IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!

Due to the current health condition of Fr. Anthony, Pro Tridentina (Malta) regrets to inform its members and friends that, until further notice, Tridentine Mass at the Church of the Knights in Valletta, will not be held until further notice. Should anyone know of a priest who is willing to replace Fr Anthony, kindly get in touch with me. 

Damian Vella

President, Pro Tridentina (Malta)

pro.tridentina.malta@gmail.com 

Communiqué of the International UNA VOCE Federation on Order of Malta ban of the Traditional Latin Mass

Rome, 13 June, 2019   

The FIUV notes with regret the letter, dated 10th June, from Fra’ Giacomo Dalla Torre, Grand Master of the      Sovereign Military and Hospitaler Order of St John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta (the ‘Order of      Malta’), forbidding the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass (the Extraordinary Form) in the context of the Order’s liturgical life.

Since this letter has become public, we would like to observe that it does not accurately present the provisions of Pope Benedict XVI’s Apostolic Letter, given motu proprio, Summorum Pontificum. Article 3, cited in the Grand Master’s letter, explicitly allows religious communities to have not only private but conventual celebrations of Mass in the Extraordinary Form, without reference to the Major Superior (in the case of the Order of Malta, the Grand Master or the Prelate). His permission is required only in cases where the community ‘wishes to have such celebrations frequently, habitually or permanently’.

The Grand Master’s letter also neglects the right of the faithful, from which the religious and lay member of the Order of Malta are not excluded, from requesting celebrations of Mass in the Extraordinary Form (Article 4). Celebrations in the context of special occasions such as pilgrimages are explicitly anticipated (Article 5 §3). Pastors and rectors of churches are directed to accede to such requests Article 5, §1 and §5).

The Federation would like to emphasise that the Extraordinary Form is a part of the liturgical patrimony of the Church which represents ‘riches’ for the Church, which should not be neglected or excluded, and certainly not on the basis of a narrow conception of unity which excludes the variety of liturgical expressions permitted in the Church. As Pope Benedict expressed it:

‘These two expressions of the Church’s lex orandi will in no way lead to a division in the Church’s lex credendi (rule of faith); for they are two usages of the one Roman rite.’ (Summorum Pontificum, Preamble)

Foederatio Internationalis Una Voce

The Knights of Malta and the Tridentine Mass - Part 2

More than six years ago, the then President of Pro Tridentina (Malta) had indicated in this article that a one off Tridentine Mass in Valletta had been allowed with restrictions imposed on a delegation of the Knights of St. John.

 

A controversy had occurred several months after this event as was outlined here. Unfortunately, once again, this organisation was proven right.

 

A letter issued by the Grand Master of the S.M.O.M., Giacomo Dalla Torre, has decreed that the Tridentine Mass is being suppressed by the once-Catholic Order with immediate effect. Allegedly to "guarantee the cohesion and communion of the Order!" This goes in direct contravention of the spirit of Summorum Pontificum and surely Benedict XVI is not happy with this event.

 

What a betrayal by the once glorious Order that defended Christendom!  

What went wrong in the traditional Catholic movement in Malta (Part 5)

Immediately after Pro Tridentina (Malta) was founded, its archivist Anthony Mangion, nearly secured the possibility to have the Oratory of the Congregation of the Onorati in Valletta available to the organisation for the regular celebration of the Tridentine Mass. At this stage, it is useful to give some information about this place.

 

The Oratory annexed to the Church of the Jesuits belongs to the Congregation of the Onorati founded in 1600 by the Knights of St John. The chapel is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the relics of St. Onorata are kept under the Main Altar. This present oratory was built at the expense of the Congregation in 1658 and replaces a previous one.

 

The Servant of God Fr. Giuseppe De Piro (1877 - 1933), founder of the once traditional Catholic M.S.S.P. (to see how much it has deviated, refer to this and this article) was once a member of the Congregazione degli Onorati.

 

Back to present times, there was opposition to this idea from the local church authorities, although it never became clear whether the then Archbishop of Malta, Paul Cremona, was himself against this initiative.

 

Unfortunately, nowadays the oratory is being used most of the year as a warehouse, as can be seen in the photos above. The first test for the Catholic Church in Malta to show its filial obedience to Pope Benedict XVI's Summorum Pontificum failed miserably.

Cardinal Burke to visit Malta?

Unconfirmed sources have stated that Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (previously Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura), was invited to Malta as part of the 450th anniversary of the Great Siege of Malta.

Cardinal Burke is, most probably, the Cardinal who implemented in the best way possible the provisions of Summorum Pontificum. He himself has celebrated several times Mass in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite and is a close friend of the FIUV.

Recently Burke had this to say about the traditional liturgy:

“The Sacred Liturgy is absolutely the first act of the New Evangelization. Unless we worship God in spirit and in truth, unless we celebrate the Sacred Liturgy with the greatest possible faith in God and faith in the divine action which takes place in Holy Mass, we are not going to have the inspiration and the grace to carry out the New Evangelization. […]

If the Sacred Liturgy is celebrated in an anthropocentric way, in a horizontal way in which it is no longer evident that it is a divine action, it simply becomes a social activity that can be relativized along with everything else — it doesn’t have any lasting impact on one’s life.

I think the celebration of the Extraordinary Form can have a very significant part to play in the New Evangelization because of its emphasis on the transcendence of the Sacred Liturgy. In other words, it emphasizes the reality of the union of Heaven and earth through the Sacred Liturgy. “

Properly and beautifully celebrated liturgy is essential to a Catholic college education, said Cardinal Raymond Burke, who headlined today’s Cardinal Newman Society event at Sacra Liturgia USA 2015 in New York City. 

“If in Catholic education the ultimate goal is to know Christ as deeply and as profoundly as possible, then it can’t be otherwise,” he said, recalling the wonderful liturgies on Catholic campuses until recent decades. On many Catholic campuses, traditional and reverent liturgy has given way to misguided innovations and musical variations that are thought to appeal to younger audiences.

Cardinal Burke, patron of the Order of Malta and ecclesiastical advisor to the Newman Society, led off a panel discussion on the need for liturgical renewal in Catholic higher education and ways that Catholic colleges can contribute to renewal of the liturgy in parishes and schools. The event was held at St. Catherine of Siena Church in uptown Manhattan as a special part of the Sacra Liturgia conference, which brought hundreds of priests, seminarians and lay people together to celebrate and promote sacred liturgy.

Cardinal Burke encouraged Catholic colleges to expose students to reverent liturgy including the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. “If this is a form of the Roman Rite it should be accessible to the faithful,” he said. 

He recalled his experience when Archbishop of Saint Louis, Mo., where he instructed the seminary to implement courses on the Extraordinary Form of the Mass and begin celebrating it. “And I believe too, at the universities, that there will be a response [to the Extraordinary Form],” he said. 

Even at colleges like Georgetown University, which has had its share of Catholic identity problems, student initiatives to encourage the Extraordinary Form are gathering momentum, Cardinal Burke said. “I have seen this in other universities too,” he added. 

Cardinal Burke noted that such initiatives, while good for the Church and students alike, are sometimes opposed. “These are things that may involve some suffering,” he said.

“But the thing is, if we are doing something that is beautiful for the glory of God and for the salvation of souls, we’ll have to persevere in it and not let ourselves be discouraged by people who do not understand or who might be difficult,” said the Cardinal.

“The Christian liturgy remains the essential source of our understanding of the faith and of its practice in a good and holy life,” he said.

Leading the panel discussion, Newman Society President Patrick Reilly noted that “truth is both the foundation and the objective of Catholic higher education,” and he related that to the need for reverent liturgy in light of Cardinal Burke’s keynote address to the Sacra Liturgia conference the prior evening.  Cardinal Burke spoke of the unity of God’s truth, goodness and beauty—with the latter essential to sacred art and sacred liturgy. He lamented that, “precisely because we have lost beauty, we have lost goodness and truth.”

“Since the sacred liturgy is the highest and most perfect expression of our life in Christ, we rightly turn to the sacred rites in order to understand more deeply the holiness of the Christian life in all its aspects,” Cardinal Burke said. Yet, in recent years, the attention to liturgy hasn’t always been what it should have been, he continued.

Cardinal Burke explained:

The pursuit of truth is a particular challenge in our world, which has in great part lost any sense of truth and of the source of truth in God. The sacred liturgy is the participation on earth in the heavenly wedding feast of the Lamb who alone conquers evil.

...Beauty is revealed most perfectly in the sacred liturgy. The liturgy is inherently linked to beauty. It is a radiant expression of the Paschal Mystery in which Christ draws us to himself and calls us to communion. We contemplate beauty and splendor at its source. It enables us to emerge from ourselves and drawing us to our true vocation which is love.

...The time has come to re-propose to all Christians this high standard of ordinary Christian life. Our brothers and sisters will discover the great beauty of their own holy life. That beauty is most evident in our participation in the sacred liturgy.

- See more at: http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/CatholicEducationDaily/DetailsPage/tabid/102/ArticleID/4225/Cardinal-Burke-Reverent-Liturgy-Essential-to-Catholic-College-Education.aspx#sthash.Rzn3UOL3.dpuf

“If in Catholic education the ultimate goal is to know Christ as deeply and as profoundly as possible, then it can’t be otherwise,” he said, recalling the wonderful liturgies on Catholic campuses until recent decades. On many Catholic campuses, traditional and reverent liturgy has given way to misguided innovations and musical variations that are thought to appeal to younger audiences. - See more at: http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/CatholicEducationDaily/DetailsPage/tabid/102/ArticleID/4225/Cardinal-Burke-Reverent-Liturgy-Essential-to-Catholic-College-Education.aspx#sthash.Rzn3UOL3.dpuf

Properly and beautifully celebrated liturgy is essential to a Catholic college education, said Cardinal Raymond Burke, who headlined today’s Cardinal Newman Society event at Sacra Liturgia USA 2015 in New York City. 

“If in Catholic education the ultimate goal is to know Christ as deeply and as profoundly as possible, then it can’t be otherwise,” he said, recalling the wonderful liturgies on Catholic campuses until recent decades. On many Catholic campuses, traditional and reverent liturgy has given way to misguided innovations and musical variations that are thought to appeal to younger audiences.

Cardinal Burke, patron of the Order of Malta and ecclesiastical advisor to the Newman Society, led off a panel discussion on the need for liturgical renewal in Catholic higher education and ways that Catholic colleges can contribute to renewal of the liturgy in parishes and schools. The event was held at St. Catherine of Siena Church in uptown Manhattan as a special part of the Sacra Liturgia conference, which brought hundreds of priests, seminarians and lay people together to celebrate and promote sacred liturgy.

Cardinal Burke encouraged Catholic colleges to expose students to reverent liturgy including the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. “If this is a form of the Roman Rite it should be accessible to the faithful,” he said. 

He recalled his experience when Archbishop of Saint Louis, Mo., where he instructed the seminary to implement courses on the Extraordinary Form of the Mass and begin celebrating it. “And I believe too, at the universities, that there will be a response [to the Extraordinary Form],” he said. 

Even at colleges like Georgetown University, which has had its share of Catholic identity problems, student initiatives to encourage the Extraordinary Form are gathering momentum, Cardinal Burke said. “I have seen this in other universities too,” he added. 

Cardinal Burke noted that such initiatives, while good for the Church and students alike, are sometimes opposed. “These are things that may involve some suffering,” he said.

“But the thing is, if we are doing something that is beautiful for the glory of God and for the salvation of souls, we’ll have to persevere in it and not let ourselves be discouraged by people who do not understand or who might be difficult,” said the Cardinal.

“The Christian liturgy remains the essential source of our understanding of the faith and of its practice in a good and holy life,” he said.

Leading the panel discussion, Newman Society President Patrick Reilly noted that “truth is both the foundation and the objective of Catholic higher education,” and he related that to the need for reverent liturgy in light of Cardinal Burke’s keynote address to the Sacra Liturgia conference the prior evening.  Cardinal Burke spoke of the unity of God’s truth, goodness and beauty—with the latter essential to sacred art and sacred liturgy. He lamented that, “precisely because we have lost beauty, we have lost goodness and truth.”

“Since the sacred liturgy is the highest and most perfect expression of our life in Christ, we rightly turn to the sacred rites in order to understand more deeply the holiness of the Christian life in all its aspects,” Cardinal Burke said. Yet, in recent years, the attention to liturgy hasn’t always been what it should have been, he continued.

Cardinal Burke explained:

The pursuit of truth is a particular challenge in our world, which has in great part lost any sense of truth and of the source of truth in God. The sacred liturgy is the participation on earth in the heavenly wedding feast of the Lamb who alone conquers evil.

...Beauty is revealed most perfectly in the sacred liturgy. The liturgy is inherently linked to beauty. It is a radiant expression of the Paschal Mystery in which Christ draws us to himself and calls us to communion. We contemplate beauty and splendor at its source. It enables us to emerge from ourselves and drawing us to our true vocation which is love.

...The time has come to re-propose to all Christians this high standard of ordinary Christian life. Our brothers and sisters will discover the great beauty of their own holy life. That beauty is most evident in our participation in the sacred liturgy.

- See more at: http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/CatholicEducationDaily/DetailsPage/tabid/102/ArticleID/4225/Cardinal-Burke-Reverent-Liturgy-Essential-to-Catholic-College-Education.aspx#sthash.Rzn3UOL3.dpuf

Properly and beautifully celebrated liturgy is essential to a Catholic college education, said Cardinal Raymond Burke, who headlined today’s Cardinal Newman Society event at Sacra Liturgia USA 2015 in New York City. 

“If in Catholic education the ultimate goal is to know Christ as deeply and as profoundly as possible, then it can’t be otherwise,” he said, recalling the wonderful liturgies on Catholic campuses until recent decades. On many Catholic campuses, traditional and reverent liturgy has given way to misguided innovations and musical variations that are thought to appeal to younger audiences.

Cardinal Burke, patron of the Order of Malta and ecclesiastical advisor to the Newman Society, led off a panel discussion on the need for liturgical renewal in Catholic higher education and ways that Catholic colleges can contribute to renewal of the liturgy in parishes and schools. The event was held at St. Catherine of Siena Church in uptown Manhattan as a special part of the Sacra Liturgia conference, which brought hundreds of priests, seminarians and lay people together to celebrate and promote sacred liturgy.

Cardinal Burke encouraged Catholic colleges to expose students to reverent liturgy including the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. “If this is a form of the Roman Rite it should be accessible to the faithful,” he said. 

He recalled his experience when Archbishop of Saint Louis, Mo., where he instructed the seminary to implement courses on the Extraordinary Form of the Mass and begin celebrating it. “And I believe too, at the universities, that there will be a response [to the Extraordinary Form],” he said. 

Even at colleges like Georgetown University, which has had its share of Catholic identity problems, student initiatives to encourage the Extraordinary Form are gathering momentum, Cardinal Burke said. “I have seen this in other universities too,” he added. 

Cardinal Burke noted that such initiatives, while good for the Church and students alike, are sometimes opposed. “These are things that may involve some suffering,” he said.

“But the thing is, if we are doing something that is beautiful for the glory of God and for the salvation of souls, we’ll have to persevere in it and not let ourselves be discouraged by people who do not understand or who might be difficult,” said the Cardinal.

“The Christian liturgy remains the essential source of our understanding of the faith and of its practice in a good and holy life,” he said.

Leading the panel discussion, Newman Society President Patrick Reilly noted that “truth is both the foundation and the objective of Catholic higher education,” and he related that to the need for reverent liturgy in light of Cardinal Burke’s keynote address to the Sacra Liturgia conference the prior evening.  Cardinal Burke spoke of the unity of God’s truth, goodness and beauty—with the latter essential to sacred art and sacred liturgy. He lamented that, “precisely because we have lost beauty, we have lost goodness and truth.”

“Since the sacred liturgy is the highest and most perfect expression of our life in Christ, we rightly turn to the sacred rites in order to understand more deeply the holiness of the Christian life in all its aspects,” Cardinal Burke said. Yet, in recent years, the attention to liturgy hasn’t always been what it should have been, he continued.

Cardinal Burke explained:

The pursuit of truth is a particular challenge in our world, which has in great part lost any sense of truth and of the source of truth in God. The sacred liturgy is the participation on earth in the heavenly wedding feast of the Lamb who alone conquers evil.

...Beauty is revealed most perfectly in the sacred liturgy. The liturgy is inherently linked to beauty. It is a radiant expression of the Paschal Mystery in which Christ draws us to himself and calls us to communion. We contemplate beauty and splendor at its source. It enables us to emerge from ourselves and drawing us to our true vocation which is love.

...The time has come to re-propose to all Christians this high standard of ordinary Christian life. Our brothers and sisters will discover the great beauty of their own holy life. That beauty is most evident in our participation in the sacred liturgy.

- See more at: http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/CatholicEducationDaily/DetailsPage/tabid/102/ArticleID/4225/Cardinal-Burke-Reverent-Liturgy-Essential-to-Catholic-College-Education.aspx#sthash.Rzn3UOL3.dpuf

Properly and beautifully celebrated liturgy is essential to a Catholic college education, said Cardinal Raymond Burke, who headlined today’s Cardinal Newman Society event at Sacra Liturgia USA 2015 in New York City. 

“If in Catholic education the ultimate goal is to know Christ as deeply and as profoundly as possible, then it can’t be otherwise,” he said, recalling the wonderful liturgies on Catholic campuses until recent decades. On many Catholic campuses, traditional and reverent liturgy has given way to misguided innovations and musical variations that are thought to appeal to younger audiences.

Cardinal Burke, patron of the Order of Malta and ecclesiastical advisor to the Newman Society, led off a panel discussion on the need for liturgical renewal in Catholic higher education and ways that Catholic colleges can contribute to renewal of the liturgy in parishes and schools. The event was held at St. Catherine of Siena Church in uptown Manhattan as a special part of the Sacra Liturgia conference, which brought hundreds of priests, seminarians and lay people together to celebrate and promote sacred liturgy.

Cardinal Burke encouraged Catholic colleges to expose students to reverent liturgy including the Extraordinary Form of the Mass. “If this is a form of the Roman Rite it should be accessible to the faithful,” he said. 

He recalled his experience when Archbishop of Saint Louis, Mo., where he instructed the seminary to implement courses on the Extraordinary Form of the Mass and begin celebrating it. “And I believe too, at the universities, that there will be a response [to the Extraordinary Form],” he said. 

Even at colleges like Georgetown University, which has had its share of Catholic identity problems, student initiatives to encourage the Extraordinary Form are gathering momentum, Cardinal Burke said. “I have seen this in other universities too,” he added. 

Cardinal Burke noted that such initiatives, while good for the Church and students alike, are sometimes opposed. “These are things that may involve some suffering,” he said.

“But the thing is, if we are doing something that is beautiful for the glory of God and for the salvation of souls, we’ll have to persevere in it and not let ourselves be discouraged by people who do not understand or who might be difficult,” said the Cardinal.

“The Christian liturgy remains the essential source of our understanding of the faith and of its practice in a good and holy life,” he said.

Leading the panel discussion, Newman Society President Patrick Reilly noted that “truth is both the foundation and the objective of Catholic higher education,” and he related that to the need for reverent liturgy in light of Cardinal Burke’s keynote address to the Sacra Liturgia conference the prior evening.  Cardinal Burke spoke of the unity of God’s truth, goodness and beauty—with the latter essential to sacred art and sacred liturgy. He lamented that, “precisely because we have lost beauty, we have lost goodness and truth.”

“Since the sacred liturgy is the highest and most perfect expression of our life in Christ, we rightly turn to the sacred rites in order to understand more deeply the holiness of the Christian life in all its aspects,” Cardinal Burke said. Yet, in recent years, the attention to liturgy hasn’t always been what it should have been, he continued.

Cardinal Burke explained:

The pursuit of truth is a particular challenge in our world, which has in great part lost any sense of truth and of the source of truth in God. The sacred liturgy is the participation on earth in the heavenly wedding feast of the Lamb who alone conquers evil.

...Beauty is revealed most perfectly in the sacred liturgy. The liturgy is inherently linked to beauty. It is a radiant expression of the Paschal Mystery in which Christ draws us to himself and calls us to communion. We contemplate beauty and splendor at its source. It enables us to emerge from ourselves and drawing us to our true vocation which is love.

...The time has come to re-propose to all Christians this high standard of ordinary Christian life. Our brothers and sisters will discover the great beauty of their own holy life. That beauty is most evident in our participation in the sacred liturgy.

- See more at: http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/CatholicEducationDaily/DetailsPage/tabid/102/ArticleID/4225/Cardinal-Burke-Reverent-Liturgy-Essential-to-Catholic-College-Education.aspx#sthash.Rzn3UOL3.dpuf

The Knights of Malta and the Tridentine Mass

1. 

    

   In recent days, a controversy erupted online about this article.

    

   According to one of the Knights who attended:

    

   "The Mass was not "granted subject to a number of restrictions." The question I asked was whether or not there was a Tridentine Mass on Malta and if so who could we contact about our priest saying a Mass when we arrived. As there was not an existing Mass and for several logistical reasons we did not pursue trying to have a publicly celebrated EF Mass. When we came to visit we were kindly given permission to celebrate Mass at St. Catherine's and since it was a private Mass our priest celebrated the TLM for us."

    

   However, according to reliable sources from S.M.O.M. in Malta, a Tridentine Mass had been blocked by then Archbishop Cremona. The group had to petition again the Archbishop and finally, almost at the last minute, was allowed one. This notwithstanding that Pro Tridentina (Malta) had managed to put in place some arrangements, following a request by the group coming to Malta itself.

    

   So what is the real position of the S.M.O.M. as far as the Extraordinary Form of the Mass is concerned?

    

   The situation varies from country to country.

    
   The current Cardinal Patron, Raymond Leo Burke, is very much in favour of  the Tridentine Mass and regularly celebrates it. Cardinal Burke is likely therefore to support and encourage the Tridentine Mass within the Order but there are also a number of Cardinals - who are chaplains of the Order -  that oppose and / or barely tolerate the Tridentine Mass in their own Dioceses.
    
   Within the Grand Priory of England the Tridentine Mass has been prevalent and there are many strong supporters of the Mass there. Some of them were willing to help Pro Tridentina (Malta) but things were halted as described here.
   
   
   Two FIUV Presidents, the late Fra Freddy Crichton-Stuart and James Bogle are Knights of the Order of Saint John.
   
   
   In Malta, whereas the S.M.O.M. has never expressed (as far as is known) a position for or against the Tridentine Mass, one of its Knights, the Marquis Nicholas de Piro, is very much in favour.
    
   The Russian Grand Priory of Malta (not to be confused with S.M.O.M.) is faithful to the Order’s nearly 1000-year-old motto: Pro Fide, Pro Utilitate Hominum (For faith, for service to humanity) and is therefore open to having the Tridentine Mass celebrated in its headquarters in Valletta.

Tridentine Mass in Valletta - with restrictions

The Church of Saint Catherine of Italy, Valletta

A friend involved with the S.M.O.M. in Malta informed Pro Tridentina (Malta) that a Tridentine Mass was held at the Church of Saint Catherine of Italy in Valletta by a group of Knights of Malta who were on their way to Rome for their 900th anniversary celebrations. Part of the celebrations in Rome included an audience with Pope Benedict XVI.

Apparently, concession for this Mass (celebrated on 3 February 2013) was "granted subject to a number of restrictions". 

Between November and December 2012, the President of Pro Tridentina (Malta) was contacted by some Knights of Malta from the USA who asked for information about the possibility of celebrating Tridentine Mass in Malta. However, contacts stopped abruptly. Could be that both events are somewhat related.

Fra Freddy Crichton-Stuart R.I.P.

Fra Freddy Crichton-Stuart (photo, centre) died this morning (Tuesday 14th June) in Edinburgh after a long illness. Fra Freddy was President of the FIUV between 2005 and 2006, Chairman of Una Voce Scotland and the Grand Prior of England in the Knights of Malta since 2008.

Fra’ Freddy Crichton-Stuart was a man of prayer whose love of and commitment to the Order of Malta, its traditions and works, was exemplary and inspirational.

The condolences of Pro Tridentina (Malta) are extended to his family and his many friends.

We used to exchange e-mails regularly and I told him about the encouraging developments in Malta. He was very interested and his help was much appreciated.

Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine. Et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace. Amen.