The Bishop's Weekly Column from the Parish Bulletin

OUR LADY OF FATIMA

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Cardinal Castrillón's Call to Action !

May 30, 2008

"Now let's get this straight once and for all !!!"

This morning outside Lincoln, Nebraska, the Trad Czar Darío Cardinal Castrillón Hoyos ordained 4 men to the Catholic priesthood for the Traditional community of the Fraternity of St. Peter. He had some very interesting words which are bound to grab many Trads' attention....

"Given the nature of today's ceremony and the opportunity it affords to address a world-wide viewing public I am grateful to take this opportunity to offer some reflections on the priesthood:

(...)

As President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei I have particular interest in these young men who will celebrate the Holy sacrifice of the Mass and the Sacraments primarily (but not exclusively) according to the liturgical books of the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite which is a treasure for the entire Church.

This obviously meets a desire on the part of a good number of the faithful. While I am pleased to promote our Holy Father's will expressed in his Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum and invite (yes folks only "invite" - that's what JPII said 10 years ago !) my brother bishops to be generous (JPII again !) in implementing* this important document (wait for it.....); I also invite my dear sons and brothers to strive to be an integral part of the dioceses in which you will serve; brothers of your brother priests showing deep respect for the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite, concelebrating with your bishops at the Chrismal Mass and when this sign of priestly communion is specially appropriate."

He certainly caught my attention !

* "generous in implementing...." ? According to the letter from Pope Benedict that accompanied the Motu Proprio we read:

Thus the need has arisen for a clearer juridical regulation which had not been foreseen at the time of the 1988 Motu Proprio. The present Norms are also meant to free Bishops from constantly having to evaluate anew how they are to respond to various situations.

Thus there is no need for the bishops to "implement" anything since by Summorum Pontificum they were freed "from constantly having to evaluate anew how they are to respond to various situations." This change in terminology looks like a reverse to the era of Ecclesia Dei (i.e. the Motu Proprio of that name by John Paul II) where bishops were invited to allow the Latin Mass with frequent disastrous results. We begin to shudder....

+TF