This is somewhat old news (about 10 days), but I hadn't seen it in my blog travels until today.
Interesting news from the blog of Damian Thompson of the Telegraph (UK), and from Rocco Palmo of the Tablet (UK). Archbishop Piero Marini, who had been planning a tour in the US to promote his book on liturgy as postponed that tour indefinitely and rumors are that Pope Benedict helped him to postpone that tour through Cardinal Bertone.
The ex-Papal Master of Ceremonies was seen as largely responsible for the flashy liturgies through the Pontificate of Pope John Paul II and was a protégé of Archbishop Annibale Bugnini. Some were surprised to see him remain MC for as long as he did, with such clashing liturgical styles. There was a visible change in liturgical ceremonies when this Marini departed, and Guido Marini (no relation), took the helm this past fall.
Damian Thompson begins his commentary this way:
Here’s a fascinating rumour from the Vatican. You may remember that last month the Throne Room of Archbishop’s House, Westminster, was – most inappropriately – used to launch a book by Archbishop Piero Marini, the embittered ex-MC of St Peter’s, which contained a coded attack on the Pope’s liturgical reforms.
Marini, high priest of 1970s liturgical claptrap, was just about to start a high-profile tour of America to plug his dreary volume. But now it has been “indefinitely postponed”, reportedly on the orders of Benedict’s secretary of state, Cardinal Bertone. Interesting, no?
Continue reading Marini book tour mysteriously cancelled at the "Holy Smoke" blog.
Rocco Palmo offers two possible explanations, one of which is that the rug was pulled out by Cardinal Bertone.
Although a rescheduling of the US tour is being discussed for a later date (most
likely November), with the official line running that the archbishop had become
"concerned" about coming in the run-up to the Pope's mid-April visit, another
source informed of the change reported that the cancellation was sought by
Benedict's Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone SDB.
Time will tell.
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