Cardinals criticize ‘very controlled’ consistory, some express indifference toward Latin Mass

(LifeSiteNews) — Vatican reporter Niwa Limbu has published an eye-opening article for The Catholic Herald on what happened behind the scenes at last week’s consistory.

What Limbu and others’ reporting suggests is that the many cardinals were ill-prepared for what took place and that they were either indifferent to or downright opposed to the Latin Mass, most especially Cardinal Arthur Roche, prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

Learning that the cardinals aren’t all that interested in the liturgy isn’t earth-shattering news. Roche, after all, implemented Pope Francis’ Traditionis Custodes document that resulted in the closure of many Latin Mass centers across the world. His opposition to the Latin Mass is fairly well-known. What’s more, less than a handful of cardinals are known to be supporters of the Traditional Liturgy.

At the same time, Limbu’s report, as well as the breaking news that Roche gave a letter to the consistory’s attendees on the liturgy, provides Catholics a better view of how the hierarchy views the Latin Mass in general. Sadly, it appears those who attend the Traditional Mass are in for a bumpy ride in the coming months and maybe even years.

Before going any further, it is worth highlighting something that Cardinal Gerhard Müller told Raymond Arroyo last week on his EWTN program The World Over.

During their conversation, Arroyo asked Cardinal Müller to explain why liturgy was not discussed. While asserting that Leo will eventually “find a solution for everybody,” The prelate – who is one of the few cardinals who says the Latin Mass – defended the decision of his confreres to discuss the problems related to synodality instead.

“It’s not the central question for the Church of today,” His Eminence began, alluding to the liturgy. “We are living in the time of secularization, atheism in some anti-Christian, great political systems, and we have the woke ideology, the wrong anthropology.”

It is hard to imagine that Catholics who love the Latin Mass were anything other than deflated by His Eminence’s answer.

In his report on the consistory, Limbu explains that the liturgy “generated considerable interest” among the cardinals and that a “notable consensus began to emerge within the College, including among non-conservative members, expressing growing concern over liturgical abuses in various forms.”

Despite that, several cardinals told various media outlets that they weren’t all that interested in the topic. “I’m indifferent to that question,” Timorese Cardinal Virgilio do Carmo da Silva told the press. “I’m just here to listen,” a Latin American cardinal told liberal-leaning outlet The Pillar, which also reported that “several” cardinals were “ambivalent” about the Latin Mass.

Ultra-liberal Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich of Luxembourg, however, told the National Catholic Register that he wasn’t against discussing it and that he was even “flexible” on the question. At the same time, he said, “I do not like sometimes the values that are attached to [the Latin Mass] – no inter-religious dialogue, not accepting the Second Vatican Council, and so on.”

Disappointment and criticism were leveled against the consistory in other ways, too. Limbu reports that several attendees were perplexed by the proceedings. It might be better if “they do it by Zoom or something to save money,” one cardinal said. Another told him there was “a lot of confusion“ given that some of the preparatory documents were sent electronically and that “some of the older [cardinals] don’t do email regularly.”

Limbu also reported that a conservative cardinal informed him that it felt “very controlled.” Another cardinal told him: “It’s the same program as Pope Francis, but with a generous leader.”

Other attendees said they felt the open forum portion was “very short.” Some complained that “in the end, nobody took our opinion.” Limbu further said that another cardinal remarked, “the idea is that if you don’t agree with the group, you haven’t listened enough.” Yet another cardinal told The Catholic Herald that “some of his friends [Pope Francis] spoke about a new Church and absolute change.” Another sharply commented that Francis’ “cult of personality should have nothing to do with the Catholic Church.” Cardinal Müller told the outlet simply that, “the Church of Benedict doesn’t exist anymore.”

Earlier this week, reports began circulating that consistory attendees were given a paper at the end of the meeting written by Cardinal Roche on the topic of the liturgy. Vatican reporter Diane Montagna published the letter on her Substack blog.

Roche begins by arguing that the Mass has “always undergone reforms.” While briefly referencing St. Pius V’s 1570 bull Quo Primum, he quickly moves on to the Second Vatican Council’s document on the liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium.

Roche proceeds to argue that tradition is not a “collection of dead things” and that Vatican II foresaw a need to “reform the liturgy.” He then shares several quotations from Sacrosanctum Concilium to justify his views. Roche further cites Francis’ deeply flawed 2022 apostolic letter Desiderio Desideravi. He cites where Francis said, “It would be trivial to read the tensions, unfortunately present around the celebration, as a simple divergence between different tastes concerning a particular ritual form. The problematic is primarily ecclesiological.”

Roche continues by sharing more quotes made by Francis in Desiderio Desideravi: “I do not see how it is possible to say that one recognizes the validity of the Council – though it amazes me that a Catholic might presume not to do so – and at the same time not accept the liturgical reform born out of Sacrosanctum Concilium, a document that expresses the reality of the Liturgy intimately joined to the vision of Church so admirably described in Lumen gentium.”

By referencing these remarks, Roche is effectively telling the cardinals that the hostility towards the Latin Mass that was present under Francis will continue under Leo.

In her reporting, Montagna has noted that when they arrived at the consistory, the cardinals “were informed that, due to time constraints, they would need to select only two topics. Evangelization and synodality were chosen as the primary themes for discussion, while the liturgy and reform of the Curia – initially given equal footing on the agenda – were set aside.”

According to Vatican News, Leo has promised that the “other themes” that were supposed to be discussed at the consistory are “not lost” and that he wants cardinals to share their concerns with him on those topics in the future.

Given that Leo has also said that there will be another consistory in June and more in the coming years, one would hope that the cardinals who do offer the Latin Mass will be successful in communicating their concerns with him and that they will be able to ensure that the topic will be brought up at future meetings.