The Vatican Congregation for Religious, with the approval of Pope
Francis, has appointed a commissioner to oversee the Franciscan Friars
of the Immaculate and has restricted their celebration of the
traditional Latin Mass, touching off a storm of speculation about the
reasons and broader implications.
The news of the decree was first reported by the veteran Vatican
journalist Sandro Magister, who described the move as the first time
that Pope Francis has contradicted his predecessor Benedict XVI.
“But what is most astonishing are the last five lines of the decree of July 11,” writes Magister.
The declaration’s final paragraph reads:
“In addition to the above, the Holy Father Francis has directed that
every religious of the congregation of the Franciscan Friars of the
Immaculate is required to celebrate the liturgy according to the
ordinary rite and that, if the occasion should arise, the use of the
extraordinary form (Vetus Ordo) must be explicitly authorized by the
competent authorities, for every religious and/or community that makes
the request.”
“The astonishment stems from the fact that what is decreed contradicts
the dispositions given by Benedict XVI, which for the celebration of the
Mass in the ancient rite ‘sine populo’ demand no previous request for
authorization whatsoever,” Magister explains.
The decree was signed by the Vatican congregation’s prefect, Cardinal
Joao Braz de Viz, and its secretary, Archbishop José Rodrìguez Carballo.
Capuchin Father Fidenzio Volpi was named in the declaration as the
commissioner and he will be required to submit a written report every
six months to the Vatican dicastery.
The reaction in the Catholic traditionalist blogosphere to the decree has been strong.
The blog Rorate Caeli, which focuses on the sacred liturgy, said in a
four-point response that referenced Benedict XVI’s “Summorum
Pontificum,” the papal document that allowed the pre-1962 Mass in Latin
to be celebrated widely, that the new decree will impact one of the
largest religious communities that celebrates the traditional Latin
Mass.
“One justification now being raised,” the July 29 post says, “is that
the FFI's application of Summorum Pontificum had caused discord in many
communities and that the Traditional Latin Mass was ‘imposed’ brutally
on priests who did not want it. On the contrary, we in Rorate, who have
been closely observing the FFI since 2008, can affirm that the opposite
is the case: Summorum was applied in a very gradual manner … .”
But the spokesman for the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate, Father
Alfonso Bruno, told CNA July 29 that “more than 80 percent of the friars
appreciate the intervention of the Church.”
In his estimation, the “problem is not the Holy Mass usus antiquior,” which he described as “only the tip of the iceberg.”
Fr. Bruno pointed to a “small group in power” within the religious
congregation that is being influenced by Mother Francesca Perillo, who
is “very close” with Lefebvrist groups. He is worried that Mother
Perillo, who is in charge of those sisters who live in hermitages, and
her followers could fall into “heresy and disobedience.”
Mother Perillo could not be reach for comment before publication time.
Father Angelo M. Geiger, who is the General Delegate of the Franciscan
Friars of the Immaculate in the United States, said in a July 29 post on
his Mary Victrix blog that Magister’s piece “is an unfortunate instance
of an overeager journalist sensationalizing something he can only
speculate about.”
“The restrictions on our community are specific to us and have been put
in place for reasons specific to us,” Fr. Geiger remarked.
He also directly addressed the question of whether Pope Francis had contradicted his predecessor.
“Pope Francis has not contradicted Pope Benedict. The visitation of our
community began under Pope Benedict and the Commission was recommended
by Cardinal João Braz de Aviz who was appointed to the Congregation by
Pope Benedict,” he wrote.
Fr. Geiger said that “what is being reported in the press and what
has actually transpired within our community over the course of a number
of years are two different things.”
Fathers Geiger and Bruno both finished their remarks by emphasizing their trust in the Church and in Pope Francis.
“We are in peace because we are in the hands of our mother Church, by a
Pope that we love and appreciate so much,” Fr. Bruno said.