Saturday, July 7th 2007                   PRESS RELEASE  for immediate release

ARCHBISHOP PRENDERGAST
WELCOMES PAPAL INITIATIVE

OTTAWA, July 7, 2007

In a prepared statement, Ottawa Archbishop Terrence Prendergast welcomed Pope Benedict’s letter to the bishops of the church outlining the reasons for the “Motu Proprio” he issued earlier today. This granted wider use of ritual books in effect prior to the renewal of the liturgy initiated by the Second Vatican Council:

“The Pope’s action simultaneously affirms the Second Vatican Council’s teachings on the liturgy and seeks to return to active church life those drawn to the Mass as it was celebrated in Latin prior to 1970. These include older Catholics alienated from the Church since the Mass was changed and younger Catholics seeking worship that is evidently transcendent.

“Fears expressed before the publication of the Motu Proprio—namely that this gesture would be a turning back of the clock, cause further divisions in the Church or harm interfaith relations—are groundless.

“In his letter the Pope explains that the Mass of the Roman Rite has two forms, the normative form, promulgated by decree of Paul VI in 1970 and generally celebrated in the vernacular, and an earlier Latin form, approved by Pope John XXIII (1962). Each complements the other and together they show forth the richness of the Church’s tradition.”

Archbishop Prendergast noted that the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter has been present in the Archdiocese of Ottawa since 1994. Thus, the faithful here have access to the Mass in Latin on a regular basis. The Archbishop hopes that this papal initiative will be “welcomed widely, studied carefully and implemented correctly in the Archdiocese and elsewhere”.

Source: Msgr. Kevin Beach, Vicar General
              613-738-5025, ext. 247