USA : The Rev. William Rowe, whose refusal to adhere to the
wording of the Roman Catholic Mass caused him to become known as the "ad
libbing priest," is officially barred from performing church rites.
The banned practices include performing Mass and officiating at weddings.
According to a statement released Wednesday by Belleville Diocese
Bishop Edward Braxton, a 60-day appeal has expired making an earlier
ruling by a panel in Rome final.
That ruling by Cardinal Mauro
Piacenza, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, stated that Rowe's
written argument that changing the liturgy to make it easier for
parishioners to understand was no basis to remove him from performing
priestly duties, "has no canonical basis in law or in fact and is
hereby rejected."
Neither Braxton nor Rowe could be reached for comment Friday.
Braxton, in his public statement, also criticized a claim by Rowe that a
glitch in the procedure on the part of the Belleville Diocese, meant he
was still able to act as a priest outside but not within the diocese.
Rowe, 73, was the pastor of St. Mary's Parish in Mount Carmel for the last 18 years.
In July, he was forced into retirement by Braxton after parishioners
complained that he changed some of the sacred wording of the Mass,
although many others members of the church supported Rowe and urged
Braxton to let him stay.
Rowe is now a volunteer at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Olney and resides on the church grounds.
Braxton came under pressure from Rome to remove Rowe after the story of
the "ad libbing" priest was publicized.
Braxton gave Rowe several
chances over the last few years to stick to the wording and stay on as
pastor in Mount Carmel, where he voluntarily worked without a salary and
enjoyed heavy support from the community.
Rowe has said he has
slightly changed the wording of the liturgy for at least 20 years in the
spirit of making it easier to understand. He said he never altered the
key phrase, "This is my body. This is my blood," which lies at the heart
of the Roman Catholic's church's beliefs.
In December, a
revamped liturgy was adopted by the church leadership in Rome, and was
said to be closer to earlier Latin texts thought to be more traditional.
However, it has been criticized as being hard to understand.