Vatican official foresees broader use of Latin Mass
Rome, Sep. 26 (CWNews.com) - An influential Vatican
official believes that Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news)
could soon expand permission for priests throughout
the world to celebrate Mass using the Tridentine rite.
However, Cardinal Jorge Medina Estevez cautions that
serious doctrinal issues, as well as liturgical
questions, must be resolved before the traditionalist
Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) can be fully reconciled
with the Holy See.
Cardinal Medina, the former prefect of the
Congregation for Divine Worship, is a member of the
Ecclesia Dei commission, set up by Pope John Paul II
(bio - news) to serve the needs of Catholics who cling
to the Latin Mass. In an interview with the I Media
news service, the Chilean-born prelate said that the
Pope could act soon to liberalize Church regulations,
allowing all priests to use the Tridentine rite.
Questioned about the outcome of the Pope's August 29
meeting with Bishop Bernard Fellay, the superior
general of the SSPX, Cardinal Medina observed that the
meeting was preceded by "many other contacts" between
Vatican officials and representatives of the
Lefebvrist group. Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos (bio
- news), the prefect of the Congregation for the
Clergy, had met repeatedly with Bishop Fellay, he
said. And the Chilean prelate added that he, too, had
met with the traditionalist leader during his term as
prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship.
Consequently, the cardinal said, "you could not say
that the meeting with the Holy Father was unexpected."
He added that SSPX leaders are well aware that Pope
Benedict "is concerned about full communion among all
Catholics-- all Christians-- and particularly those
who uphold the decisions and positions of Archbishop
Lefebvre."
Reconciliation between the Vatican and the breakaway
traditionalist group, the cardinal continued, would
require "addressing a list of doctrinal difficulties."
He said that a working group could be set up to
discuss those problems.
"But within the Society [SSPX], there are different
currents," Cardinal Medina observed. While some
members of the traditionalist group are "inflexible,"
others are more inclined toward dialogue with Rome, he
said. He said that when some traditionalists refer to
the Novus Ordo Mass as "heretical" or "invalid," they
create "an extremely difficult situation." The Vatican
will insist that SSPX members acknowledge the validity
of the post-conciliar Mass, he said; they will also be
required to accept the teachings of Vatican II.
After his meeting with Pope Benedict, Bishop Fellay
suggested that a first step toward reconciliation
could be a Vatican recognition of the right for all
priests to celebrate the Tridentine-rite Mass, using
the liturgical form codified by Pope Pius V after the
Council of Trent. Cardinal Medina saw "no difficulty"
in expanding access to the Latin Mass. But he
reiterated that such a step "would not resolve the
fundamental problems with the SSPX."
Questioned on whether Vatican II intended to abolish
the Tridentine rite, Cardinal Medina said that the
arguments were inconclusive on that point. However, he
said, each rite is valid, and "the missal of St. Paul
V and that of Paul VI are both perfectly orthodox." He
observed that each ritual appeals to "different
sensibilities," and noted that the Offertory prayers
of the old rite are particularly useful in their
emphasis on "the sacrifical character of the Mass: an
essential aspect of the Eucharistic celebration." The
restoration of universal permission to use the
Tridentine Mass would involve canonical and liturgical
questions, but no major theological concerns, the
cardinal said. "So I hope that, little by little, the
possibility of celebrating the old form of the Roman
rite will be opened," he said.
As a member of the Ecclesia Dei commission, Cardinal
Medina reported, he is sometimes asked to celebrate a
Tridentine-rite Mass. When he receives such a request,
he said, "I do it, without asking anyone's
permission."
Editor's Note:� Currently there is no need to obtain permission to offer the Novus Ordo in Latin.