Hello, Hello - Vatican official acknowledges liturgical crisis

Feb. 23, 2007 (CWNews.com) - In an unusually candid conversation with the monthly Inside the Vatican, the secretary of the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship concedes that liturgical reform after Vatican II “has not been able to achieve the expected goals,” and indicates that Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news) is determined to address the crisis in Catholic liturgy.

In a lengthy interview, Archbishop Albert Malcom Ranjith Patabendige Don told the Inside the Vatican that a revival of the Catholic liturgy is essential to counteract the decline in practice among the faithful, particularly in the Western world.

[The full text of the interview is available here on the CWN site, courtesy of Inside the Vatican]

“Undoubtedly there have been positive results” from the post-concilar liturgical renewal, the Sri Lankan prelate told interview Anthony Valle. But he quickly added that “the negative effects seem to have been greater, causing much disorientation in our ranks.”

Pope Benedict fully recognizes the crisis in the liturgy, the archbishop says, and the time has now come “with the help of the Lord to make the necessary corrections.”

Questioned about the prospects for a motu proprio in which Pope Benedict XVI would allow wider use of the pre-conciliar Latin liturgy, Archbishop Ranjith indicated that the document should be expected, although he would not predict when it would appear or exactly what it would say. “With regard to the timing and nature of the motu proprio,” he said, “nothing yet is known. It is the Holy Father who will decide.’

The challenge that the Pontiff faces, Archbishop Ranjith said, is “not so much a matter of the Tridentine Mass or of the Novus Ordo. It is just a question of pastoral responsibility and sensitivity.” He added that “if the Holy Father so desires, both could co-exist.” Wide use of the old Mass, he said, would not require abandoning the post-conciliar liturgy. “But in the interaction of the two Roman traditions, it is possible that the one may influence the other eventually.”

The fundamental challenge, the archbishop said, is stop what he called “freewheeling” liturgical innovation, and to recover the sense of the sacred. Steps in that direction, he said, would bring Catholics back into more active practice of the faith.

Archbishop Ranjith was unsparing in his analysis of the crisis facing Catholicism today. Noting the decline in active Mass attendance, he said: “We have to ask ourselves what happened in these churches and then take corrective steps as may be necessary.”

The archbishop refused to accept some common explanations for the decline in Catholic practice. “I do not think that this situation is attributable to secularization only,” he said. “A deep crisis of faith coupled with a drive for meaningless liturgical experimentation and novelty have had their own impact in this matter.”