Remember that viciously about the Tridentine Mass? It was full fo factual errors about the "neighboring" parish where the older Mass is celebratred. It portrayed the people attending that Mass in the worst light. The article was distributed by Catholic News Service, which is an instrument of the USCCB. You might remember this brilliant quip about people who like to attend the older form of Mass:
For them a good liturgy also is one where they don’t have to speak to anyone or do anything. Their whole attitude says "I want no commitment and I want no communication."
Even the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, The Tidings, distanced themselves from that awful piece by Daly.
Not so The Catholic Commentator, the diocesan newspaper of Baton Rouge, LA.
They ran Daly’s scurrilous piece in its recent issue!
We have seen the excellence of The Catholic Commentator before when Fr. John Carville wrote some pretty awful things about the usus antiquior. You might remember that one. It was the article that lead off with "At least it isn’t sex scandals this time,…" and went on to opine that interest in the "novelty" of the older Mass would die off soon.
I am unaware that this newspaper has published anything but negative column inches about the Holy Father’s provisions. If they have published anything positive I hope the readers here will chime in.
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Yes, it is still circulating in diocesan newspapers around the country, including the Pilot, the paper for the Archdiocese of Boston. The article was in the August 24th print edition of the paper.
Lynne —
I was going to ask what else you could expect of The Pilot. Then I thought, more optimistically, that if that article is still circulating in diocesan papers, maybe the Archdiocese of Boston (as a random example) party line — or disinformation campaign, if you will — that the motu proprio wasn’t intended for North America, where there’s no interest, especially in New England, isn’t working quite as well as hoped! I really think if they weren’t finding more interest than they wanted, they just wouldn’t have mentioned it again.
I wrote a letter to Catholic News Service pointing out the errors in the article (according to the pastor of the mentioned parish) as well as the derogatory tone taken in regard to those who choose to attend the Extraordinary form of the Mass. I wrote that it was not only incorrect, but un-Christian.
For a feature that is intended to display two different view points, this simply featured a damning one, and a damned-through-faint-praise one. I wrote that that I hoped Father Daly would allow for all those things that the faith allows, and asking that in the future CNS not print articles that seek to label and demean groups of the faithful. I ended asking that hopefully CNS would print a positive article about the Motu Proprio at some point.
I’ve not received a reply.
Father Z., this is your blog, and I hate to ask questions of your readers, but I hope you will indulge me: has anyone else written to complain about this?
God love you,
Father V.
Father V.,
I wrote to CNS,the Tidings, and another paper which I currently have forgotten, to request that they remove the article from their website, and to let them know that I was expecting the publication of Fr. Daly’s retraction as well as an apology from them for disseminating such an irresponsible piece. I requested that they consider well before they broadcast anything else from Fr. Daly, as his journalistic integrity must now be considered suspect. No response, naturally.
The Tidings still has the article on its website.
Gleb – I believe that Fr. Carville of the Diocese of Baton Rouge and James Carville, Democratic political adviser, are cousins. In fact, I believe they are first cousins. I have understood their family connection to be a publicly acknowledged fact for many years, at least in Louisiana.
Mary, I think you’re right. Their ‘protests’ will need to get louder and louder as the TLM spreads through New England, 1,000 attended a TLM in Vermont. How many will attend in Portsmouth NH on 9/23 at 11 am at Immaculate Conception?
Emailed this note to the Catholic Commentator, and just received a response asking for my address so that they could publish it:
Dear Editor:
I am astonished that you chose to publish Fr. Daly’s article on the Tridentine Mass in your August 29 edition of The Catholic Commentator. Its tone is snide and unbecoming a Catholic priest. Fr. Daly, a pastor of souls, vilifies members of his own parish, and by extension everyone who appreciates the Traditional Mass. Fr. Vitturino, the neighboring pastor of whom Fr. Daly writes, has stated that the article is untruthful. He has contacted their auxiliary bishop regarding it, and Fr. Daly has promised him a retraction. CNS removed the article within a few days of its publication. I believe this article should be removed immediately, and an apology issued for broadcasting such an irresponsible piece. Any further article by Fr. Daly should be carefully considered before publication, as he has now compromised his journalistic integrity.
Sincerely,