To the first group of French bishops in the periodical "ad limina" visit to Rome, Francis said, "Basta!" -- enough.
This morning, Francis met a new group of French Bishops, including the Archbishops of Paris, Abp. Michel Aupetit, and of Lyon, Abp. Olivier de Germay. Famille Chrétienne reveals the details:
Several French bishops were received for a particularly long audience - two hours and twenty minutes - and were able to have a frank exchange with Pope Francis on September 23. They were from the provinces of Paris, Lyon and Clermont-Ferrand, who came to Rome for the ad limina visits ...
"What interested the Pope was to discuss with us informally," Archbishop Aupetit of Paris told reporters a few hours after the exchange. "It was our questions that fueled this dialogue, in a very simple and fraternal way." ...
The thorny motu proprio Traditionis Custodes
Not surprisingly, among the topics discussed was the delicate implementation of the motu proprio Traditionis Custodes, which drastically regulates the celebration of Masses according to the pre-conciliar form. "The Pope said that what he wanted to do was to restore the unity of the Church by fighting against the ideology that he feared would appear," said the Archbishop of Paris. Confirming rumors that the pope was targeting specific countries with these strict measures, Archbishop Aupetit reported that Francis had mentioned risks "particularly in the United States, Switzerland, and a little in France." And the archbishop of Paris added: "Which is not false." He himself took restrictive measures in his diocese in September.
Pope Francis insisted during the audience that the key word in his motu proprio is the responsibility of bishops. The Archbishop of Lyon, who wanted to clarify this point, told the Pope that he felt it was important to take into account the specificities of their diocese, in other words, the more or less good relations they have with the "trad" communities, when making decisions. "We know very well that among those who are attached to the Extraordinary Form, there is a risk of separation for some," said Abp. Olivier de Germay. "But this is not the case for all." I said to him, "In Amoris Laetitia, you invite us to take into account the diversity of situations. Here, we should do the same thing." While he expected the pope to confirm this view, the latter, "said he agreed," concludes Abp. de Germay. "He sent us back to our role as bishops, telling us it was up to us to take responsibility."
When asked by Abp. Aupetit if a parish where both forms of the rite were celebrated could continue to exist, the Pope also answered in the affirmative. The Parisian prelate acknowledged that the Pope's "decree" had "put things in order" and had allowed him to realize the existence of clandestine actions in his diocese.
We deeply thank Archbishop Olivier de Germay, of Lyon, Primate of the Gauls, for speaking up in favor of Traditional Catholics. Thank you!
On the other hand, Abp. Aupetit is obviously itching to be named a Cardinal: shame on you! La honte!
(Source: Famille Chrétienne. Emphases added by Rorate)
