With the approval of Pope Benedict XVI, the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei issued the instruction Universae Ecclesiae of 30 April 2011, feast of Saint Pius V, to clarify some aspects of Summorum Pontificum.
The normative part of the document (nn.12-35) contains 23 brief points on various arguments. It reaffirms the competence of the diocesan bishops in implementing the Motu proprio, recalling that in the event of a dispute about the celebration in forma extraordinaria judgement falls to the Ecclesia Dei Commission. It clarifies the concept of coetus fidelium (in short "group of faithful") stabiliter existens ("stable") whose desire to participate in the celebration of the forma extraordinaria must be welcomed and accepted by pastors. While leaving the assessment of the number of people required for its establishment to the wise judgement of pastors, it states that the group does not necessarily have to be composed of persons belonging to a single parish, but may result from people who come together from different parishes or even from other dioceses. While always taking into account compliance with wider pastoral needs, the Instruction proposes a spirit of "generous welcome" towards groups of faithful who request the forma extraordinaria or priests who request to occasionally celebrate in such a form with some of the faithful. The clarification (n.19) according to which the faithful who request the celebration in forma extraordinaria "must not in any way support or belong to groups that show themselves to be contrary to the validity or legitimacy of forma ordinaria " and/or authority of the Pope, is most important. This would be in flagrant contradiction to the motu proprio’s very aim of "reconciliation". Priests must have a sufficient knowledge of Latin and know the rite to be celebrated. Bishops are therefore encouraged to make proper formation for this purpose available in seminaries, and the possibility of recourse, if there are no other suitable priests, to the collaboration of priests from the Institutes set up by the "Ecclesia Dei" Commission (which normally use the forma extraordinaria) is also indicated. The use of the 1962 forms of conferring Holy Orders is permitted only in those institutes that exclusively celebrate the 1962 Missal that are under the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei.
The instruction is structured as follows:
I. Introduction
II. The Responsibilities of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei
III. Specific Norms
- The Competence of Diocesan Bishops
- The coetus fidelium (cf. Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum, art. 5 § 1)
- Sacerdos idoneus (“Qualified Priest”) (cf. Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum, art 5 § 4)
- Liturgical and Ecclesiastical Discipline
- Confirmation and Holy Orders
- Breviarium Romanum
- The Sacred Triduum
- The Rites of Religious Orders
- Pontificale Romanum and the Rituale Romanum
Article 8 specified the aims of Summorum Pontificum as:
- offering to all the faithful the Roman Liturgy in the Usus Antiquior, considered as a precious treasure to be preserved;
- effectively guaranteeing and ensuring the use of the forma extraordinaria for all who ask for it, given that the use of the 1962 Roman Liturgy is a faculty generously granted for the good of the faithful and therefore is to be interpreted in a sense favourable to the faithful who are its principal addressees;
- promoting reconciliation at the heart of the Church.
Other sections include:
- On diocesan bishops
14. It is the task of the Diocesan Bishop to undertake all necessary measures to ensure respect for the forma extraordinaria of the Roman Rite, according to the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum.
- On the coetus fidelium ("group of the faithful")
19. The faithful who ask for the celebration of the forma extraordinaria must not in any way support or belong to groups which show themselves to be against the validity or legitimacy of the Holy Mass or the Sacraments celebrated in the forma ordinaria or against the Roman Pontiff as Supreme Pastor of the Universal Church.
The head of the Holy See's Press Office, Father Federico Lombardi called this clarification "most important".
- On sacerdos idoneus
20. With respect to the question of the necessary requirements for a priest to be held idoneus ("qualified") to celebrate in the forma extraordinaria, the following is hereby stated:
- Every Catholic priest who is not impeded by Canon Law is to be considered idoneus ("qualified") for the celebration of the Holy Mass in the forma extraordinaria.
- Regarding the use of the Latin language, a basic knowledge is necessary, allowing the priest to pronounce the words correctly and understand their meaning.
- Regarding knowledge of the execution of the Rite, priests are presumed to be qualified who present themselves spontaneously to celebrate the forma extraordinaria, and have celebrated it previously.
- On norms of law later than 1962
27. With regard to the disciplinary norms connected to celebration, the ecclesiastical discipline contained in the Code of Canon Law of 1983 applies.
28. Furthermore, by virtue of its character of special law, within its own area, the Motu Proprio Summorum Pontificum derogates from those provisions of law, connected with the sacred Rites, promulgated from 1962 onwards and incompatible with the rubrics of the liturgical books in effect in 1962.
This has been interpreted as ruling out extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, female altar servers, etc.
- On the Triduum Sacrum
33. If there is a qualified priest, a coetus fidelium (“group of faithful”), which follows the older liturgical tradition, can also celebrate the Sacred Triduum in the forma extraordinaria. When there is no church or oratory designated exclusively for such celebrations, the parish priest or Ordinary, in agreement with the qualified priest, should find some arrangement favourable to the good of souls, not excluding the possibility of a repetition of the celebration of the Sacred Triduum in the same church.
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