I suppose there are different tools at the disposal of a bishop when a Catholic administrator wanting a Traditional Latin Mass at a school runs afoul of this passage in an Instruction on the application of the Summorum Pontificum, released in 2011 by the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei (at least, if the reports in the links at bottom are true).
19. The faithful who ask for the celebration of the forma extraordinaria must not in any way support or belong to groups which show themselves to be against the validity or legitimacy of the Holy Mass or the Sacraments celebrated in the forma ordinaria or against the Roman Pontiff as Supreme Pastor of the Universal Church.
This leaves me wondering if that is what Bishop Olson of the Diocese of Fort Worth is acting on, in light of what is coming out on Fisher More College (FMC). The instruction doesn't tell the bishop how to respond, so it's open to interpretation.
What consequences does PCED foresee if such a conflict arises? Does it preclude withdrawing permission for the TLM? Should the faithful consider this an attack on traditionalists? Would PCED prefer that other disciplinary actions be taken that do not involve prohibiting the Traditional Latin Mass, or withdrawing permission to say either form of the Mass?
In the absence of clear guidelines, bishops are going to act in various ways.
The elephant in the living room, and behind all the cries of foul, is that young people at Fisher More College are seemingly being indoctrinated in a brand of Catholicism that is not in harmony with Church teaching. I'm amazed that this part of it is being minimized and the bishops actions magnified. If these reports are true, then even if the bishop acted imprudently and was overbearing, much greater weight should be placed on things that, if true, are grave. Where is the concern for a students' rights to learn what the Church teaches at a Catholic institution over what an administrator believes it should teach? Where is the concern over parents rights to know their kids are not being taught strange teachings at a self-described faithful institution? We aren't talking about a blatantly, dissenting institution, but one that professes the kind of fidelity that would attract faithful Catholics, then allegedly does otherwise.
Some are saying the bishop wrote that he was withdrawing the TLM for the good of their souls. This is a perversion, even on a plain reading of the letter, especially if you read it carefully in light of Taylor Marshall's first hand experience and the updates at Father Z's post (below). If Mr. King is espousing things that are contrary to Church teaching, as alleged, and if he is misleading young people, then such a statement is reasonable in his private communication.
Further reading...
- See Father Z's post if you aren't familiar with the situation; he's made several updates.
- Dr. Taylor Marshall breaks his silence, gives first hand account of problems at FMC
- More testimonies contained in this article at Catholic World Report.
- Blog post by Red Cardigan - a Dallas-Fort Worth area Catholic
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The obedient are not held captive by Holy Mother Church;
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- Diane M. Korzeniewski
it is the disobedient who are held captive by the world!
- Diane M. Korzeniewski
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