Rorate has the ugly news HERE
I can echo the points made at the top of that post, above the Archbishop’s cruel letter.
My heart goes out to all the people who will be hurt by this unnecessary suppression. And he had the temerity to write, while doing the opposite: “The unity of our Catholic faith need not be diminished by diversity. ”
On 1 July, Feast of the Most Precious Blood, is “The Great Diminishment”.
I’m at a loss, other than to say that I turn to God with confidence to intervene with graces and guidance for Pope Leo to please, please, PLEASE stop this senseless cruelty.
UPDATE: 13 June 17:54
It’s worse than it at first appeared. Detroit’s Arch has forbidden ad orientem for the Novus Ordo (which I believe has has no authority to do), and has mandated Cranmer table altars. He also emphasized that “no cleric or lay people may add, omit, or alter anything in the ordinary form of the Mass on his own authority”.
I’m wondering when he will start policing the lib priests who change things all the time. There are a heck of a lot more of them in action in Detroit than there are places where the TLM is celebrated (according to the book).
Rorate at the same address has the ugly news.
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Still more merciful than +Martin in Charlotte.
As someone else pointed out to me, we can only pray that Pope Leo XIV will have something to say on June 29 when Archbishop Weisenburger treks to Rome for his pallium. Perhaps there could be a discussion about Gamaliel’s Principle. I mean, we have the 1980’s calling to extinguish a flame. And then to ban ad orientem celebration and require table altars in the new Mass on top of it all.
I used to laugh it off when my SSPX friend talked so seriously about the crisis in the Church, but Bp. Martin of Charlotte and Archbp. Weisenburger of Detroit truly go to show that there is indeed a crisis in the Church.
May God have mercy on us from this great cruelty!
You would think that if the goal was to wean trads away from the Traditional Roman Rite over to the rite of Paul VI, they would allow things like Ad Orientem, Latin chants, kneeling for communion, etc. But instead it seems to be a total purge of anything that smacks of tradition. It makes me think of the Cultural Revolution in China where anything that was “bourgeois” or “capitalist” was ruthlessly destroyed. Seems like a similar mindset.
I find it very interesting that some Bishops who happily implement TC and use as an excuse that the Pope says so… are less willing to implement other things that Popes have said.
For example, Pope Benedict (not abrogated by Popes Francis or Leo) said in Sacramentum Caritatis (#62) “I ask that future priests, from their time in the seminary, receive the preparation needed to understand and to celebrate Mass in Latin, and also to use Latin texts and execute Gregorian chant; nor should we forget that the faithful can be taught to recite the more common prayers in Latin, and also to sing parts of the liturgy to Gregorian chant.”
This came following a synod, yes synod, of Bishops meeting, so it’s not just the Pope’s personal opinion. I believe the Latin text is a more forceful command than the English translation.
A few points…
-Abp Weisenberger has all been about being in a listening phase. Just the very day this document is dated, he publicly said how right now he’s just listening to the priests and people so he can figure out the direction he wants to lead the Archdiocese.
-More than one priest on the Presbyteral Council actively says the TLM. I keep wondering how the meeting went for them.
-Abp Weisenberger’s own incoming Priest Secretary has said the TLM publicly.
-The neighboring diocese of Lansing, under Bishop Boyea (Detroit native), saw no need to do anything in response to Traditionis Custodes and the TLM thrives there. Thankfully there is a parish with the TLM with a short drive of some in the Archdiocese of Detroit boundaries.
-Lansing regularly ordains more to the priesthood than Detroit.
@FrZ is spot on… “The pogrom against the traditionally-oriented continues…” and it’s going to get worse when parishes start getting closed soon.
Interesting, our diocese (Austin, TX) is currently without an Ordinary. The administrator is a very fair-minded priest who is truly a man amongst his sheep (every diocesan priest I’ve talked to here hopes this man will be elevated to be the new bishop). Before our bishop left, he reassigned the priest offering one of the two Sunday TLMs in the diocese. Concerns were brought up to the new administrator, so he personally met with them and is now seeking to offer reasonable solutions within his competency and within the law. Priests are rearranging their personal schedules to help make this happen.
Honestly, as an MC for a TLM, this has been a beautiful cooperation to watch. Fr. Misko in Austin should be commended for his attention to this matter.
@JonPatrick, All of those things were envisioned by Vatican II’s Sacrosanctum Concilium; none of them are forbidden by the (Novus Ordo) Roman Missal. Indeed kneeling for Communion and the retention of Latin chant are specified as the norm.
“By their fruits you shall know them.” (Matt. 7:16) We now “know” these bishops.
It is a sad thing that these very things being forbidden are what is drawing young people back to active life in the Church. Bishops concerned with a dwindling church attendance and decrease of priestly vocations should take heed.
Sounds like an excellent time for parishioners to start earmarking their donations that they may not be used to purchase a free standing altar and for altar supplying companies to stop shipping free standing altars to that diocese.
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RichR:
Thanks for the heads up on the Austin Diocese. I expressed some concern there on another blog post that Fr. Z. had pertaining to Charlotte. I read up a little on Fr. Misko too and I went to college with some priests in the Austin Diocese.
Hopefully things will be okay there. Much of my reversion story began when I returned to college full time in my mid-twenties. The Catholic Student Union at Texas A&M University was very helpful to me there. Had I not been encouraged by fellow students to attend I might now be in a Protestant church (when I first came to campus I was headed that way). There is a presence at Sunday Mass as well as daily Mass and other activities. I didn’t regularly attend daily Mass but I ushered the 5:30 PM Sunday Mass regularly. The sanctuary was smaller then and I sometimes had to stand outside on Holy Days of Obligation (funny thing was when I attended a Catholic college they would cancel the 11 am class period on Holy Days and there would be empty seats in the campus chapel).
For those who don’t know, Texas A&M University located in the Austin Diocese. If it was one county away it would be in another diocese. Ditto for Baylor University which to my knowledge has a pretty good presence of practicing Catholics. I will keep Fr. Misko in my prayers.
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