“Why I hate bad Church music” – GUEST COLUMN

Posted on 18 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

The latest edition of the newspaper of the Diocese of Madison (where Bp. Morlino now reigns) has a “Guest Column” worthy of your time.

My emphases and comments:

Why I hate bad church music
Guest column
Written by Nico Fassino [His short bio is at the end.]

Recently, the Catholic Herald published two excellent articles by the incredibly well-educated and well-formed Sr. Joan L. Roccasalvo, entitled “Rebuilding Catholic Culture.”  [I have written about her HERE.]

In these essays, Sister Roccasalvo vigorously defends the teachings of the popes and the Second Vatican Council concerning what music is proper for use during the sacred liturgies of the Church, while simultaneously arguing against the use of modern folk-style music commonly found in many parishes.

Response to letter writers

I decided to write this piece after reading several letters-to-the-editor written by people who were very unhappy with her columns.  [In Madison?  I’m shocked!]

I actually wanted to title this column “In Defense of Sacred Music: Why the Celebration of Christ’s Death and Resurrection at the All-Holy Mass Deserves Something Better Than Low-Brow Tripe,” but that was obviously too long and I figured that “Why I hate bad Church music” would still draw the eyes of those I wanted to reach.

Some people are upset that Sister Roccasalvo condemns the use of songs that have very little value as actual music (i.e., songs that are shoddily composed, use inappropriate or heretical text, call for the use of multiple tambourines as accompaniment, etc).  [Not exactly holding back is he?  Compliments to the editor of the paper for printing this.]

[Here we go… ] Her comments have been interpreted by some as an attack on the ability of the congregation to actively participate in the liturgy. Others are offended because they believe that any music that makes them feel good is proper for use at the Mass.  [Well done, Nico.]

I’ll be honest: when I hear comments like this, I want to beat my head repeatedly against my desk. Rather than give in to this temptation, here I will instead offer two simple points before moving into the main portion of my thoughts on the matter.

[This next part might strike regular readers here as familiar…] (1) Active participation at the Mass has nothing to do with singing at every possible moment, carrying dishes and banners around the sanctuary, or orchestrating giant liturgical puppet shows. I would direct anyone who doubts this to actually read the documents of Vatican II, and also to note the effect that this mentality has had on the Church over the past 50 years.

(2) The value of proper liturgical music has nothing to do with how you personally feel about it, or what your personal opinions are about music. Just think about what would happen if the only criteria for proper liturgical music were that it peripherally mentions God and/or that it makes you feel fuzzy inside — why, we might start singing songs by John Denver or Elvis or Simon and Garfunkel or the Beatles! What a crazy, screwed-up world that would be, huh?

Purpose of the Mass

Look, let’s get serious for a moment. The entire kerfuffle (read: decades-long-slugfest) over what music is proper for use at the Mass really centers [NB] on a fundamental disagreement about what the purpose of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass truly is.

Many of those who protest Sister Roccasalvo’s articles feel that worship at the Mass is about “us” as the people of God. Because of this, they argue, we should sing songs that we like, play music that makes us feel good, and “craft a liturgy” that “reflects our community” and “validates” our desires for “self-expression in relation to the divine.”

Barf. [Still not holding back, it seems.] I’m sorry, but this viewpoint is simply incorrect. Very incorrect.

The Mass has never been about “us.” It is not celebrated for us, [Welllll…] it is not something that is intended to be modified by us, and it does not have our feelings or preferences as its fundamental purpose or end.

The Mass is, instead, where we go to worship the Thrice-Holy and Almighty God in the manner that is the most pleasing to Him. It is where we bend our knee in humble adoration before the True Cross of the Savior as we actually experience His one sacrifice on Calvary. It is where we attempt to fulfill our mighty obligations of service and worship. It is where we lay down our entire selves before Him, seeking forgiveness and mercy.  [Nicely put.  I wonder how this will go over in Madison.]

Meaning of active participation

As we worship and submit ourselves to Him in this way, the Mass is also where God in his infinite generosity and compassion gives us the gift of his very Self (although nothing we have done has merited such a gift). It is for these reasons that the Second Vatican Council exhorted all the faithful to active and fully conscious participation. Without active interior participation at the Mass, how could we ever hope to worship in a worthy or proper manner?  [Active receptivity.]

Here is the crucial point: no one is arguing that the Mass should become some somber and morose ritual of lamentation. Rather, what could be the cause of greater joy? God himself has become a Man and has forgiven our sins! Christ is Crucified and is Risen! Alleluia!

Offer our best and most beautiful [A point often lost on parish musicians and the priests who tolerate them.]

However, because the Mass is not something that we created; because God himself has given the Mass to the Church as the means by which He desires to be worshipped; because the Church has protected and nurtured these sacred mysteries across the ages; for these and so many reasons, it is not proper that we change the focus of the Mass from Christ to us. It is not proper or just that we do anything that obfuscates the sacred and solemn nature of the Mass. It is not proper to offer anything less than our best and most beautiful to God in the liturgy.

If you like folk-style music — great. If you find it comforting, joyful, and prayerful — wonderful. No one is trying to say that this is wrong. By no means! Hold a folk-music prayer-session at your home. Gather together with others and have a concert of praise. Even dance if you want to!

However, the Church has always, and will always, desire to offer something altogether different and far more proper to the Lord at the Mass. Love and Justice demand that we do so, and we should, in love, do so with joy.

That is what rebuilding our Catholic culture is all about.

Nico Fassino has sung and informally studied sacred music for over six years, and has been employed as a choir director at St. Paul’s University Center in Madison and St. John the Baptist Parish in Waunakee. He also serves as chancellor of the League of Distinguished Gentlemen, a registered student organization at UW-Madison dedicated to Truth, Beauty, Goodness, and fighting communism. [!] He welcomes feedback at league.of.distinguished.gents@gmail.com

WDTPRS kudos to Nico Fassino!

UPDATE:

I was chatting with a priest friend via Skype, who, not being a covert as I am, experienced a lot more really bad music than I.  And I converted at St. Agnes in St. Paul!

In any event, my friend told me about this, which he had to sing in church as he was growing up.

This is but one example of why we need to reform our music.   In the 60’s and 70’s this stuff was really popular.   This sort of thing twisted the minds of Catholics of two generations away from what the Church really asked for.

WARNING: Put your Fr Z mug of Mystic Monk Coffee down BEFORE watching this.

[wp_youtube]cPE-xqaQaS4[/wp_youtube]

And people wonder why we are ambivalent about the fruits of Vatican II.

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D. Marquette: a grand gesture for the Year of Faith

Posted on 18 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Last Sunday after the Pontifical Mass at Assumption Grotto (Detroit) at table I asked the celebrant, His Excellency Most Reverend Alexander Sample, if he had some project going on in the Diocese of Marquette for the Year of Faith. He explained what they were doing, but it was the way he started the Year of Faith that got my attention.

He made the Sign of the Cross over the whole diocese.

First, Bp. Sample went to the northernmost parish of the diocese, planted a Cross (which I believe was a practice of his predecessor Ven. Frederic Baraga) and celebrated Mass.

Next, he went to the southernmost parish of the diocese, planted a Cross, and celebrated Mass.

Then, he went to the westernmost parish of the diocese, planted a Cross, and celebrated Mass.

Finally, he went to the easternmost parish of the diocese, planted a Cross, and celebrated Mass.

Posted in Just Too Cool, New Evangelization, Year of Faith | Tagged , ,
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FSSP Liturgical Ordo Correction: Sunday, October 21, 2012

Posted on 18 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

FSSP Liturgical Ordo Correction: Sunday, October 21, 2012
October 17, 2012

A correction to the FSSP Liturgical Ordo for this Sunday, October 21: the Ordo specifies that this Sunday begins the 3rd Sunday in October for the Matins readings. However, as there are only 4 Sundays in October this calendar year, the 3rd week of readings is omitted this year, and October 21 is considered the beginning of the 4th week in October for the readings at Matins.

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Losing the Siege of Vienna

Posted on 18 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

If only we had a project of Re-Evangelization. Or something.

Granted: A lot of European dioceses have lots of little parishes.

From the best Catholic weekly in the UK, The Catholic Herald.

Vienna archdiocese to cut parishes by 75 per cent
By JONATHAN LUXMOORE CNS

The Archdiocese of Vienna has said it will press ahead with a major reorganisation that will include closing most of its parishes over 10 years, despite objections from some local Catholics.

The archdiocese’s 660 parishes will be merged over the next decade into around 150 larger parishes, each served by three to five priests and offering regular Masses.

Michael Prüller, archdiocesan spokesman, said: “Our emphasis isn’t just on reorganising the Church, but on reinvigorating the missionary impulses of the entire Christian community.

“Although we can debate how best to achieve it, the plan’s main aim isn’t open to discussion.”

Mr Prüller told the American Catholic News Service that falling numbers of clergy and laity had made the changes necessary. He said smaller affiliated communities within the parishes will be run by lay volunteers authorised to conduct the Liturgy of the Word.

Prüller said archdiocesan bishops would draft the new parish boundaries and steps for implementing the reorganisation by January 1.

[…]

Posted in New Evangelization, Our Catholic Identity, The future and our choices, Year of Faith | Tagged ,
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Nobel Prize for stem cell technology

Posted on 17 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Did you read about the Nobel Prizes?

These days the Nobel Prizes are a joke and/or not even veil liberal social declarations.

I saw this on American Catholic.

Why are Catholics Praising the Nobel Prize Stem Cell Technology?

It’s been all over the news lately, particularly in the Catholic and conservative spheres, how Dr. Shinya Yamanaka won the Nobel Prize in medicine for reprogramming adult cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). People praised this research for creating new pluripotent stem cell lines to study without creating or destroying embryos. They claimed that the process doesn’t require any morally tainted source cells. They announced the feat as an achievement of great ethical significance, a beautiful and ethical science. They pointed out that the process does not pose ethical issues because embryos are not manipulated, and that embryonic stem cell research will soon be largely put out of business. What a moral victory!

However, digging into and decoding the scientific methodological explanations reveals that what is being praised is definitely not so praiseworthy. It reveals something quite significant, and it mostly hinges on one word — reprogramming. Did anyone notice that in all the cheering, little was explained about the method itself?

How is this reprogramming done? How did they “turn back the clock” on adult stem cells? How does a mature cell become immature again? Well, it’s not magic. The adult stem cell gets introduced to genetic material from other young cells – very young cells. Specifically, Dr. Yamanaka’s group used cells grown from the kidney of an electively aborted healthy child in the Netherlands.

[…]

Before leaping right in, take the time to read the whole thing.

Again…

Before leaping right in, take the time to read the whole thing.

 

Posted in Emanations from Penumbras, Our Catholic Identity, The Drill, The future and our choices | Tagged , , , ,
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Denver Catholic school doubled enrollment in one year by introducing classical curriculum

Posted on 17 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

At CNA we find a helpful, hopeful story about a school in Colorado.

Here is a taste, but it is worth reading in full over there.

Classical education enlivens Denver Catholic school
By Carl Bunderson

Denver, Colo., Oct 16, 2012 / 03:03 am (CNA).- Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School based in Denver, Colo., has nearly doubled its enrollment in just one year by introducing a classical curriculum.

“This is something people want, and they’ve wanted it for a long time, and now it’s available,” principal Rosemary Anderson told CNA Oct. 10.

Our Lady of Lourdes is a pre-kindergarten through eighth grade school. The parish’s pastor, Monsignor Peter Quang Nguyen, had helped turn around a number of schools in the Archdiocese of Denver which had been in danger of closing. He was assigned to Lourdes five years ago.

When Msgr. Quang hired Anderson to be principal in 2010, the school was in “quite a bit of debt” and had only 104 students enrolled. That figure is 180 today.

The school’s capacity is 235 and Anderson believes that by the next school year, “we’ll have to start wait-listing kids.”

[…]

Anderson noted that classical education is meant to help students learn how to think, rather than merely teaching them “subjects.” The program at Lourdes school was inspired by 20th century author Dorothy Sayers’ essay “The Lost Tools of Learning,” and the work of Laura Berquist, who was involved in the founding of Thomas Aquinas College – a Catholic university in southern Calif. which uses the classical model.  [These names just keep coming up!  And if you have not read Sayer’s essay, then… read it!]

[…]

Anderson was encouraged to differentiate her school, and with the “support and knowledge”of Bishop James D. Conley – former apostolic administrator of the archdiocese – chose to follow this approach to education as a way of imparting to students the art of learning.  [As I understand it, Bp. Conley was greatly influenced by the late Dr. John Senior, Classics prof at KU.  He also influenced those who founded Wyoming Catholic College.]

“The classical approach is Catholic, through and through,” said Anderson. While “other schools are doing great things,” “no other Catholic schools in the diocese are doing this yet.”

The school’s re-organization will be a three-year process. The first year, which is occurring presently, involves a re-vamp of the English department and the introduction of Latin classes.

Latin was introduced in place of Spanish because of its importance as the basis of all Romance languages. Students “logically process things better when they know Latin,” said Anderson. She pointed to high school freshmen who “test into honors French, without having had any French before, just by knowing the root language.”

Latin is important for the grammar stage of the trivium because its nouns decline, or change their ending according to function they are performing in a sentence. This helps students to better understand how languages work, and it is coupled with the memorization of poetry.

[…]

There is quite a bit more of this encouraging article.

Are you parents of small children?

Think about this.

 

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Reminder about Summorum Pontificum 5, Universae Ecclesiae 15 and the “stable group”

Posted on 17 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

For some reason I have had several emails recently – from far-flung places – which all have to do with a common problem that some people are encountering in making petitions for celebrations of Mass in the Extraordinary Form.

They are running into opposition based on the claim that the people making the petition are not a “stable group” or that the group isn’t big enough.

You will recall that Summorum Pontificum (Benedict XVI’s Motu Proprio with provisions that free up the use of the 1962 Missale Romanum) indicates:

Art. 5, § 1. In parishes, where there is stably present a group of the faithful attached to the previous liturgical tradition, let the pastor willingly receive their petitions that Mass be celebrated according to the Rite of the Missale Romanum issued in 1962. …

The usual liberal common-sense defying questions arose about how big the group had to be and whether or not they had to be registered in the parish in question, blah blah blah.

The Instruction about Summorum Pontificum called Universae Ecclesiae brought greater clarity to the issue of the “stable group”.

15. A coetus fidelium (“group of the faithful”) can be said to be stabiliter existens (“existing in a stable manner”), according to the sense of art. 5 § 1 of the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum, when it is constituted by some people of an individual parish who, even after the publication of the Motu Proprio, come together by reason of their veneration for the Liturgy in the Usus Antiquior, and who ask that it might be celebrated in the parish church or in an oratory or chapel; such a coetus (“group”) can also be composed of persons coming from different parishes or dioceses, who gather together in a specific parish church or in an oratory or chapel for this purpose.

The law on this says “some people”.  There is no minimum number identified by the Holy See.   Some have mentioned that a coetus in other contexts can be as few a three.  And the priest himself can be a part of the coetus!

It is wrong to try to impose a minimum number.

Furthermore, the document is clear that the people in the group do not have to be from the same parish, either as registrants or territorial residents, they don’t even have to be from the same diocese!

It is obviously that large initiatives, such as changing a busy Sunday schedule around, seems a lot to ask for half a dozen people.  That doesn’t mean that there cannot be ad hoc Masses for them.

Furthermore, I think we can see in the Holy Father’s provisions and in the Instruction the desire of that the older forms of worship be brought to the attention of the faithful across the board.  Pastors of souls should take steps to make sure that their flocks are aware of and can appreciate and participate Mass celebrated also with the 1962MR.  Therefore, a small stable group could be like liturgical leaven in a parish.  A parish priest should welcome their helpful contributions rather than try to extinguish their spirit.

That said, people who are petitioning for celebrations of the Extraordinary Form have to keep their ducks in a row.  Do as much of your work with the parish priest as you can in writing.  Keep copies of everything.  If there is a conversation, follow up with a memo of what was said.  You need written records of the whole process.

Work to increase your numbers.  Do not hesitate to contact the Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei“, with documentation about what is happening.

If you write to the Commission, use this address:

His Excellency
Most Rev. Augustine DiNoia
Vice-President of the Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei”
Palazzo del Sant’Uffizio
00120 Vatican City

You might frame your letter – on one side of one page – like this:

Your Excellency….

[…]

With prayers for Your Excellency and for your collaborators as you carry out the mandate entrusted to you by the Holy Father, we/I remain sincerely yours in Christ,

NAME

You can add attached documentation to your cover letter, but keep that cover letter short and to the point.

I have some other suggestions about how to write to ecclesiastical authorities HERE.

Be patient in getting responses from Church authorities.  

“But Father! But Father!” you might be saying.  “How long should we wait?”

There is no hard and fast rule.  Perhaps 1 week for a response from your parish priest.  Perhaps 2 weeks for a response from your bishop.  Perhaps 1 month for a response from Rome or the Nuncio.   Roman offices will sometimes have to consult with the local bishop, so allow for some turn around time.  Sometimes it helps speed things up if you fax correspondence and then follow with a hard copy by post.  And there are fast delivery services now as well.  Email, you ask?  Not so much.  If you have an email contact, always follow up with a hard copy by post.

Yes, we have modern means of communication, but this is the Church we are talking about.

You don’t have to just lie there and let priests or parish councils kick you or ignore your proper petitions.  You have recourse.

Posted in "How To..." - Practical Notes, Brick by Brick, Liturgy Science Theatre 3000, SUMMORUM PONTIFICUM, Universae Ecclesiae | Tagged , , , , ,
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Of SSPX internal unity, the prognosis, and an ultimatum

Posted on 17 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

According to the intrepid Andrea Tornielli, the SSPX Superior Bp. Fellay has sent an ultimatum to SSPX Bp. Williamson asking him to back away from some claims. And there is a time limit. If Williamson does not conform, he could be expelled from the SSPX.

Williamson is clearly the figurehead for opposition to unity with the Roman Pontiff, the sector of the SSPX which is determined to dictate to Rome rather than obey lawful authority.

The author of the site True Restoration says that he spoke with Williamson, who said that Bp. Fellay told Williamson to shut down his dinoscpus.org and make a public apology for the harm he caused to the SSPX, “and commit to making ‘reparation’ for the remainder of his days.”

Interesting, no? In the old days, Superiors could impose this sort of thing. There were even an equivalent of ecclesiastical prisons for clerics. Perhaps they should be revived in a revision of the present Canon Law. Reminder: the 1983 Code of Canon Law is now in force for the Latin Church, not the 1917 Code. There are revisions of certain parts of the 1983 Code underway, but the the 1983 Code is in force. But I digress.

Apparently, Bp. Williamson has until 23 October before he faces the consequences.

This is all very hard to substantiate, but it is pretty clear that there is a split in the SSPX.

On Rorate you can find something from the DICI news outlet for the SSPX.   There is an interview with Father Niklaus Pfluger, First Assistant General of the SSPX, who says “We’re back to square one”.

Here is a taste:

Kirchliche Umschau: Since you seem so little disposed to compromise, why do you still hold discussions with the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith?

Father Niklaus Pfluger: Because the pope and Rome are realities inseparable from the Faith. The loss of faith in the Church’s structures—a loss of faith from which we have been spared, thanks be to God–is only one aspect of the crisis in the Church. For our part, we suffer also from a defect: the fact of our canonical irregularity. The status of the post-conciliar Church is imperfect, nor is our status the ideal.

Kirchliche Umschau: Are you referring to members of your community who refuse the discussions with Rome?
Father Niklaus Pfluger: Yes, but they are few, very few. The prolonged period of separation has led certain members to confusion in theology. Deep down, these persons set faith in opposition to law, as if union with the pope, the primacy of the pope, were just a minor question of law.
Separating the legitimacy of the pope from the Faith, and reducing his legitimacy to a merely juridical question, is a sign of great danger. Finally, it comes from a Protestant view of the Church. But the Church is visible. The papacy belongs to the domain of Faith.
We ourselves, Catholics faithful to Tradition, suffer from the crisis in two ways. We participate in this crisis, albeit on a different and higher level, as I see it. There is no denying the obligation to take an active part in overcoming the crisis. And this combat begins with us, by desiring to overcome our abnormal canonical status.

Kirchliche Umschau: So we are back to square one. [Ummmm…. no.] Why not just go along with Rome?

Father Niklaus Pfluger: Because we cannot exchange an imperfect status for one that is even less perfect. Union with Rome is supposed to be an improvement, not a mutilation. [I think that is where he puts his foot wrong.] Having to omit certain truths of the Faith, as well as being forbidden to criticize various doubtful and liberal positions: all this would be tantamount to a mutilation. We will not go along with that.

[…]

I hope that during the Year of Faith some helpful concrete steps can be taken to heal this break.

Posted in Brick by Brick, New Evangelization, Our Catholic Identity, SSPX, The Drill, The future and our choices, Vatican II, Year of Faith | Tagged , ,
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Nuns On The Bus get frosty reception in Ohio

Posted on 17 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

The Religion News Service has a story about the reception the Nuns On The Bus (who go ’round and ’round) encountered in Ohio.  Not so friendly.

(RNS) The “Nuns on the Bus” have been a consistently popular and effective faith-based tool for religious progressives [Are we just supposed to accept that premise?  I wonder how effective they have been.  Doubt very much.] this campaign season, but on Monday a group of demonstrators apparently organized by a local Tea Party affiliate met the nuns at a stop in Marietta, Ohio, and provided a far different welcome than the sisters usually receive.

Holding placards with slogans like “Bums on the Bus” and “Romney-Ryan Yes, Fake Nuns No,” the protesters focused their fire on the abortion issue, accusing the sisters of not being sufficiently anti-abortion.  [If the sensible shoe fits….]

Someone claiming [?] to be a member of the local “We the People” chapter — that is the name used by some Tea Party affiliates in the region — posted a YouTube video of the counter-demonstrators taken before the half dozen nuns and some 100 supporters arrived. It says there were more than 175 marchers opposing the nuns and it shows the demonstrators praying the rosary and singing hymns before challenging the sisters.

“What could be more innocuous, unless of course the nuns happen to be a group of radical, feminist ideologues whose previous political actions have been so out of step with the teaching of the Catholic Church that they have been condemned by the Vatican,” the YouTube poster wrote in text accompanying the footage.  [The Nuns On The Bus have not been “condemned by the Vatican”.]

[…]

The sisters reject that criticism, and one of the nuns on the bus, Sister Monica McGloin (in photo), on Monday told the protesters in Marietta that “we are 100 percent pro-life.” [Are they?]

“As many of your signs are showing, we believe life begins at conception and ends with natural death,” McGloin said in remarks that were transcribed by Faith in Public Life, a liberal advocacy group that has provided media support for the sisters.

[Here it is…] “And that we do not see focusing on one issue, one point of life, as a way that we should proceed. [This is the Bernardin/Cuomo gambit.  You can side-line THE social justice issue in favor of a raft of other issues.] And that pro-life for us means that we do concern ourselves with living wage, just wage, access to healthcare, education, food, housing, care for our seniors, Medicare and other kinds of healthcare programs that are supportive. Providing daycare for children so their parents can work…”  [The unborn can, apparently, fend for themselves.]

“So we know from talking with people that what the people want is to continue to support the services that are helping us remain healthy, wholesome communities. So that’s what pro-life is.” [Sorry, Sister.  That’s not enough.]

[…]

Read the rest there.

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Holy See Clarification about Equestrian Orders

Posted on 16 October 2012 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

From VIS:

NOTE OF CLARIFICATION FROM THE SECRETARIAT OF STATE

Vatican City, (VIS) – In response to frequent requests for information concerning the recognition by the Holy See of Equestrian Orders dedicated to the saints or to holy places, the Secretariat of State considers it opportune to reiterate what has already been published, namely that, other than its own Equestrian Orders (the Supreme Order of Christ, the Order of the Golden Spur, the Pian Order, the Order of Saint Gregory the Great, and the Order of Pope Saint Sylvester), the Holy See recognises and supports only the Sovereign Military Order of Malta – also known as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta – and the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. The Holy See foresees no additions or innovations in this regard.

All other orders, whether of recent origin or mediaeval foundation, are not recognised by the Holy See. Furthermore, the Holy See does not guarantee their historical or juridical legitimacy, their ends or organisational structures.

To avoid any possible doubts, even owing to illicit issuing of documents or the inappropriate use of sacred places, and to prevent the continuation of abuses which may result in harm to people of good faith, the Holy See confirms that it attributes absolutely no value whatsoever to certificates of membership or insignia issued by these groups, and it considers inappropriate the use of churches or chapels for their so-called “ceremonies of investiture”.

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