Author: Jimmy Akin

There’s been a lot of head-scratching over B16’s decision to remove the title "Patriarch of the West" from his official roster of titles.

The change was made quietly, without any public announcement, by deleting the title from the official list in the Annuario Pontificio ("Pontifical Yearbook") for 2006.

The folks noticed it, called the Vatican to ask if it was a typo, and they were told no, it wasn’t. The pope said to remove it.

There were also comments made that suggested it was removed for ecumenical reasons–as a stimulus to dialogue with the East, where the other patriarchs are.

This struck many as bizarre, since if anything Eastern non-Catholics might be offended by the dropping of the title, as it could appear to be a power-grab by the pope, claiming jurisdiction over their patriarchs by refusing to acknowledge himself as a patriarch.

So the controversy escalated, the Catholic press went nuts with speculation, and

NOW WE HAVE AN OFFICIAL EXPLANATION OF THE DROPPING OF THE TITLE.

It’s put out by the Pontificial Council for Promoting Christian Unity–which ain’t surprising since they’d be the ones who’d have to try to dialogue with honked-off Eastern non-Catholics in the wake of the drop.

I’ve got a suspicion, though, that the communique was either written in part or in whole by B16 himself. It’s got a tone in it in some passages that says "pope" to me rather than "PCPCU underling." However that may be, the issue is sensitive enough that B16 certainly signed off on the thing.

As one would expect, it downplays the ecumenical relations aspect of the change, though it still holds that out to some degree.

It’s interesting that the Vatican was caught off guard with this one. They thought they could make the change without any fanfare, and then events spiralled out of control, causing an the ecumenical equivalent of a diplomatic incident.

Whether dropping the title was a mistake or not, I don’t know. The reasons that are cited for dropping the title could be entirely good ones that will produce long-term good, even if there is an initial, negative adjustment reaction.

Time will tell.

Y’know how the Synod of Bishops met last October and discussed the Eucharist and the liturgy? And at the end of the meeting they presented the pope with a list of 50 propositions relating to these themes, some of which proposed changes in how the liturgy is celebrated? And how the pope is expected to issue an apostolic exhortation based on these?

It appears that this summer the pope will be presented with a final report from the heads of the Synod and that his apostolic exhortation may be out by October.

Rumors are already circulating about what the pope will say (so take all this with a spoonful of salt), but the rumors are encouraging.

EXCERPT:

The Vatican source said that the exhortation would include an invitation to greater use of Latin in the daily prayer of the Church and in the Mass—with the exception of the Liturgy of the Word—as well as in large public and international Masses. 

The document would also encourage a greater use of Gregorian chant and classical polyphonic music; the gradual elimination of the use of songs whose music or lyrics are secular in origin, as well as the elimination of instruments that are “inadequate for liturgical use,” such as the electric guitar or drums, although it is not likely that specific instruments will be mentioned.

Lastly, the Pope is expected to call for “more decorum and liturgical sobriety in the celebration of the Eucharist, excluding dance and, as much as possible, applause.”

GET THE STORY.

Unfortunately, rumors this far in advance about what a pope may choose to do based on the feedback he is provided have about as much weight as polls indicating who will be elected president that are conducted six months before Election Day.

The ink is barely dry on Deus Caritas Est, but word comes that B16 may already be preparing his next encyclical.

EXCERPTS:

Sources close the Holy See have indicated that Pope Benedict XVI is preparing his first social encyclical, which may be entitled “Labor Domini,” or, “The Work of the Lord.”

According to the report, which has not yet been officially confirmed by the Holy See, the encyclical would present a Christian vision of human work and address the importance of work for society. Likewise, it would explore the necessity and duty of the human person to work in some capacity.

Sources add that the document would probably not be issued until at least Christmas.

GET THE STORY.

The subject of work has certainly been on B16’s mind.

IF YOU WANT TO GET A PREVIEW OF WHAT HE MIGHT SAY IN THE ENCYCLICAL, CHECK THIS OUT.

EXCERPT:

According to Vatican sources, Pope Benedict XVI has scheduled an unplanned meeting with the presidents of the different Vatican dicasteries, at which he will discuss reforms of the Curia and relations with the Saint Pius X, Lefebvrist schism.

The extraordinary April 7th meeting announcement comes after an ordinary meeting which took place last month, at which the Holy Father asked the dicastery heads about universal approval of the Missal of St. Pius V, the rite which was in force prior to Vatican II.

During this unusual second meeting, the Pontiff is expected to solicit opinions about what to do with the Missal of St. Pius V and about a possible canonical formula for re-incorporating the followers of the schismatic Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre into the Church.

GET THE STORY.

The guys over at Little Green Footballs and the folks at the Times are making a bit too much out of this, but the following story is encouraging as an example of the rappraisal of the Crusades as something other than naked western aggression:

EXCERPTS:

THE Vatican has begun moves to rehabilitate the Crusaders by sponsoring a conference at the weekend that portrays the Crusades as wars fought with the “noble aim” of regaining the Holy Land for Christianity.

The late Pope John Paul II sought to achieve Muslim-Christian reconciliation by asking “pardon” for the Crusades during the 2000 Millennium celebrations. But John Paul’s apologies for the past “errors of the Church” — including the Inquisition and anti-Semitism — irritated some Vatican conservatives. According to Vatican insiders, the dissenters included Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI.

At the conference, held at the Regina Apostolorum Pontifical University, Roberto De Mattei, an Italian historian, recalled that the Crusades were “a response to the Muslim invasion of Christian lands and the Muslim devastation of the Holy Places”.

“The debate has been reopened,” La Stampa said. Professor De Mattei noted that the desecration of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem by Muslim forces in 1009 had helped to provoke the First Crusade at the end of the 11th century, called by Pope Urban II.

LITTLE GREEN FOOTBALLS PIECE.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE.
(CHT to the reader who e-mailed.)

One can’t attribute papal support to every church conference in Rome or what gets said at it, but it’s still nice seeing an approach being taken towards the Crusades that regards them from a perspective other than western self-flagellation.

The debate is a healthy one.