Pope dumps Council

As expected, Pope Benedict XVI has issues is motu propio (meaning "on his own initiative, and this surely is), Summorum pontificum, liberalizing the use of the pre-Vatican II liturgies for all the sacraments, save Holy Orders, it seems. The old Roman Missal is being styled the "Missal of Blessed John XXIII," which is rich indeed, since all J23 did to the liturgy was add St. Joseph to the Roman Canon.

Though the pope insists this is not a repudiation of Vatican II, one has to wonder if the liturgical principles of "full, conscious, and active participation" as the "paramount concern" of the reform of the liturgy will be observed as the old liturgy is resurrected. Those principles were, after all, taught by an ecumenical council called by the pope. And what about the lectionary? The liturgy constitution says that the "treasures of the scriptures" should be opened for the faithful in the liturgy. Will the old lectionary also be used, which has only a single cycle of readings (epistle and gospel) and as opposed to the vastly superior three-year cycle (Old Testament, epistle, and gospel reading) of the reformed liturgy. I doubt it.

I can only echo the words of the Italian bishop Luca Brandolini as reported by the Washington Post: "A reform for which many people worked, with great sacrifice and only inspired by the desire to renew the Church, has now been canceled."

Of course, now we can only wait and see if the introduction of a second Roman rite into use will indeed bring greater unity. I doubt it, especially since Bishop Fellay of the schismatic Society of Pius X has already said that there can be no further steps to unity until Rome lifts the excommunications imposed in 1988.

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