If you haven't done so yet, please read the previous post. It is an attempted summary on recent events. In that otherwise-excellent summary, I saw no mention of the attacks on the Traditional Mass; perhaps the summary was composed before the nefarious designs against the Mass became known.
St Padre Pio once said that "it would be easier for the world to survive without the sun than to do without Holy Mass." He died before the Novus Ordo Mass was promulgated by Pope Paul VI. St. Leonard of Port Maurice said of the Mass, "I believe that were it not for the Holy Mass, as of this moment the world would be in the abyss." Clearly Saints Pio and Leonard understood the absolute necessity of the Mass - as it existed before Vatican II.
Vatican II, either by intent of some council fathers or by misinterpretation (and I think it's the former), led to massive changes in the Mass. I don't have time to rehearse all of them, save to say that extreme violence was done to the dignity and theology of Holy Mass, with devastating spiritual and societal results. Many good people understood the dangers, if only instinctively. Thanks to them, the Traditional Latin Mass never completely faded into obscurity.
In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI issued a Summorum Pontificum, basically allowing priests to celebrate the Tridentine Mass without having to seek permission of their bishops, provided that a stable group of lay people wished to have said Masses and be willing to support them. With that, the Mass in the Extraordinary Form started to be celebrated in many locations. Many of the faithful Catholics attending them were young people. These young people tend to have large families and thus their children were growing up in a decent liturgical setting.
As I mentioned in one of my posts this past Thursday, it became clear that the pope and many of the progressives in the Vatican have malicious designs upon the Tridentine Mass. The edicts they are going to promulgate will have the immediate effect of hobbling those who wish to participate in the Mass of the Ages, with the ultimate aim at choking off that Mass altogether.
The details of this attack are now crystalizing. Both GloriaTV and Rorate Caeli agree that there are two parts to this attack. First (to come in a matter of weeks) involves focus on the clergy currently celebrating Traditional Latin Masses. They will have to apply for permission from their bishops to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass, even if the Mass is now well-established. This is a direct contradiction to Pope Benedict's Summorum Pontificum.
In addition to the previous post's take on current events, I post the June 4th broadcast of the Anchor Team, where Michael Hichborn and Jim Maughan put forth their own observations. Please take the time to watch this and to read the other material. I realize it's a lot of information and it can be overwhelming, but we - each and every one of us - must understand these matters so that we can understand and defend ourselves and our loved ones against all the forces designed to imperil our souls.
Might this wreckage be averted? By the grace of God, it can. Sometimes shedding the light and drawing attention to planned mischief can cause would-be perpetrators to reconsider their contemplated crimes. Of course be praying your daily Rosaries. Pray the prayers of Leo XIII after Mass. They are a standard ending of every Low Mass anyway, but consider making them a part of your after-Mass thanksgiving. Certainly be talking of these matter amongst yourselves to make all aware of what is happening and to strategize how you'll approach your pastor, bishop, etc.
As further developments emerge, I will post them.
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