Saturday, August 11, 2007

DO I SENSE A DISOBEDIENT BISHOP?

This directive from Bishop Cooney of Gaylord, MI, in spite of the directives pointed out in the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum (RSCT to Fr. Rob Johansen):

At a gathering of priests of the Gaylord Diocese in late June (on the eve of the MP's release), the bishop of Gaylord, Patrick Cooney, issued a directive stating:

Until other law is promulgated, all liturgies in the Diocese of Gaylord are to be celebrated entirely in English by the presiding celebrant.
It then goes on to say:

The use of other languages in songs and hymns...can be used occasionally, but must never overshadow the use of English.

Any variance from this policy must be requested on an individual basis from the Bishop of the Diocese of Gaylord using the form that can be obtained from the Secretariat for Worship & Liturgical Formation or the Office of the Bishop.

This Policy takes effect immediately. [Bold text in original.]

The form mentioned above asks the person making such a request to explain the "reason for requesting this variance from Diocesan Policy on the Use of the Vernacular when Celebrating Liturgy."
(Scans of these documents can be downloaded
here, here, and here.) (note from BMP: these are .tif images)

So, let's see... we have liturgy documents saying that the use of Latin is to be preserved, a Motu Proprio stating that the Extraordinary Form of the Mass was never done away with, but a bishop who disregards these points from the Second Vatican Council, and Popes Paul VI, John Paul II, and Benedict XVI. This to me says disobedience by the Bishop of Gaylord to the Church he is a servant of. The double standard, of course, is that if you do a Latin Mass in the Gaylord Diocese (even in the Ordinary Form) without permission, you're in disobedience to the Bishop there.

BTW, according to MassTimes.org, St. Joseph's in Traverse City (in the Gaylord Diocese) has a Spanish Mass. But that's ok (and Latin isn't)??? I have a big frickin' problem with that!

Supplementary RSCT's to Fr. Z and Gerald.
Peace,
BMP

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