Freedom for TLM

April 10, 2006 – A Vatican source told The Catholic News Agency [http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/] that Benedict XVI may grant permission to use the Missal of St. Pius V, the liturgical rite used in the Church before Vatican II. The announcement could come “between Holy Thursday and Easter Sunday,” but the exact day has not yet been set. Nevertheless, the source said the decision has already been made by the Holy Father and that it’s “only a matter of time” before it is publicly announced.

“A minor official gesture by the Holy Father would be enough to allow the Mass according to the 1962 Missal to celebrated by whoever desires to do so, thus reiterating that this rite is still valid today simply because it was not abolished,” the source told CNA. At the same time, such a gesture by the Pope could contribute to ending the schism with the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X, founded by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988.

This hype about universal permission by the Pope to use the Missal of St. Pius V, the liturgical rite used in the Church before Vatican II will disappoint a lot of people. We cannot expect the “modern” bishops and priests in the Philippines to make a “mad rush” to the discipline of the Traditional Latin Mass. The CBCP, particularly the maverick bishops, are more concerned about politics than their mission to evangelize the faithful in the wake of heretical attempts to shatter our faith in the divinity of Jesus Christ and our belief that Judas truly betrayed the Christ. No wonder recruits for religious life are dwindling.