Father Claude Barthe, author of "Beyond Vatican II: The Church at a new crossroads" and one of the most well-informed clergymen in France, had this to say on the possible Motu Proprio in an online interview given today to the readers of Le Forum Catholique:
As far as it can be known, there have been two successive drafts of the MP. It was the second one -- which should be more complete and which should detail the resolution of problems -- which was examined by the full membership of the Ecclesia Dei Commission in December. A handful of modifications would have been added by the Commission and the text is "ready for signature" on the desk of the Pope. It is notorious that he takes his time for the decisions (that became legendary in Munich, during the short time in which he was Archbishop).
The text is now known to Cardinal Ricard, Cardinal Barbarin, and a certain number of French bishops, at least in its general lines. Their reactions, the precautions which they take, the manner in which they speak to their clergy seem to indicate that there is nothing institutional in the document (it would not refer at all, in theory, to the Ecclesia Dei communities themselves), but that the "needs of the faithful" must be compulsorily satisfied, without their being able to oppose it, except in a justified manner.
I do not believe, but I may be wrong here, that the freedom shall be restrained. I believe that the psychological shock which the freedom will generate will be salutary, even if it creates difficulties, those which we can predict and others which we quite surely cannot predict. ... I insist on the conditional tone which I have constantly used [in this answer].
