"In Bordeaux, Cardinal Ricard said, the Good Shepherd institute could only begin pastoral activites after signing an agreement with the archdiocese." (CWN)
Well, well, this is what happens when original texts are misunderstood... The priests who are current members of the Institute of the Good Shepherd "began" their "pastoral activities" many years ago; and, as members of the Institute, from the day of its erection. So this new text by Cardinal Ricard, Archbishop of Bordeaux, which Catholic World News published in part, adds nothing to what he had actually said at the time of the new Institute's foundation (for his communiqué, read here): the Traditional Roman Rite is "proper" to the new Society; none of its priests may ever be constrained to concelebrate the new Mass, not even with the Cardinal-Archbishop himself...
That which demands an agreement between the Archdiocese and the Institute is the establishment of the Church of Saint-Éloi as a Personal Parish -- but its regular pastoral activities need not this canonical step to "begin"... The Holy See itself established Saint-Éloi as the seat of the Society, so there is not much Cardinal Ricard can do besides recognizing this exceptional place, safeguarded by the Vatican -- what he can do is to pretend that he wishes to "talk tough" to the "Integrists" so that his own diocesan presbyterate calm down, while at the same time he establishes a personal parish.
He desires to inform his priests (and other upset faithful) that he still is in charge, even though it is clear the circumstances were forced upon him: the Cardinal has got to do what he has got to do to calm down his priests and the other members of the Episcopal Conference he presides...
____
P.S. As noticed by a few others, there is an innovation in Cardinal Ricard's latest article: calling the Traditional Roman Rite "what the Pope calls [it]": "an extraordinary form of the Roman Rite".
That which demands an agreement between the Archdiocese and the Institute is the establishment of the Church of Saint-Éloi as a Personal Parish -- but its regular pastoral activities need not this canonical step to "begin"... The Holy See itself established Saint-Éloi as the seat of the Society, so there is not much Cardinal Ricard can do besides recognizing this exceptional place, safeguarded by the Vatican -- what he can do is to pretend that he wishes to "talk tough" to the "Integrists" so that his own diocesan presbyterate calm down, while at the same time he establishes a personal parish.
He desires to inform his priests (and other upset faithful) that he still is in charge, even though it is clear the circumstances were forced upon him: the Cardinal has got to do what he has got to do to calm down his priests and the other members of the Episcopal Conference he presides...
____
P.S. As noticed by a few others, there is an innovation in Cardinal Ricard's latest article: calling the Traditional Roman Rite "what the Pope calls [it]": "an extraordinary form of the Roman Rite".
