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Posted on 10/14/2026 11:24:43 AM PDT by ebb tide
On October 10, Leo XIV appointed Bishop Aurelio García Macías as the new secretary of the Dicastery for Divine Worship. His promotion came following the move of former secretary Archbishop Viola to the role of Archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica.
Ordained in 1992 for the Archdiocese of Valladolid, Macías joined the Dicastery for Divine Worship (DDW) in 2015. He was called to the DDW by Cardinal Robert Sarah and was promoted swiftly by Pope Francis. Macías became a head of office in 2016 and under-secretary in May 2021.
Prior to this he studied at the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of Saint Anselm in Rome, a university known for being the intellectual home of the Rome-based group of Curial clerics firmly opposed to the traditional Mass.
The 61-year-old Macías will now wield considerable power and exercise key responsibility in the DDW; the impact of his decisions will have considerable impact on the global Church.
But who is he? Some have described him as well-intentioned and balanced: not a fan of the traditional Mass, but without the ideological opposition to it which Viola was known to have.
On that front, Macías has been fairly quiet about the significance of Traditionis Custodes and the Latin Mass restrictions. When asked about it in a 2022 interview he replied by summarising what the document said, rather than offering his own opinion:
“The Holy Father Francis has sought to regulate the use of the Roman Missal prior to the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. That Council affirmed that the bishop is the moderator, custodian, and promoter of all liturgical life in his diocese. Pope Francis, in accordance with the intent of the Second Vatican Council, wishes for diocesan bishops – and not the priests themselves – to regulate the use of the Roman Missal and other liturgical books predating the liturgical reform within their own dioceses. And he affirms that the only expression of the lex orandi of the Roman Rite is the liturgical books promulgated by the holy pontiffs Paul VI and John Paul II.”
The left-leaning outlet Vida Nueva has, however, described Macías as one of the “advisors for the preparation of Traditionis custodes” relied upon by Pope Francis, though did not state if this was simply due to his position at the DDW or any special personal leanings against the old Mass.
Regarding the old rite, as with many other personal views Macías might have, the new secretary will be very much led by the direction of the prefect. Currently that role remains in the hands of Cardinal Arthur Roche, but there is much anticipation that Roche will soon leave.
With Viola now moved out of the DDW, the natural successor to Roche is thus gone, increasing the likelihood that Leo will name an individual outside of the DDW to become the new prefect.
While Macías’ future impact on the DDW remains to be seen, his past involvement in the development of the controversial Mayan rite is of particular note.
In November 2024 news emerged that the Holy See had approved what has become known as the Mayan Rite. The announcement came from Cardinal Felipe Arizmendi Esquivel, the emeritus bishop of the Mexican Diocese of San Cristobal de Las Casas and one of the key advocates for the rite.
Arizmendi had previously described the rite as “advancing the progress of inculturation of the Church in the native peoples and of taking responsibility for the celebration of Holy Mass with some elements of these cultures.”
The Mayan Rite was developed over a number of years, after the proposed liturgical amendments were nearly unanimously approved by Mexico’s bishop, who voted 103-2 in favour of them during the April 2023 plenary assembly.
Macías was heavily involved in the rite. He met with a group of Mexican bishops in March 2023 to discuss the details of the rite and spoke positively of the experience. “They have invited us to feel involved in this process and this is appreciated because it is an example of the collaboration of the work of the churches,” he said.
The bishop described the experience as “a personal enrichment for me because I believe that the local experience of San Cristóbal de Las Casas has discerned, has been able to study, reflect and can be enriched with the universal experience of the Catholic Church.”
Arizmendi subsequently said in November 2024 that Macías “was able to appreciate the proposal and participated in some celebrations.” According to Arizmendi, the bishop’s participation in the new rite and study of its proposals “was what convinced him most that everything was fine and in accordance with Church standards. This was a notable advance and paved the way in Rome.”
Controversy over the rite emerged due to its incorporation of pagan elements into the liturgy. The diocese of San Cristóbal also has a long history of firmly liberal liturgical innovations, such as the imposition of hands on the wife’s head when ordaining a permanent deacon and the practice that such women would often run a parish with their deacon husbands.
In July 2023, Arizmendi sent this correspondent a copy of the proposed rite as it was submitted to the Vatican for approval.
Ever so slightly amended in language when contrasted with the original draft viewed by this correspondent in spring of 2023, the version approved by the Vatican was still underpinned by the original pagan theology. What was missing from the version sent to the Vatican was the more detailed explanation of the meaning of many of the actions, including the pagan origins of certain aspects, such as the dancing. Nevertheless the same actions were approved, meaning that the pagan link remains even if the full explanations were missing.
Parts of the approved rite included ritual dances and women replacing the role of the priest in incensing the altar, Gospel and the other sacred ministers.
Regarding the ritual dances, these were approved for the Offertory, the prayer of the faithful and for the thanksgiving after Holy Communion.
Speaking in March 2023, Cdl. Arizmendi described the meaning of the dances thus: “the feet caress the face of Mother Earth, making light movements. The face of God is greeted by moving to the four directions of the universe.” On special occasions,” the March 2023 draft stated, “this prayer can be realigned by invoking God from the four cardinal points.” To invoke God from the four cardinal points in the Mayan tradition implies polytheism with the compass directions of the earth being traditionally connected with gods.
The approved rite also featured lay leadership of certain Mass prayers, with men or women taking the new role of “principal”. The principal “promotes and guides the prayer of all,” as he does not pray in just his name. “It is another way for the assembly to participate; the content of the Roman rite is not changed, but its cultural expression,” said Arizmendi.
In the original draft from March 2023 the principal also engaged in the pagan practice of praying to the four directions of the earth, although this language was removed from the version submitted to the Vatican. The principal’s duties are: “either at the beginning of the Mass, to initiate the community into the celebration, to name the intentions and to ask for forgiveness, or in the prayer of the faithful, after the priest makes the initial invitation and closes with the concluding prayer, or after communion as a thanksgiving, which the priest concludes with the post-communion prayer.”
Macías is himself a firm believer in the concept of thorough inculturation of the liturgy, the like of which the Mexican bishops proposed. In early 2023 he commented that while “not all liturgical books are translated into all languages, now a new stage begins adapt some aspects of cultures, that they can enter into the liturgical celebration of the Roman rite.”
While addressing the annual course for new bishops this year, Macías expanded on this theme. Inculturation, he said, “does not simply mean introducing elements of local culture into the liturgy”, but rather when the rite takes on what is “authentically human, true, good and beautiful” of a culture. The process must be almost “by osmosis”, he said.
Bishop Macías’s involvement with the development and approval of the Mayan Rite is of note and will be carefully examined by liturgical scholars and those involved in the current liturgical debate. Vatican observes will now wait to see if he is placed at the service of a new liturgical direction which Leo might pursue, or if the legacy of Pope Francis is once more made the agenda of the DDW.
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So in the synodal church, the pagan Mayan Mass is being introduced, while the 1500 yr-old Traditional Latin Mass risks alienating the faithful from the reforms and unity of the Second Vatican Council, per Cardinal Cockroche.
Ping
I read a quote from Trotsky today that encompasses Francis’ statement about synodality as an ongoing process that cannot be stopped.
Trotsky’s version is “permanent revolution.”
The errors of Russia have entered the Church.
This is acceptable but the TLM is verboten? Of course, the reason is that the Latin Mass stands in contradiction to these innovations and novelties that are aimed at turning the Church into a tool of the One World Government.
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