Rumor has it that Pope Benedict XVI — against the opposition of many — is preparing to release a motu proprio allowing wider celebration of the traditional (Tridentine) Mass. (Note: A motu proprio, literally “by his own decision”, is a papal document that is released not on the advice of cardinals or advisors, but by the pope himself for reasons which he personally deems sufficient.)

Over the past 40 years, there has been much opposition to the preservation (in the 1960s) and restoration (today, in the wake of Vatican II deconstruction) of the traditional Mass on all fronts: from poor, misled souls who thought the changes might help the Church; from the modern generation which has been deprived of the beauty of the traditional Mass and thus doesn’t know any better; and by Satan and the devils who have infiltrated the ranks of priests, bishops and cardinals.

Truly, the state of the post-conciliar Church has been a dismal one — The timeless poetry of the traditional liturgy was replaced with insipid modernist prose, political correctness and inclusive language. Ethereal and inspiring sacred music has been supplanted by hippie music and top-40, popular anthems. The priest has been demasculated, and his role degraded from holy intermediary to mere master of ceremony. Churches were eviscerated — their gorgeous altars ripped out and substituted with tables; carpeting covering marble floors; modern art replacing the treasures of the Renaissance. Tabernacles have been removed from their central place of worship and hidden in side altars, or even in different rooms. With the tabernacles went people’s belief in Transubstantiation and the true presence of Christ in the eucharist, altogether. Consequently, Communion rails have been removed, and people now line-up in processions to receive Communion in the hand instead of in genuflection. (Mother Teresa said that, of all the things she encountered in the world, what made her the saddest was watching people take Communion in the hand!) As respect for the Eucharist and belief in the True Presence faded, less than 10% of Catholics ‘feel the need’ to go to Confession, although 90% in attendance receive Communion (usually from some lay ‘Eucharistic ministers’). And the changes continue… Altar girls outnumber altar boys. An ‘alternative’ doctrine (”God is motherly,” anyone?) became the norm at many Catholic seminaries, which chose liberal and homosexual (or homosexuality-tolerant) candidates over any traditionalist. The Church today continues to reap what it has sown: ‘Cafeteria Catholicism’, pedophilia, homosexuality, lawsuits, closing of churches, abuses of the liturgy, irreverence during the Mass and in the sacred space of the Church, decline in Mass attendance, increasing divorce rates (the rate of divorce among Catholics is equal to that of non-Catholics) and unjustified ‘annulments’, rampant abortion, etc., etc., etc.

Recently, Archbishop Ranjith Patabendige, the present secretary of the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship, has called for a candid acknowledgment that liturgical changes since Vatican II have not achieved expected goals of the Fathers of the Council: “Undoubtedly, there have been positive results… but the negative effects seem to have been greater, causing much disorientation in our ranks.”

But even as early as 1972, Pope Paul VI, face-to-face with the dire consequences of the second Vatican council, admitted (speaking in the stylistic third-person),

Riferendosi alla situazione della Chiesa di oggi, il Santo Padre afferma di avere la sensazione che « da qualche fessura sia entrato il fumo di Satana nel tempio di Dio ». C’è il dubbio, l’incertezza, la problematica, l’inquietudine, l’insoddisfazione, il confronto. Non ci si fida più della Chiesa; [...] Si credeva che dopo il Concilio sarebbe venuta una giornata di sole per la storia della Chiesa. È venuta invece una giornata di nuvole, di tempesta, di buio, di ricerca, di incertezza. [...] Come è avvenuto questo? Il Papa confida ai presenti un suo pensiero: che ci sia stato l’intervento di un potere avverso. Il suo nome è il diavolo[.]

Referring to the Church’s situation today, the Holy Father affirms that he has the sensation that “from some crevice, the smoke of Satan has entered the temple of God”. We don’t trust the Church anymore; [...] We believed that after the Council would come a day of sunshine in the history of the Church. But instead there has come a day of clouds and storms, of darkness, of searching and uncertainty. [...] And how did this come about? The Pope will confide to you his belief: that there has been the intervention of an adversary power. Let us call him by his name: the devil.

Source: Pope Paul VI, Homily, 29 June 1978

Since the beginning, this has been a spiritual battleground — not only between soldiers of Christ and servants of the devil, but also much ‘closer to home’, pitting even brother against brother (e.g., consider the two brothers, editors of the the traditionalist The Remnant and liberal The Wanderer newspapers).

‘The Remnant’, as a title, is a propos for the struggle of traditionalists. It derives from Romans 11:5, “At the present time, there is a remnant left, selected out of grace and truth.” Many traditionalists consider this the motto of their arms, viewing themselves as the remaining few who have clung to authenticity and the ‘Fullness of Truth’ found in Tradition. This martyr-like sentiment is, perhaps, well-deserved, as many traditionalists have faced tremendous opposition since Vatican II. Consider, for example, that the Vatican, even today, expressly forbids the use of the traditional liturgy except by special approval; and consider in particular the struggles of Archbishop LeFebvre, who founded the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (which refused to celebrate the new order [novus ordo] Mass), only to be excommunicated as a result of it. (Amazing how homosexual priests who are openly members of ‘man-boy love associations’ don’t get excommunicated, but priests who defend Tradition get excommunicated!)

Some priests fared better than poor LeFebvre. The well-loved St. Padre Pio, for example, received special permission to continue saying the Tridentine Mass to the end of his days. (Although we must ask, Why not all priests?) And various churches have received bishops’ indults that allow (limited) use of the traditional liturgy. One such church is St. Agnes, near Grand Central Terminal in New York City. Recently, NPR included St. Agnes in a report on the upcoming motu proprio, the release of which is rumored to be imminent: streaming MediaPlayer format. (Alternatively, see NPR site for more listening options.)

So, what will happen after the release of the motu proprio? That remains to be seen. Pope John Paul II was notorious for releasing sentimental but ineffectual statements that were neither here-nor-there. Example:

To all those Catholic faithful who feel attached to some previous liturgical and disciplinary forms of the Latin tradition I wish to manifest my will to facilitate their ecclesial communion by means of the necessary measures to guarantee respect for their rightful aspirations. In this matter I ask for the support of the bishops and of all those engaged in the pastoral ministry in the Church.

Source: John Paul II, ‘Ecclesia Dei adflicta’ (motu proprio), July 2, 1988

That is, while he agrees that all Catholics had the right to worship according to the Missal of 1962 (the last official missal that featured the Tridentine liturgy), he did not repeal the limitation that it needed to be by episcopal approval. Thus, with many liberal bishops (many with ulterior motives for suppressing tradition) in office in the United States and Europe, these statements amounted to nothing.

When Cardinal Ratzinger was elected pope, traditionalists were elated at the prospect of a true theologian and guardian of tradition who would now be in the position to liberate the Mass of the Ages. When nothing happened over these past three years, traditionalists were bewildered. But in my opinion, this makes sense: The Holy Father is nobody’s fool. He knows that a rapid return of the pendulum would be as catastrophic as the original Vatican II, throwing the Church into disarray and divisive discord, especially if he were met by opposition of cardinals and bishops.

Perhaps now the time is ripe. The hints are already there: The secretary of the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship already conceded that the Pope is fully aware of the crisis in the liturgy and that he has long called attention to it in his many books and essays, stating that it is time “with the help of the Lord to make the necessary corrections”. According to Fr. George Rutler, “the self-absorbed banality [of the post-Conciliar Church] … has imposed a suburban mediocrity on the Church’s vision of the Heavenly Jerusalem.” Moreover, “the fundamental challenge is to stop ‘freewheeling’ liturgical innovation and to recover the sense of the sacred. While secularization of culture has diminished worship, the decline in Mass attendance also stems from liturgical abuses.” Archbishop Patabendige concurs: “A deep crisis of faith coupled with a drive for meaningless liturgical experimentation and novelty have had their own impact in the [failings of Vatican II].”

Personally, I feel that a motu proprio issuing a universal indult will be met with wide acclaim and a huge sigh of relief by many — As Fr. Rutler eloquently surmises, “the noble instructions of our new Pope will be an inestimable inspiration.” But this ‘Reform of the Reform’ will only be a beginning — and it comes with very important challenges: As the Archbishop warns, “in the interaction of the two Roman traditions [i.e., the novus ordo and the old Tridentine rites], it is possible that one may influence the other eventually”. It is our duty, if the traditional Latin Mass is allowed, to protect and preserve the old rite from new abuses by a generation of priests who has not experienced it, who may not know Latin and who may still suffer from an arrogance and a sentimentality for ‘novelty’ that was nurtured by 40 years of the ‘Spirit of Vatican II’.

Be that as it may, let us look forward — yes, with honesty about past failures — but also with joyful confidence in Providence.