Today during the Sunday Solemn Mass I took my own advice.
At the offertory, I prayerfully joined all of you who have lately suffered at the hands of your bishops, suppressors of the TLM and those who desire it, to the drops of water that went into the chalice to mingle with the wine (symbols of the humanity of Christ in unity with His Divinity).
The water disappears into the substance of the wine which is changed at the behest of the priests into Christ’s Most Precious Blood. My intent was to raise you up to the Father, in Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit.
I feel for all of you and I pray for you. May God bring you healing relief – through subtle or dramatic means – according to His will.
Meantime, may you receive consolations as you strive to live your vocations with perseverance and confidence.
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Many of us hold you all in prayer, the Church Militant. God has given these crosses. As difficult as they are, these are exciting times, saint making times. We are called to love, fast and pray, stay close to Jesus and trust Him. God is good.
That’s good of you, Fr Z. I know that would be consoling to me. Our TLM is not cancelled yet, but it will be, they all likely will be. Death by 1000 cuts, we are picked off one at a time. When our fellow Catholics anywhere are mistreated, it matters. Things are not the same anymore, going to Mass. The church is no longer our true friend, no matter how good Father is. We see Rome, and its all ugly. So we know whats coming. Why should we be special, or exempt. But they should enjoy the trappings of this world. How I pity these men in their eternity. I cannot comprehend even a little a man who becomes a Catholic priest and then denies the faithful the Mass. He has no fear of God at all. Ill be honest, Fr Z, I typically have to repent the things i say about these men at confession. They have caused so much pain to good Catholics. Thank you for caring about them.
Even for those of us who are fortunate to be in dioceses where the current bishop is friendly towards the Traditional Mass know that a new bishop can come in and undo years of progress with the stroke of a pen, as recently happened in Detroit. So none of us are safe as long as TC is in effect.
I’m not the sharpest pencil in the case, but when the Chinese communist party is consecrating bishops I can’t see much wriggle room for Pope Leo when the SSPX come asking to consecrate bishops.
What then for the fool in Charlotte.
The SSPX set up shop, the Pope will have given his blessing and the people in the Traditional parishes can give their dollars to the SSPX with the Pope’s permission and the Charlotte Numpty looses out.
What is not to like…..!!!
@JonPatrick
I think the real take away from this is that none of us are safe so long as the bishops and the pope think the Liturgy of the Catholic Church is their personal bauble over which they have the authority to decree whatsoever they deem appropriate at the time.
If the Catholic Church is to continue (as we know she must), then the understanding that Sacred Tradition has as much authority as Scripture and the Magisterium must be taken seriously. It cannot be that Tradition is merely whatever the Magisterium of the current times says is Tradition – we’ve got several decades of real life experience to know this is, at best, folly. And if the Traditional Latin Rite doesn’t count as Sacred Tradition, then nothing counts as Sacred Tradition.
The pope and the bishops have no authority to remove the Gospel of John from the Bible. Likewise, there needs to be a reckoning, and on the other side of it there needs to be a clear understanding that the bishops and the pope himself have no authority to suppress, mangle, distort, or denigrate the Vetus Ordo or any of the laity or clergy who are devoted to it.
For the moment, where the mass according to the 1962 missal is forbidden, we can follow Pope Leo’s latest pronouncement: the mass can be said according to the missal of Paul VI in Latin and ad orientem. I know that it is not the same. However, I cannot see that it needs specific permission to be done. And given the state of church law, it would be much harder for a bishop to shut down.
In addition, the Pope has already publicly said this can be done. So a bishop can’t say that he is just following what Rome wants if he attempts to shut it down.
Having been deprived of the TLM for a while in our diocese, I understand the pain of others, but I am also beginning to have some idea of the suffering that was inflicted on both the clergy and laity by the initial change to the NO in 1969. It must have been shatteringly intense and widespread.
[Yes, and for years after. Many people were deeply wounded, deeply scarred. Benedict brought healing balm to the hurt, only to have the lacerations ripped open again by Francis and modernist bishops. So much pain. May those who suffer hand it over to Mary, to put into Jesus hands. They understand wounded hearts.]
@Chaswjd
If a parish priest were to celebrate the parish NO in Latin and ad orientem, they would have the entire weight of the chancery crash down upon their heads. Sure, it “can” be said that way, but it will not be tolerated to be said that way. As your local priest to do so, watch how fast they leave the room.
Granted, not every diocese, but most dioceses.
@ Lurker 59
By definition, some priest is saying Mass according to the 1962 missal in all the places where it is being closed down. My point is that the same priest (who is hardly likey to a diocesan favorite) were to change missals but keep the language and posture, the diocese would have a much harder time shutting things down.