Eucharist, sacrament of communion background
CV NEWS FEED // Two parishes and a mission church in the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia have received renewed permission from the Vatican to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass for the next two years.
A recent diocesan statement on the renewed permission noted that five non-parish locations in the diocese will also continue to celebrate the Latin Mass. Along with the five non-parish locations, the two-year renewed permission to celebrate the Latin Mass is granted to Saint Rita Catholic Church, Saint John the Beloved Catholic Church, and Saint Anthony of Padua Mission Church.
Earlier this year, Bishop Michael Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington petitioned the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments for an extension of the permission to celebrate the Latin Mass, which the Dicastery granted.
According to the diocesan statement, the Dicastery’s response granting the permission also “commended the diocese for how well it has implemented” the 2021 motu proprio Traditionis Custodes.
The motu proprio aimed to restrict the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass around the world, arguing that such a measure would bring more liturgical unity to the Church by primarily celebrating the Novus Ordo (new rite). Bishops across the United States responded to this motu proprio with varying levels of support.
In 2022, Bishop Burbidge requested a dispensation from Traditionis Custodes for several parishes in the diocese so that they could celebrate the Latin Mass. In July 2022, the diocese announced new instructions on the celebration of Latin Mass in the diocese, reducing the number of parishes with permission to celebrate the old rite from 21 to eight.
According to the recent diocesan statement on the renewed permission for three churches, the Dicastery also commended “the diocese’s continued commitment to help those persons and groups attached to this form to worshipping according to the current Missale Romanum.”
“The Dicastery suggested that once a month, in place of one of the Masses usually celebrated in the usus antiquior, Mass be celebrated in Latin using the Missale Romanum of 2008,” the diocesan statement continued, noting that Bishop Burbidge accepted this suggestion.
The statement added that since Traditionis Custodes’ publication, the bishop of Arlington has continued to emphasize two points.
“First, the Diocese of Arlington will be obedient to the Holy Father’s directives, working toward unity in our use of liturgical rites,” the statement read. “Second, the diocesan instruction related to Traditionis Custodes would be sensitive to those who attend the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM).”
The statement’s conclusion highlighted that Bishop Burbidge is grateful for priests’ support of diocesan policy and their “offering [of] pastoral accompaniment, in union with the Holy Father, to the faithful who have a great devotion for the Traditional Latin Mass.”
