BRING THE LATIN MASS TO SOUTH GEORGIA
Published September 29, 2008
The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI promulgated Summorum Pontificum in July of 2007 to free all restrictions on the celebration of the Tridentine Latin Mass, the Mass that has been the standard of Catholic worship for more than 1600 years, the Mass that was offered for the entirety of the Second Vatican Council.
There has never been an official prohibition of the celebration of this Mass. In fact, Vatican II's Constitution on the Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, insists:
"...in faithful obedience to tradition, the sacred Council declares that holy Mother Church holds all lawfully acknowledged rites to be of equal right and dignity; that she wishes to preserve them in the future and to foster them in every way."
Pope Benedict himself has acknowledged that the Tridentine Latin Mass was never abrogated. In his accompanying letter to Summorum Pontificum, the Holy Father writes:
"There is no contradiction between the two editions of the Roman Missal. In the history of the liturgy there is growth and progress, but no rupture. What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful. It behooves all of us to preserve the riches which have developed in the Church's faith and prayer, and to give them their proper place."
With this in mind, the Holy Father writes in article 5 of Summorum Pontificum:
"In parishes, where there is a stable group of faithful who adhere to the earlier liturgical tradition, the pastor should willingly accept their requests to celebrate the Mass according to the rite of the Roman Missal published in 1962, and ensure that the welfare of these faithful harmonises with the ordinary pastoral care of the parish, under the guidance of the bishop in accordance with canon 392, avoiding discord and favouring the unity of the whole Church. ő 2 Celebration in accordance with the Missal of Bl. John XXIII may take place on working days; while on Sundays and feast days one such celebration may also be held. ő 3 For faithful and priests who request it, the pastor should also allow celebrations in this extraordinary form for special circumstances such as marriages, funerals or occasional celebrations, e.g. pilgrimages. ő 4 Priests who use the Missal of Bl. John XXIII must be qualified to do so and not juridically impeded. ő 5 In churches that are not parish or conventual churches, it is the duty of the Rector of the church to grant the above permission."
On June 15, 2008, Dario Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, was asked if the Pope would like to see this rite in "many" parishes. Here is the Cardinal's answer:
"All the parishes. Not many – all the parishes, because this is a gift of God. He offers these riches, and it is very important for new generations to know the past of the Church. This kind of worship is so noble, so beautiful – the deepest theologians’ way to express our faith. The worship, the music, the architecture, the painting, makes a whole that is a treasure. The Holy Father is willing to offer to all the people this possibility, not only for the few groups who demand it but so that everybody knows this way of celebrating the Eucharist in the Catholic Church."
Catholics in South Georgia are entitled to the full deposit of the faith and the complete treasury of riches that the Church has to offer. For this reason, we respectfully call upon our Bishop and local pastors to permit and provide for the celebration of the Tridentine Latin Mass in South Georgia at one or more locations that are reasonably accessible to Catholics residing in this region.
"
There has never been an official prohibition of the celebration of this Mass. In fact, Vatican II's Constitution on the Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, insists:
"...in faithful obedience to tradition, the sacred Council declares that holy Mother Church holds all lawfully acknowledged rites to be of equal right and dignity; that she wishes to preserve them in the future and to foster them in every way."
Pope Benedict himself has acknowledged that the Tridentine Latin Mass was never abrogated. In his accompanying letter to Summorum Pontificum, the Holy Father writes:
"There is no contradiction between the two editions of the Roman Missal. In the history of the liturgy there is growth and progress, but no rupture. What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful. It behooves all of us to preserve the riches which have developed in the Church's faith and prayer, and to give them their proper place."
With this in mind, the Holy Father writes in article 5 of Summorum Pontificum:
"In parishes, where there is a stable group of faithful who adhere to the earlier liturgical tradition, the pastor should willingly accept their requests to celebrate the Mass according to the rite of the Roman Missal published in 1962, and ensure that the welfare of these faithful harmonises with the ordinary pastoral care of the parish, under the guidance of the bishop in accordance with canon 392, avoiding discord and favouring the unity of the whole Church. ő 2 Celebration in accordance with the Missal of Bl. John XXIII may take place on working days; while on Sundays and feast days one such celebration may also be held. ő 3 For faithful and priests who request it, the pastor should also allow celebrations in this extraordinary form for special circumstances such as marriages, funerals or occasional celebrations, e.g. pilgrimages. ő 4 Priests who use the Missal of Bl. John XXIII must be qualified to do so and not juridically impeded. ő 5 In churches that are not parish or conventual churches, it is the duty of the Rector of the church to grant the above permission."
On June 15, 2008, Dario Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, was asked if the Pope would like to see this rite in "many" parishes. Here is the Cardinal's answer:
"All the parishes. Not many – all the parishes, because this is a gift of God. He offers these riches, and it is very important for new generations to know the past of the Church. This kind of worship is so noble, so beautiful – the deepest theologians’ way to express our faith. The worship, the music, the architecture, the painting, makes a whole that is a treasure. The Holy Father is willing to offer to all the people this possibility, not only for the few groups who demand it but so that everybody knows this way of celebrating the Eucharist in the Catholic Church."
Catholics in South Georgia are entitled to the full deposit of the faith and the complete treasury of riches that the Church has to offer. For this reason, we respectfully call upon our Bishop and local pastors to permit and provide for the celebration of the Tridentine Latin Mass in South Georgia at one or more locations that are reasonably accessible to Catholics residing in this region.
"
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