A number of Una Voce delegates from around the world gathered in Rome on the first weekend in September to attend a meeting with Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, the new President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei. This was the same weekend in which Pope John Paul II beatified Popes Pius IX and John XXIII.The delegates gathered on 31st August and the day started by attending holy Mass at San Gregorio, the church in Rome of the Fraternity of St. Peter. It may not be big, it may not be particularly beautiful as judged by Roman standards, but those who are traditional and support the Fraternity can at least claim it to be theirs. It is our toe-hold in Rome where the traditional Mass is celebrated daily. Father Bisig celebrated a Low Mass and the server was William Basile from Una Voce Rochester, USA. It was the ideal way to start the day and our visit to Rome.
After Mass some of the delegates proceeded to St. Peter's to walk through the Holy Door. All paths lead to Rome, they say, and in Rome all paths seem to lead to St. Peter's judging by the number and variety of visitors that thronged the square and the basilica. St Peter's itself needs no detailed description as everyone is aware of its greatness and grandeur but two points can be made that may have escaped the visitor's attention. At the outer door, slightly towards the left, there is a plaque containing the names of all those prelates who, in 1950, assisted Pope Pius XII in defining the dogma of the Assumption of Our Lady. Included in the list is Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. How ironic that someone who is now considered absolutely persona non grata among the liberal establishment and is so reviled by them should have his name carved into the very stone fabric of St. Peter's.
If it's good enough for St. Peter's?
The other observation concerns the high altar. In St. Peter's, most people assume that the celebrant (the Pope) faces the people. This is not the case. Allowing for the fact that the high altar is built above the tomb of St. Peter, the celebrant is clearly facing east whenever he celebrates holy Mass. And if one goes ‘behind' the altar we find there are altar rails still intact that clearly indicate that communicants approached the altar from the west and knelt facing east when receiving Our Blessed Lord. The altar is still facing east (IT has not been re-ordered) and the altar rails are still intact. If this is good enough for our Holy Father and St. Peter's, the spiritual home of the Church on earth and the venue of Vatican II, then it is good enough for everyone else.
Mass in the Ambrosian rite.
On Saturday 1st September, the Una Voce delegates attended a Missa Cantata in the Ambrosian rite at the Basilica of St. Paul without the Walls, a few kilometres outside Rome. This had been arranged by Dr Mario Seno, President of Una Voce Italy, as the official Mass of the Una Voce Federation for the Jubilee Year.The Mass was celebrated in the Chapel of St. Stephen by His Excellency, Mgr Bernado Citterio, auxiliary Bishop of Milan emeritus with the Una Voce Choir of Rome assisting. The chapel was packed to the doors and the temperature inside was uncomfortably high for everyone, it seemed, except Mgr Citterio. While everyone sweltered in the heat, this remarkable 92 year-old who stood no more than five feet tall, celebrated Mass with energy and preached with such passion, yet hardly a bead of sweat appeared on his face throughout the entire ceremony.
The Ambrosian rite appears unusual to those who are used to the traditional Roman rite. The sequence of prayers, for example, follows a slightly different pattern. Other differences are that the prayers at the foot of the altar have slight but noticeable differences, the words "beato Ambrosio Confessori" are added to the Confiteor, The Kyrie eleison follows the Gloria, and is repeated during the Offertory and the final blessing. It was truly an inspiring and unforgettable occasion in a wonderful setting.
After returning to Rome the Una Voce Council members attended a meeting at the offices of Una Voce Italy to consider the impending meeting with Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, the newly-appointed President of the Ecclesia Dei Commission. All the delegates were delighted to see Dr. Eric de Saventhem once again and he was invited by Michael Davies to co-chair the meeting.
On Sunday the 3rd September everyone in Rome seemed to be headed for St. Peter's for the beatification ceremony. By 10.00 a.m., when the ceremony started, the square contained many tens of thousands of the faithful. The Mass itself, on the steps of St. Peter's, was solemn and dignified and it was interesting to note that the Pope spoke in Latin and the choir sang Missa de Angelis and Credo III. On the other hand, on the downside, it was clearly evident that many who attended were not particularly interested in the fact that holy Mass was being celebrated. They were there as spectators at a spectacle. Many were chatting among themselves, drinking coke, eating snacks, wandering around, in and out, and generally giving no real attention to the fact that Holy Mass was being celebrated by the Supreme Pontiff. This was particularly true of those around the periphery who, although they had their tickets of admission, wandered in and out at will, either as individuals or as large groups. The contrast between the dignity and solemnity of those taking part in the beatification ceremony and the casual uninterest of tens of thousands of onlookers was clearly evident. On the positive side, without question, was the fact that here we had the Supreme Pontiff of the Catholic Church speaking on the steps of St. Peter's and tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of people had come to hear him. Despite all the problems within the Church we still have the attraction of the papacy of the Universal Church for huge numbers of people from all around the world.
Sunday evening saw most of the Una Voce delegates attending Mass once again at the church of San Gregorio, the church of the Fraternity of St. Peter. After Mass the Una Voce delegates held a further meeting to discuss some final points of approach for the meeting the next day with Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos. As this was to be our first meeting with the new head of the Ecclesia Dei Commission it was vitally important to ensure that the outcome would be fruitful and beneficial for the traditional cause.
The delegates had a number of points that they hoped would be clarified by the cardinal. In addition to finding out his attitude towards traditionalists in general we wished to ask about our petition of October 1998 to Pope John Paul II, to discuss our fears about the Fraternity of St. Peter, and how he would approach the thorny question of bishops ignoring the wishes of the Pope over requests for the traditional Mass.
The meeting with Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos.
Monday 4 September 2000 saw the culmination of the visit to Rome - the meeting with the new President of the Ecclesia Dei Commission. The audience with Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos took place in the office of the Congregation for the Clergy from 12.15p.m. until 2.00 p.m. On behalf of the delegation, the International President, Michael Davies, congratulated the Cardinal on his appointment and said that they had received great encouragement from his interview with the Austrian journal Profil in which he had stated:
"Is it a problem to permit today again the Latin Mass which was for so long a time the standard? I believe these people are concerned for the holy, the Mystery of the Mass and respect for customs. Why don't we give thus the liberty to celebrate the Mass in such a way?"His Eminence was asked, in view of the fact that the letter Protocol 1411, 1999, of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, states that every priest of the Roman Rite may use the Missal of 1970, whether it might be possible to implement the recommendation of the 1986 Commission of Cardinals that any priest wishing to celebrate Mass in Latin should be free to chose between the Missals of 1962 and 1970. He was also urged to intervene on behalf of our members with bishops who refuse to permit celebrations according to the 1962 Missal. This had been done by Cardinal Mayer during his presidency of the Commission, but very rarely by his two successors.
His Eminence was informed that we wished celebrations according to the 1962 Missal to be carried out in accordance with the rubrics of that Missal without incorporating any subsequent developments such as Communion in the hand or the modifications made in the 1965 Missal. Considerable concern was expressed regarding recent events involving the Fraternity of St Peter, and our submission was concluded by expressing a desire to remain in regular contact with the Commission.
The Cardinal took careful note of all the points made to him, and during his very detailed reply he stated that he considered the Missal of St Pius V to be a great treasure of the Church, and that it attracted young people not primarily for the use of the Latin language but for the sense of mystery that it imparts. He assured us that he would contact bishops who declined to permit Mass according to the 1962 Missal, and that he could see no reason why we should not be granted the use of all the liturgical books in use in 1962. It was his opinion that the Motu Proprio "Ecclesia Dei" put a serious responsibility upon bishops to implement it, and that only when there are serious reasons to the contrary should requests be denied.
As regards the Fraternity of St. Peter, His Eminence insisted that his intention had been to preserve and strengthen the Fraternity. He spoke of the practice of concelebration as an important sign of ecclesial charity and the unity of the Church, and explained that although he would like to see members of the Fraternity concelebrate with their diocesan bishops on Holy Thursday they would not be compelled to do so. He mentioned that he had appointed as Superior General, Father Arnaud Devillers who had told him that up to now he had never celebrated Mass according to the 1970 Missal. The Cardinal stated that in the future, after a period of stability, the Fraternity may resume functioning in the ordinary way with regard to elections.
His Eminence thanked us for bringing our concerns to him, and assured us that we would be welcome in his office whenever we come to Rome. All the delegates were impressed by the warmth of his reception and his evident desire to do all in his power to ensure that, in accordance with the Motu Proprio "Ecclesia Dei", respect is shown for our rightful aspirations.
After reviewing this communiqué His Eminence wished it to be made clear that the Commission has the authority to make certain modifications for the celebration of Mass according to the 1962 Roman Missal, as it has done for certain French abbeys, and as Cardinal Mayer stated in his 1990 letter to English-speaking bishops. These may be followed by communities who wish for them. They will be clearly delineated in a subsequent document to be issued by the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei".
The International Federation was represented at the audience by its President, Mr Michael Davies, the President d'Honneur Dr Eric M. De Saventhem, Miss Eliska Kucirkova (Czech Republic), Monsieur Jacques Dhaussy (France), Dr. Helmut Rückriegel (Germany), Mr Peadar Laighléis (Ireland), Count Neri Capponi (Italy), Mr Jan Filip Libicki (Poland), Dr. F. Haehnel and Mr W. Basile (USA). Frau Monika Rheinschmitt represented Pro Missa Tridentina. Also present in Rome to assist in preparing the submission to the Cardinal, but unable to be present for the audience, were Mr Leo Darroch (England and Wales), Dr Mario Seno (Italy), Mr Karl Kvadsheim (Norway), and Mr Ralf Siebenbürger (Austria).
The international Una Voce petition of October 1998.
On behalf of the Una Voce Federation, Michael Davies presented a submission to Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos about the Una Voce petition of October 1998 to the Holy Father. The submission included a letter summarising the events of the past two years, a copy of the original petition, and copies of all correspondence that has passed between the Federation and Rome over the past two years. The cardinal promised that if the opportunity arose he would bring the matter to the attention of the Holy Father. The text of the letter to the cardinal is given below. This is re-produced to let the members of the Una Voce movement know that there has been activity behind the scenes over the past two years to elicit some kind of response from the appropriate quarters. It has been a lengthy and frustrating process but one that will be pursued if at all possible.His Eminence Dario Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, 28th August 2000.
Eminence, May I, on behalf of the International Federation Una Voce, congratulate you on your appointment as President of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, and beg you to assist our Federation in a matter involving the Commission that has been causing us great concern for the past two years.
For a period of two years between October 1996 and October 1998, the International Una Voce Federation conducted a world-wide petition amongst its members. A total of 85 organisations replied and signed their agreement of its aims and objectives and among the signatories were the heads of 14 priestly and religious orders.
The petition, which included a personal gift to the Holy Father, was presented on the morning of 26th October 1998 by Leo Darroch, Deputy Chairman of The Latin Mass Society of England and Wales, to Monsignor David John Malloy, official of the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household. On receiving the petition, Monsignor Malloy promised that it would be in the Holy Father's hands that very day.
After waiting patiently for some months for a reply I wrote on 11th March 1999 to His Excellency Bishop James P. Harvey. On 18th March 1999 I received a very brief acknowledgement from Monsignor Malloy in which he simply said: "Please be assured that the documentation has been duly forwarded as promised." I then wrote to Monsignor Malloy on 30th March 1999 to thank him for his letter and said that our Federation was waiting anxiously for a response from the Holy Father or his representative. This letter was not acknowledged. I wrote again via registered mail to Bishop Harvey On 22nd June 1999 asking for some information about our petition. This letter was acknowledged by Monsignor Malloy who simply repeated his brief statement of 18th March 1999. On 10th October 1999 I wrote in Polish to the Most Reverend Stanislaw Dziwisz, Prefetto Aggiunto della Casa Pontificia but this letter received no reply. It is very distressing that an international movement in good standing within the Church should find itself seemingly ostracised by those in authority within the Vatican who refuse to reply to legitimate requests for information.
Our petition included an expensive personal gift for the Holy Father that took many months in creation by craftsmen of great skill but no acknowledgement has ever been received by our Federation that the Holy Father actually received our gift and petition.
For nearly two years we have tried by various means to establish what happened to our petition but to no avail. The full story of the petition and a list of all the signatories is contained in pages 13 to 20 of the November 1998 Newsletter of The Latin Mass Society - a copy of which is enclosed with this letter. Also enclosed are copies of the letters sent to the various Vatican officials. I beg you to use your authority and good offices to let us know whether the petition and personal gift were ever presented to Pope John Paul II. Please be assured that we do not wish to apply pressure to the Holy Father for a reply to our petition; we only wish to know that he did, in fact, receive it personally and is aware of the humble entreaties of his faithful sons and daughters in Jesus Christ.
I remain, your Eminence, your most obedient servant in Jesus Christ, and ask your blessing.
In Domino,
Michael Davies. President.
[Taken from the Latin Mass Society's November 2000 Newsletter.]