LATIN MASS LETTERS (Catholic Caucus)

Church Militant ^ | July 23, 2021 | David Nussman

[Marchmain]

Many in the Catholic world are reeling from the papal document titled Traditionis Custodes, which was released one week ago today.

Though the clear, plain meaning of that Latin title is "guardians of Tradition," I've heard someone wryly quip it should be called "jailkeepers of Tradition." Though many details remain unclear, the document seemingly gives bishops greater ability to crack down on the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM)....

Some bishops are saying they need time to think about how they're supposed to implement the motu proprio. As many Church Militant viewers would agree, the notion of the current crop of bishops thinking about anything is half laughable, half terrifying....

I've had it in mind to begin a sort of letter-writing campaign. My intention is for as many tradition-minded Catholics as possible to write both to their local bishop and to the Holy See, expressing concern about these newfangled restrictions.

Writing a letter about the TLM may seem like a waste of time. After all, what's one pathetic letter going to do? But consider what would happen if a thousand people all got on board with this: flooding a mail room with a thousand letters seems pretty impactful, doesn't it? It could send a very clear message about our loyalty to the TLM.

I recently asked an esteemed canon law expert for advice on this plan. The expert recommended sending short, respectful letters to the Apostolic Nunciature in our nation's capital. Furthermore, the letters should be addressed specifically to Pope Francis....

Consider these steps:....

Below, I provide a rough format for you to follow if you choose to send a letter....

[Marchmain]

"Holy Father,

I ask you to reconsider the recent restrictions on the Traditional Latin Mass contained in the motu proprio of July 16 titled Traditionis Custodes.

The Traditional Latin Mass has impacted my spiritual life in a positive and profound way. The relatively easy access to the Traditional Latin Mass under Summorum Pontificum is dear to my heart. INSERT MORE HERE.

These new restrictions, in my assessment, are a source of discouragement and confusion for many loyal sons and daughters of Holy Mother Church.

I am respectfully petitioning you to reconsider this document."

Catholic Freepers: is this a good idea?

[irishjuggler]

No, it’s not a good idea. Having thousands of people write letters to Bergoglio telling him how wonderful and spiritually uplifting the Latin Mass has been for them and their families will do absolutely nothing to cause him to reverse his position. Why? Because large and growing numbers of such people is the precise reason for his ban in the first place! He’s not banning the TLM because no one cares about it or likes it. He’s banning it because too many people care about it and like it!

Think about it this way.... imagine a say a high school principal imposing tough new rules aimed at stopping teens from smoking or using JUULs or other vaping products. Would it be good idea for teens who use those products to start a petition or letter-writing campaign in which a groundswell of them explain to the principal how much they enjoy nicotine use and how it relaxes them and helps them concentrate on their studies? No, because it’s not that the principal doesn’t understands that the teens like nicotine. The principal already understands that quite well, and it’s exactly what’s motivating his actions in the first place!

[DPMD]

How weird and stupid is it to ban the Mass in a certain language. Maybe crazy frank can dispatch the vatican cops to kill anyone speaking Latin in Mass. It would certain befit a socialist despot to do so.

[Marchmain]

Good insight! Thanks.

[irishjuggler]

To build a bit on the smoking analogy ...

Latin Mass, like nicotine use, is seen as this vestigial bad habit associated with an earlier era. It has no place in the 21st century, but Benedict hoped to broker a kind of peace, allowing both smoking and non-smoking sections. Maybe it’s not a problem if some elderly Korean War vet at the VA care facility wants to enjoy a Lucky Strike... but then the teens were taking up this bad habit too. And the second hand smoke, er incense and conservative views, were wafting around and affecting everyone else. That’s the mentality of Bergoglio’s ban.

[scouter]

I agree 100%. Follow me as I do a little math. I live in an archdiocese where the archbishop invited the FSSP to do their thing a few years ago. I’m in that parish. It has exploded with new families. When they took over the parish about 4 years ago from the aging, heroic archdiocesan pastor who had kept the TLM going, there was one TLM every Sunday and one Novus Ordo. Both had just a few attendees, but the TLM was far better attended than the Novus Ordo. Now there are three packed TLMs every Sunday and one TLM every other day (there’s only one priest). And financially the parish, which was losing thousands of dollars per week is now in the black.

There are about 3,000 dioceses in the world and about a billion Catholics. I would estimate that the 1500 TLM lovers in my archdiocese is probably high for most dioceses in the world, but let’s use it as an average anyway. That means there are about 4.5 million out of 1 billion who are attached to the TLM. That’s about one half of one percent.

Bergoglio says he took this action because one half of one percent of Catholics are causing division. No, it’s clear he hates the TLM, and making him see that there are a lot of people who love it will only make him crack down harder, faster, and more ruthlessly.

I think each of us needs to assess the situation in our own diocese and decide if our bishop is friendly, indifferent, or hostile to the TLM and take appropriate action. But leave Bergoglio out of it.

[irishjuggler]

Well said.

[Campion]

I'm starting to side with the folks who say the whole point of this is to foment schism on the right. That way, +Francis can let the nuts in Germany do their crazy stuff, and say, "See! They're not schismatic, those crazy traddies are!"

If that's true, then the thing to do is try to keep your bishop from repressing the TLM, and hunker down to wait +Francis out. Don't give him what he's looking for, which is open rebellion.

Writing him sweetie-pie letters is just a waste of paper and time.

[DPMD]

Okay; interesting. It makes me wonder what crazy frank has been smoking.

I see the Latin Mass as one with a unifying common language, where everyone from differing backgrounds and ethnicities can understand the liturgy. In a sense, we now have Masses in several languages depending on the local congregation; a sort of segregation if you will.

Anyway, I’m probably biased, having grown up in the Latin Mass. I was even an altar boy and had to learn all the responses and prayers in Latin, and all that shouldn’t go to waste, dammit!

[pbear8]

The most impressive letter I have seen was from a 12 yo girl to her bishop thanking him for keeping the TLM and telling him why she liked it. Handwritten, with an illustration, three sentences long, it will probably do more good than a thousand letters to PF.

[irishjuggler]

I agree 110% with you about the unifying nature of the Latin Mass. Was thinking exactly the same thing this morning at my crowded Latin Mass. The celebrant was a wonderful young priest from Kenya. The altar services were multiple ethnicities: caucasian, Mexican, Asian. The people in the pews were like the United Nations, every race, color and ethnicity you could imagine was seemingly represented. All ages were there from 90-day-old infants to 90-year-old seniors. From the style of dress and overall appearance, the range of wealth was from paupers to multimillionaires.

It’s the most diverse crowd I’ve ever seen in my city. In a city of any size that has multiple parishes, you’re typically going to see parishes segregate in various ways, e.g., the Polish parish, the rich people’s parish, the poor people’s parish, the wacky hippie parish run by the Jesuits or Paulists near the college or university, the Hispanic parish, the Filipino parish, the old working class Irish-Italian parish, etc etc.

The Latin Mass, parish on the other hand, is very much “here comes everybody” (like James Joyce may or may not have said about the Catholic Church). It’s Catholic in the true sense of the word: the hardcore faithful united by their orthodoxy of belief and appreciation of the traditional liturgy. Why does Bergoglio hate such people and want to kick them in the teeth? It hurts me to say it, but the man is simply a nasty SOB.

[Cronos]

I mulled over this for months. I think this is a good idea. Nay, this is a necessary action for each of us to take

[Cronos]

". The celebrant was a wonderful young priest from Kenya. The altar services were multiple ethnicities: caucasian, Mexican, Asian. The people in the pews were like the United Nations, every race, color and ethnicity you could imagine was seemingly represented. All ages were there from 90-day-old infants to 90-year-old seniors. From the style of dress and overall appearance, the range of wealth was from paupers to multimillionaires."

Exactly - a truly Catholic church - of all backgrounds worshiping the Lord