by Diane Montagna

Repeating a lie may convince a man of what he wishes to believe, but it doesn’t make it any more true.

In a new widely circulated interview with The Tablet, Cardinal Arthur Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, has once again claimed that the traditional Roman liturgy is readily available for Catholics who wish to attend it, and that if anyone thinks otherwise the problem lies with them.

Asked by the British weekly if Pope Leo XIV will make restricting the TLM as much a priority as Pope Francis had done with his 2021 motu proprio Traditionis Custodes, Cardinal Roche said: "Well, let me say, first of all, it’s a very complex area. And it’s a very important area because the Eucharist is the sacrament of unity: it’s the place where we should all be able to be together to celebrate Mass. So if it begins to divide us, there’s something seriously amiss. But no, Pope Leo is not going to change Traditionis Custodes, and he’s not going back to Summorum Pontificum," Pope Benedict XVI’s 2007 apostolic letter liberalizing the use of the traditional liturgy.

The Cardinal added:

"It’s interesting. When I meet with groups who want the antecedent liturgy, and I say: ‘Well, the Holy Father has given you that, so what’s the problem?’, they can’t answer. But then they go away and say, ‘We’re still being persecuted’. In what way persecuted? Why is the band still playing a tune that is discordant with the life of the Church?"

Cardinal Roche’s remarks echo comments he made earlier this year in a sit-down with OSV News, after the severe criticism leveled at his document on the liturgy, distributed to members of the Sacred College in January at Pope Leo XIV’s first extraordinary consistory of Cardinals.

Defending the positions put forth in that document, the Cardinal argued that Catholics can still attend the Traditional Latin Mass "by papal authority."

"So, I ask myself: Why is all this so intense (debate) going on? Why all this noise, the battering of drums and the blowing of trumpets? What else is going on when they have been given the concession of this Mass? What is the problem? Something else is clearly afoot," he said.

Unbelievable Gaslighting

Rarely has gaslighting been so nakedly displayed by a Curial official. Lest we forget, Cardinal Roche was appointed DDW prefect in May 2021, just six weeks before Pope Francis promulgated Traditionis Custodes, which banned the traditional Roman liturgy from parish churches, revoked the permission Benedict XIV had granted to priests to celebrate the Old Mass, and took authority away from priests and purportedly put it into the hands of diocesan bishops.

However, these same bishops were subsequently strong-armed by Cardinal Roche and his officials into complying with their very narrow interpretation of the motu proprio. Bishops in fact received unexpected letters from the Dicastery for Divine Worship ordering compliance. In some instances, the Dicastery for Bishops was asked to enforce this policy.

Cardinal Roche worked assiduously with the DDW Secretary, Archbishop Vittorio Viola, a largely unseen butresolute advocate of the restrictions.

Because diocesan bishops were using their legitimate power according to canon law (Canon 87 §1) to dispense from the provisions of Traditionis Custodes, Cardinal Roche found it necessary in February 2022 to obtain a rescript from Pope Francis to "ensure the correct application" of the motu proprio. Henceforth, a bishop who wished to use Canon 87 §1 to dispense from Traditionis Custodes had to inform the Dicastery for Divine Worship, which would then decide either to affirm or overrule his decision. The rescript thus severely limited the freedom of bishops as "directors, promoters, and guardians of the entire liturgical life" in their dioceses (Canon 835 §1; cf. Christus Dominus, n. 15).

The rescript was necessary for Cardinal Roche because of growing opposition to his crackdown, continuing resistance from bishops, and mounting criticism from canonists that he had been exceeding his authority.

This pharisaical zeal did lead to a worldwide persecution of the traditional Roman liturgy. It defies belief that His Eminence cannot or will not concede this reality. Were he in fact to concede this, he would also need to admit that it is he who has been "breathing threats" against those who find the usus antiquior to be the fruitful source and summit their Christian life (cf. Sacrosanctum Concilium, 10).

Instead, as evidenced in his recent interviews and consistory document (cf. art. 10), he either obfuscates, or denies that the older liturgy is unavailable and claims that the problem lies with anyone who thinks otherwise.

What makes Cardinal Roche’s gaslighting even more astounding is the fact that it persists, even though we now know that the results of the survey of the world’s bishops used to justify Traditionis Custodes were falsified. In fact, the majority of bishops who responded to the survey wanted to stay the course with Summorum Pontificum.

What’s the Problem?

In his interview with The Tablet, Cardinal Roche claims that the TLM is readily available and asks, "So, what’s the problem?" His Eminence might pose this question to all those who have lost access to the traditional Roman liturgy, were effectively banished from their parishes, and now have to drive hours on Sunday with their children to attend the TLM — if that is even physically possible — or who have no option other than to attend the Society of St. Pius X. He might ask the young couples who were denied the possibility of marrying, or baptizing their newborn, according to the Church’s ancient rites, or those whose deceased parents were denied a traditional requiem — not because their bishops were opposed to it but because they feared the repercussions should Cardinal Roche and his officials find out.

His Eminence might also consult the growing number of young people, particularly in the secularized West, who find in the Church’s traditional rites not only a sacred oasis but also the necessary fortification to battle against the flesh, the world, and the devil. Or he might ask the six deacons of the Missionaries of the Divine Mercy community in the diocese of Frejus-Toulon: Cardinal Roche continues to insist that they cannot be ordained to the priesthood in the traditional liturgy (according to the constitutions), for the celebration of which their community was founded. Finally, His Eminence might ask the many new young priests whose requests to offer the Old Mass were summarily refused by his office with a form letter. These examples are neither imagined nor speculative, they are legion.

Such a divisive attitude and blatant disregard from the prefect for Divine Worship is totally unbefitting a priest of Jesus Christ and shepherd of the Church, who was consecrated a bishop to care for souls, not to crush what St. John Paul II described as their "rightful aspirations" (Ecclesia Dei, 5).

Cardinal Roche also claims in his new interview that the liturgy had to be changed to make the Church more missionary. St. Ignatius of Loyola, whose companions went to the furthest corners of the world and suffered martyrdom to preach the Gospel, fortified by Blood of Christ received at the Mass of the Ages, might beg to differ.

Unfortunately, His Eminence hasn’t gotten out of his "ivory tower" enough, and it seems that staring at its inner walls has left him with a severe case of myopia. If only he could see, as so many others do, that the tension in Rome and elsewhere over the traditional Roman rite seems to be part of a generational struggle which is in its death throes. As one priest recently put it to me: "Young Catholics and a great many converts are struck by the profound beauty and transcendence of the Traditional Mass and have no interest in the ‘liturgy wars’ and the ugly political controversies that were such a feature of Catholic life for an older generation."

He added: "The irenic approach of Pope Benedict XVI still makes a lot of sense to these people and has great appeal for an increasing number of practicing Catholics who are unwavering in their faithfulness to the Successor of St. Peter. And perhaps it’s ironic, that, if anything, Traditionis Custodes has made younger Catholics even more aware of the ‘Old Rite’ as a treasure to be sought out and valued. The work of the Holy Spirit shouldn’t and ultimately cannot be thwarted, and reading the signs of the times it’s clear that the Traditional Roman Rite will continue to flourish come what may."

So yes, there is indeed "plenty of work still to do," but Arthur Cardinal Roche is not the man to do it. According even to his own words, "I’ve never felt equal to any task I’ve been given."