We have had quite a busy last few days as Catholics. First, the Pope has restored the legitimate liturgical diversity of the Church by allowing wider celebration of the 1962 Missal of Blessed John XXIII. Second, the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, with papal approval, has reaffirmed the teaching of Vatican II that the fullness of the Christian faith is found in the visible Catholic Church here on earth. Like any other events of this magnitude, misinterpretation is and will be rife. The "liberal" media (abetted by some "liberal" Catholics) will say, and is already saying in one way or another, that the Pope is reversing Vatican II--a glaring falsehood that is obvious to those who read the documents just issued. Ironically, some hyper-conservative Catholics may try to make the same false case that the Pope is reversing Vatican II. Religious issues, like political issues, make for strange bedfellows.
My analysis is quite different, and I certainly think true to the documents and to this great Pope. Liturgically, the Pope declared on Saturday that there is one Roman Rite with two forms. The ordinary form is that of the reformed Mass of Vatican II. The extraordinary form is the Mass that immediately preceded the reforms of Vatican II, that is, the Mass as contained in the 1962 Missal of John XXIII. Notice that the Pope did not reach back to earlier and more ancient missals such as that of Pope Pius V, who presided over the seminal Council of Trent from whose name we get the adjective "Tridentine."
The Pope's liturgical move makes it loud and clear that the reformed Mass of Vatican II is just as valid as any other preceding form of the Mass. In fact, he went even further. He did not just say that the reformed Vatican II Mass is equal to what came earlier in time. He labeled it the "ordinary" form of the Latin rite. Let's make this comparison. The "ordinary" minister of Holy Communion is the ordained priest. Under special circumstances, a lay person can be an "extraordinary" minister of Holy Communion. In the same way, the reformed Vatican II Mass is the "ordinary" form of the Mass. In special circumstances, priests can now celebrate with more freedom the "extraordinary" form of the Mass in the 1962 Missal. Thus, the papal liturgical declaration on Saturday is a devastating defeat for those who view the reformed Vatican II Mass as either invalid or as a fatal corruption of the liturgy. The reformed Vatican II Mass is in fact the preferred and presumptive form of the Roman Rite. In addition, as noted earlier, the Pope did not reach back to the classic Tridentine Mass of the 16th century. Rather, he went to the 1962 Missal which was the latest in several revisions of the 16th century Mass. In the future, you may see further changes in the 1962 Missal itself. I would not be surprised to see that eventually the 1962 Missal may be changed to incorporate some practices now found in the reformed Mass of Vatican II.
Moving away from liturgical matters, let's consider the Vatican document reaffirming the teaching of Vatican II that all the elements willed by Christ for his Church are found only in the Catholic Church. My preceding sentence says it all. As in his liturgical move, the Pope is resoundingly affirming the continuing validity of the decrees of Vatican II. In fact, contrary to the false "liberal" spin (see today's N.Y. Times to read an example), the Vatican explicitly declares that the Church of Christ is "operative" in Protestant communities and that the Holy Spirit uses Protestant communities as "instruments of salvation" (see the Second & Third Questions in the document on the Church recently posted on this blog). The document goes even further to say in the third question that these separated communities "are deprived neither of significance nor importance in the mystery of salvation." The misleading media coverage will say that the document is primarily a negative judgment on Protestant communities. In fact, what is most significant in the context of the sweep of Catholic history is the very generous positive assessment of the role of Protestant communities in the saving work of the Holy Trinity. The hyper-conservative theological mindset that might lead some to refuse to see the work of the Holy Spirit in Protestant communities suffers a major rebuke in this document. So, contrary to some media reports, this Vatican letter on the true Church is a strong foundation for authentic ecumenism among all Christians.
When we take a long view, we tend to see the significance of Vatican pronouncements better. When we suspend our own prejudices and biases, we tend to see better what the Pope is aiming to do. I submit that our great and bold Pope is daring to bring an end to the liturgical confusion present in both the theological right and the theological left. He is also daring to end the confusion present in both camps concerning separated Christians, especially Protestants. Contrary to some theologically liberal views, Protestants are not equivalent to Catholics when it comes to the gifts of Christ to his Church. Contrary to some theologically right-wing views, Protestants are very far from being strangers to the saving work of the Holy Spirit that proclaims the one Gospel of Christ. The Pope desires a serene reception for these documents. Let's give him that serene reception by focusing on what the documents actually say and on what their significance is in the broad context of centuries of Catholic history and teaching.
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Following the 2004 Presidential election, we've expanded our discussion to cover the public policy decisions of Catholics in public service on both sides of the political divide.
