(LifeSiteNews) — The implementation in France of “Traditionis Custodes,” the Motu proprio by which Pope Francis is attempting to relegate the traditional liturgy of the Catholic Church in ever-decreasing “reserves,” has already caused much suffering as some French bishops have chosen severely to restrict celebrations according to the usus antiquior.
Some weeks back, at the initiative of the organizers of the yearly traditional Pentecost pilgrimage from Paris to Chartres, along with friendly associations, an appeal was sent to the president of the French Bishops’ conference, Archbishop Eric de Moulins-Beaufort, requesting an appointment that would allow designated lay representatives of the traditional Catholic community in France to present their concerns.
The letter was not initially made public, in order to give the archbishop the opportunity to reply and to propose a meeting in a spirit of goodwill.
More than two weeks after the letter was initially sent, no response was forthcoming from Eric de Moulins-Beaufort despite the urgent and filial tone of the letter.
“Notre Dame de Chrétienté,” the lay association that organizes the Chartres pilgrimage, therefore proceeded to publish the text of the letter on its Facebook page on Monday evening.
The letter builds on the unprecedented success of this year’s Chartres pilgrimage where some 15,000 people, half of them less than 20 years old, joined the 100 km walk from Paris to Chartres with all ceremonies “exclusively” in the traditional Latin rite.
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France’s “traditionalist” movement has flourished from the very start of the doctrinal and liturgical upheavals in the wake of Vatican II, and many current young French members of the traditional community were actually brought up in families in which going to the Latin Mass was the absolute norm. As the letter stresses, “the high level of participation of young people is also proof that many families have effectively transmitted their faith as well as their habit of regular religious practice, precisely thanks to the traditional rite.”
Each year hundreds of young people who do not practice the faith at all, or who usually go to Novus Ordo Masses, joined the Chartres pilgrimage either as a challenge, to join friends or for other reasons, and many were profoundly impressed by the sacredness and the beauty of the traditional rite when they discovered it for the first time. There is truly an “apostolic” and missionary dimension to the “Pilgrimage of Christendom” to which the organizers are greatly attached.
The appeal of the letter was very clear regarding these young people and their spiritual needs: “It is unthinkable to turn them into second-class Catholics or into an ‘Indian reserve.’ One year after the publication of the Motu Proprio Traditionis Custodes, it would seem urgent to clear up the many questions that remain and to provide reassurance to this part of the Church that is suffering from an obvious lack of consideration on the part of ecclesiastical authorities.”
Among the problems traditional French Catholics are facing are a decreasing number of habitual authorized “Traditional Latin Mass,” mainly in the diocese of Paris; other dioceses are expected to follow suit in the coming months.
Thankfully, though, most traditional Sunday Masses have been continued by local bishops. In some dioceses, their number has even increased.
But regarding the other Sacraments, following several Roman documents that aim to impose a blanket ban their traditional celebration, situations vary sharply from place to place. In some dioceses it is not very difficult to obtain a traditional wedding, for instance; in others, the traditional Mass is offered but the marriage formula must be taken from the Paul VI rite. In yet others local bishops are very hostile.
The same goes for Confirmations. Some ecclesiastical provinces have banned then totally, in others solutions can be found. In May, the new Archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, actually went out of his way to confirm 55 faithful, mostly young adolescents in his previous diocese of Lille which he had not yet left, at the local church of Saint-Etienne where the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest has a lively apostolate.
These concerns are evoked in the letter, with a special mention for diocesan priests who are hardest hit (to date) by the Traditionis Custodes restrictions, at a time when priestly are tragically low but when many of the young men who do answer the call to the priesthood are very open to the traditional rite and are eager to celebrate the traditional Latin Mass.
Here below is the full translation of the letter to Archbishop Eric de Moulins-Beaufort, together with the full list of signatories which I had the honor to join.
A letter to the President of the French Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop Eric de Moulins-Beaufort.
The success of the Chartres pilgrimage organized at Pentecost 2022 was a living proof of the dynamism and missionary character of the traditional community. On its 40th anniversary, Notre Dame de Chrétienté brought together more than 15,000 pilgrims despite adverse weather conditions, following two years of disruption due to the health crisis. This year’s record attendance was a confirmation of a constant trend, as the number of faithful participating in the pilgrimage of Christendom has been increasing for several years. Half of the marchers were under twenty years old, a fact that reveals the deep vitality of this movement of faithful who come en masse to benefit from the graces of an event that exclusively makes use of the traditional rite.
These traditionally-minded youngsters are but the visible part of the vast number of faithful who are attached to the usus antiquior, and of the hundreds of French schools, chapels, and parishes that thrive on this liturgy. The high level of participation of young people is also proof that many families have effectively transmitted their faith as well as their habit of regular religious practice, precisely thanks to the traditional rite.
The Church cannot shut its eyes to this reality: the usus antiquior is attracting more and more young people and, among them, there are many who do not come from the “traditional community.” It is therefore unthinkable to turn them into second-class Catholics or into an “Indian reserve.” One year after the publication of the Motu Proprio Traditionis Custodes, it would seem urgent to clear up the many questions that remain and to provide reassurance to this part of the Church that is suffering from an obvious lack of consideration on the part of ecclesiastical authorities.
Among the sore points are the refusal to confer Confirmation in the traditional form in a number of dioceses, the banning of diocesan priests from freely celebrating this liturgical form, as well as arbitrary prohibitions of marriage in the ancient rite and the restrictions placed on catechism teaching.
In a spirit of communion and in order to respond to the imperatives of synodality dear to Pope Francis, it would seem to us necessary that a true dialogue be set up to address the many difficulties being encountered in the French dioceses. This is why we ask that traditional Catholics be heard officially by the French Bishops’ Conference, through the intermediary of chosen representatives.
It is indeed more essential than ever to respond to the expectations of the young and numerous faithful, who are only asking to live by the faith and the sacraments of the Church’s Tradition in a pacified and serene atmosphere.
It is indeed more essential than ever to respond to the expectations of the young and numerous faithful, who are only asking to live by the faith and the sacraments of the Church’s Tradition in a pacified and serene atmosphere.
Guillaume d’Alançon, Director of the Institute for the Family in Europe
Patrick Banken, President of Una Voce France and Administrator of the International Una Voce Federation
Marc Billig, president of the association Foi et Tradition
Eric Bonnouvrier, president of Semper Fidelis
Jean-Etienne Dubin-Mouchotte, President of Juventus Traditionis
Louis de Lestang, vice-president of the association Notre-Dame de Chrétienté
Jean-Pierre Maugendre, director general of Renaissance Catholique
Philippe Maxence, journalist and writer, editor-in-chief of L’Homme Nouveau
Denis Pinoteau, vice-president of the association Notre-Dame de Chrétienté
Hervé Rolland, vice-president, General Delegate of the association Notre-Dame de Chrétienté
Jeanne Smits, journalist
Vincent-Joseph Soullier, president of the association Saint André et Notre Dame de l’Isle
Jean de Tauriers, president of the association Notre-Dame de Chrétienté
Guillaume de Thieulloy, journalist and writer
