ 1:30 pmAwwww, Father, just this once :)
In all seriousness, my apologies. I do appreciate the importance of those principles, and am careful to apply them in personal dealings. The reminder that they also apply to what can be read in the blogosphere is well taken, however, and I’m sorry.
Comment by Cerimoniere — 27 June 2007 @ 1:34 pmMaureen: Yes, my friends, the same day as the Running of the Bulls.
Wait till 07/07/07 to see a real running of the BULL in the liberal press.
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 27 June 2007 @ 1:35 pmPaul Badde, who wrote the article, is the Vatican correspondent of Die Welt. He’s authored several books http://www.amazon.de/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=books-de&field-keywords=badde%20paul&results-process=default&dispatch=search/ref=pd_sl_aw_tops-3_books-de_11832931_2&results-process=default?tag2=de-de-google-21
Comment by Gerald Augustinus — 27 June 2007 @ 1:36 pm“Father, Your fears are allayed. You will not be on the road as the motu proprio comes into the world. I, on the other hand, will be driving south to Canada over the next two days – which days are sure to see some interesting press items as the inevitable leaks occur. Should we keep the “Widow†on ice until the 7th?
Comment by Denis Crnkovic — 27 June 2007 @ 12:01 pm”
From what part of the world does one drive south to Canada? Detroit? The North Pole?
Comment by Michael — 27 June 2007 @ 1:39 pmWhispers in the Loggia,no enthusiast of the TLM and for a longtime a believer that the stories of the MP were myth,reports the meeting and then suggests that juiy 7th be called “Tridentine Independence Day”.
Comment by fr.franklyn mcafee — 27 June 2007 @ 1:40 pmMichael: Should we keep the “Widow†on ice until the 7th?
Hmm…
I would say….
Open the first bottle now.
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 27 June 2007 @ 1:41 pmWhat time is the party?
By the way, the bottle on the far right is mine. :-)
Comment by Partycrasher from St. Paul — 27 June 2007 @ 1:42 pmFr. Franklyn: “Tridentine Independence Day”
Which, while glib, is to misunderstand entirely what this document is all about. Not a surprise, considering.
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 27 June 2007 @ 1:42 pmIt may be advisable to host a July 7 MP celebration at each of our homes and inviting 30+ family and friends. Then simply collect the signatures before everyone staggers home.
Comment by schoolman — 27 June 2007 @ 1:42 pmNunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine, secundum verbum tuum in pace:
Quia viderunt oculi mei salutare tuum…
Comment by Jon — 27 June 2007 @ 1:53 pmSo when should we start praying a novena of thanksgiving, and which would be the best to pray?
Comment by Jacob — 27 June 2007 @ 1:57 pmJacob: Perhaps the Te Deum would be a good way to observe these intervening days.
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 27 June 2007 @ 1:59 pmPffft I had it a lot earlier than Roccoco Palmo :) Here a French article, also reporting the same:
http://www.la-croix.com/article/index.jsp?docId=2307230&rubId=4078
Comment by Gerald Augustinus — 27 June 2007 @ 1:59 pmToday is the Feast of Our Lady Help of Christians… I think it very fitting that it was handed out to the Bishops today.
Comment by Anna — 27 June 2007 @ 2:01 pmHaving been born on July 7, this would be a heckuva present!
Comment by Quoheleth — 27 June 2007 @ 2:07 pmIs there any way we can confirm that Burke and O’Malley have the MP? Where did you get that information Fr. Z? While I would love to be totally overcome with ecstasy over this wonderful bit of information, but I feel like I need a little more confirmation from reliable sources. This is really huge news and there is hardly any major news providers covering it, at least last time I checked it. I would love to rejoice but I do not want to get my hopes up. Thanks.
Comment by Joe from St. Paul — 27 June 2007 @ 2:10 pmFor a few weeks our little Gregorian Schola has been practicing the propers for the Feast of Ss. Cyril and Methodius (July 7th on the earlier calendar) for our monthly first Saturday indult Mass (btw, will the phrase “indult Mass” now give way to “motu Mass”?). I casually mentioned to our director that since I will be out of town for the July Mass, probably the Holy See would pick that day to release the motu proprio. All of this would happen, of course, because a. forty years of waiting has left me unsurprisable and b. Cyril and Methodius are saints dear to my heart, being the ultimate founders of my beloved Glagolitic / Church Slavonic rites. It is also nice to note that the good Slavs had a real run-in with certain bishops over the use of the Slavonic vernacular and the Pope had to step in. Ironies abound.
Michael: Ah, the southern perspective! From Minnesota to southwest Ontario via Michigan.
Comment by Denis Crnkovic — 27 June 2007 @ 2:10 pmThe link is a Ratzinger discussion of the fruits of the previous MP.
http://www.unavoce.org/tenyears.htm
Comment by Saint&Sinner — 27 June 2007 @ 2:12 pmJoe: but I feel like I need a little more confirmation from reliable sources.
You didn’t believe me before, I suppose, when I said it was at the printer? Why believe me now?
o{]:¬/
Trust Fr. Z!
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 27 June 2007 @ 2:14 pmFr. Z: You didn’t believe me before, I suppose, when I said it was at the printer? Why believe me now?
I do believe, help my unbelief
Comment by Joe from St. Paul — 27 June 2007 @ 2:28 pmYes, yes, yes, yes!
[does the Snoopy dance]<