One hundred days as Pope
That is how long it has been since the beginning of Prevost's pontificate, which began under the banner of spirituality, verticality, normalization, and reconciliation. To the relief of some and the disappointment of others (which is also a good sign).
Text from St. Landry Now, with images also sent my a reader - the procession visited eight churches along the Bayou, in St. Landry Parish, deep in Acadian territory in Louisiana (Acadiana):
By James Baresel
A variety of scholars, thinkers and writers all along the spectrum opinion from the staunchest supporters of the Tridentine Mass to advocates of reforming the reform to those favoring preservation of the status quo to proponents of more radical changes frequently argue the same one point—that whatever they oppose is somehow “not liturgical.”
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| Holy Assumption of the Virgin Mary Orthodox Church National Historic Landmark Kenai, Alaska, 1894 |
On August 15, 2025, the Feast of the Assumption, a historic summit will take place in Alaska between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Just as The Dogma of the Immaculate Conception, proclaimed in 1854 by Pius IX, is connected to the Apparition of Our Lady of Lourdes in 1858, when She identified Herself to Bernadette by saying “I am the Immaculate Conception”, so another apparition is also connected to the proclamation of the Dogma of the Assumption.
This is the second of several analyses written for Rorate by our contributor Serre Verweij on Leo XIV's first year.
Series: The First Year of Leo XIV
II - LEO AND SYNODALITY
As Pope Leo XIV is approaching the 100 day mark of his pontificate (today is day 97), more and more decisions are coming out which appear indicative of the course of his papacy. Our new Pope is starting to address difficult dilemmas described in Leo XIV: The First 50 Days -- an Analysis.
In this article we outlined many of the challenges Pope Leo faces, quite a few of which are directly related to Francis’ multiyear synodal project plus other reforms and local projects connected to it. Whether to cancel the ecclesial assembly set for 2028 and the process leading up to it, how to deal with local synods in Italy and Ireland, whether to ensure an adequately orthodox African response to the problem of polygamy, and so on.
So far, Pope Leo appears to have alternated between either ensuring a return to orthodoxy behind the scenes, or punting on liberal reforms, not killing them, but leaving their conclusion uncertain. Key curial appointments by Pope Leo will give a more definitive indication of what shape his pontificate will take. Positive patterns do already seem to be slowly emerging, however.
The ecclesial assembly and the implementation of synodality
The Vatican was paying attention as Cardinal Burke pronounced the sermon in the Pontifical Mass celebrated by Archbishop Cordileone, of San Francisco, on August 5th in the shrine so carefully cherished by him, the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
“The beauty and solemnity of our worship is especially enhanced by the presence of the Most Reverent Salvatore J. Cordileone, archbishop of San Franciso who is offering the holy sacrifice of the Mass, and by the singing of the Mass of the Americas, the first composition commissioned by the Benedict XVI Institute for Sacred Music and Divine Worship.
Throughout the world, Catholics (and not a few non-Catholics) are mourning the loss of Bishop Peter J Elliott, retired Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne, Australia, who died on Wednesday, 6th August.
On Sunday, June 22, 2025, the Second Sunday after Pentecost, the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Gabon, Major General of the National Gendarmerie, Ms. Brigitte Onkanowa, attended Holy Mass in the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Charlemagne the Emperor in Prague, commonly known to Praguers as Karlov. Since 2016, the church has been a diocesan rectory for celebrations in the traditional Roman rite. The minister was in our Republic on a business trip and expressly wanted to attend the traditional Latin “Tridentine” Mass on Sunday. It was clear that this was her personal preference, as the Catholic Church in her country attracts the faithful mainly because of its widespread celebration of traditional Masses. It turns out that Africans do not necessarily need liturgical dances to affirm their cultural identity, which are almost imposed on them by Europeans as something supposedly authentic that they should exhibit for us.
The recent case of the “Messa in Latino” blog gives us an opportunity to reflect on the religious freedom of Catholics in the world today. Since 2007, Messainlatino.it (MiL) has been one of the most popular and widely read Catholic blogs in the world. On July 11, 2025, with a simple unsigned email and without any warning, the blog was removed from Google's Blogger platform for alleged violation of the “hate speech policy.” MessainLatino defended itself tooth and nail against this abuse, raising awareness in the press, promoting two parliamentary questions in Rome and Strasbourg, and filing an urgent appeal with the Court of Imperia on July 17. At the end of the standoff, on July 23, the blog was restored by Google. MessainLatino thus won the battle, probably emerging stronger than before.
The Lord taketh chosen witnesses, and in their presence, revealeth His glory. That form of body which He had in common with other men, He so transfigured with light, that His Face did shine as the sun, and His raiment became exceeding white as snow. Of this metamorphosis the chief work was to remove from the hearts of the disciples the stumbling at the Cross. Before their eyes was unveiled the splendour of His hidden majesty, that the lowliness of His freely-chosen suffering might not confound their faith. But none the less was there here laid by the Providence of God a solid foundation for the hope of the Holy Church, whereby the whole body of Christ should know with what a change it is yet to be honoured. The members of that body whose Head hath already been transfigured in light may promise themselves a share in His glory.
This is the first of several analyses written for Rorate by our contributor Serre Verweij on Leo XIV's first year.
Series: The First Year of Leo XIV
I - LEO AND THE GERMANS
While we are waiting for Pope Leo XIV to tip his hand and release his first encyclical, and make his first curial appointments, both sides in the struggle between tradition and modernism keep trying to claim him. The attempts by progressives to claim the Pope as their secret candidate (after the fact) are looking increasingly desperate, however. Specifically, attempts by the German bishops stand out as highly dubious.
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| McCrery Architects, New Carmel, Wyoming |
Those familiar with the architectural work of James McCrery know he is among the greats of the 20th and 21st centuries.
From the Bollettino (in Italian).
On July 31, 2025, the Holy Father Leo XIV received in audience His Most Reverend Eminence Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.
During the same audience, the Holy Father confirmed the affirmative opinion of the Plenary Session of Cardinals and Bishops, Members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, regarding the title of Doctor of the Universal Church, which will soon be conferred on Saint John Henry Newman, Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church, Founder of the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri in England; born in London (United Kingdom) on February 21, 1801, and died in Edgbaston (United Kingdom) on August 11, 1890.
Cardinal Newman's lifelong struggle was against liberalism in religion. He made that very clear in his famous Biglietto speech, upon the acceptance of the cardinalatial title:
The pontificate of St. Gregory VII (1073-1085), Ildebrando di Soana, constitutes one of the high points of the Christian Middle Ages. The culmination of the Gregorian pontificate is the Dictatus Papae, a collection of twenty-seven sentences defining the prerogatives of the Pope and his relations with temporal authority, proclaiming the superiority of the Pontiff over the Emperor in the religious and moral sphere and claiming for the Papacy the role of the highest and most eminent power on Earth. The work was probably written between 1075 and 1078, at the height of the conflict with the German sovereign Henry IV, not yet Emperor of Germany, who had initiated the so-called Investiture Controversy against the Church.
Statement from the congregation responsible for the Mass, celebrated since 2007 in Franciskusgården, in the town of Jonsered:
STATEMENT
For several years, the friars of the Delegation of St. John the Baptist of the Third Order Regular have celebrated Holy Mass at the Franciscan Monastery according to the 1962 Roman Missal, which is the Extraordinary Form of the Church's Liturgy. These Holy Masses, which are usually celebrated at 12:00 on Sundays, have been celebrated in addition to the Ordinary Form of Holy Mass at 10:00.
From the summary of a major new paper just published by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), in Cambridge, Massachusetts, authored by some of the greatest names in Economic research, including the famous Dr. Barro, of Harvard University, Dr. Dewitte, of the University of Oxford, and Dr. Iannaccone, of Chapman University:
Looking Backward: Long-Term Religious Service Attendance in 66 Countries
Robert J. Barro, Edgard Dewitte & Laurence Iannaccone
Issue Date July 2025
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| Michelangelo Pistoletto and Fr. Spadaro SJ |
BERGOGLIANISM IS OVER
Where have all the Bergoglians gone? Since Pope Francis died, it seems as if they never existed. As if the friends of the enemies of Jesus, the Jesuits, had been suppressed once again, to Pascal's delight...
Honouring Grandparents and the Elderly in Catholic Tradition:
A Christianised Ganda Cultural Reading
by Michael Kakooza
for Rorate Cæli
Introduction
In 2021, Pope Francis instituted the fourth Sunday of July as the annual World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly in the reformed Roman calendar. This year, the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly will fall on 27 July 2025.
In the message he issued for the first World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, the pope stated:
Think about it: what is our vocation today, at our age? To preserve our roots, to pass on the faith to the young and to care for the little ones. Never forget this.
It makes no difference how old you are, whether you still work or not, whether you are alone or have a family, whether you became a grandmother or grandfather at a young age or later, whether you are still independent or need assistance. Because there is no retirement age from the work of proclaiming the Gospel and handing down traditions to your grandchildren. … The future of the world depends on this covenant between young and old. … Keeping memory alive is a true mission for every elderly person: keeping memory alive and sharing it with others.
In the following discussion, I wish to contribute to broadening our appreciation of the concepts of grandparents and the elderly within the context of Catholic Tradition, drawing from the wisdom of my own cultural background as a Ugandan Catholic who is attached to the Traditional Latin liturgical heritage.
From the Petition website, where you are encouraged to sign the petition:
The Cross still stands, after an Israeli attack causes grave damage on the Church of the Holy Family in Gaza:
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| (Image source: @catholicsat on Twitter) |
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| (Image source: Vatican News) |
The Cardinal is right: it seems hardly possible that a tank, viewing what was clearly a church (pictured below before the attack) would fire by mistake.
Mother Marie: Sister Blanche...First Commissary: I forbid you to continue...Mother Marie: You have the power to force me to silence, but none to command me to it. I represent here the Reverend Mother Prioress and I shall take no orders from you.A Commissary: Confounded old hag! She cannot be made to hold her tongue, fellow Citizen, but remind her that the Republic has a machine at its disposal that will leave her somewhat short of breath!First Commissary: Enough! I repeat that you must behave as a true representative of the people! [He turns to Sister Blanche:] Young citizen, you have nothing to fear from us, who are your liberators! Say but one word, and you will find yourself beyond the sway of those who, to better put you in their power, have not feared to offend nature in usurping even the sacred name of "mother". Henceforth, you are under the protection of the Law.
Typically, the European Union is ashamed of the twelve stars of the Madonna.
An interview with Christian Marquant, of French association Paix Liturgique:
Paix Liturgique – Dear Christian, what do you mean by the title you chose for this interview?
Christian Marquant – That the motu proprio Traditionis Custodes, which was published exactly four years ago on July 16, 2021, was an extraordinary exercise of manipulation aimed at putting and end once and for all to the increasingly disturbing question of the renewal of those who are known as traditionalists, and whom I prefer to call faithful Catholics.
He, who was the man behind Francis document Traditionis custodes, establishing a gradual extinction of the Traditional Latin Mass, now does not deny (as many of his liberal friends first try to do) the complete truth that the report by the world's Bishops that preceded Summorum Pontificum is real. In his new piece on this saga of shame (translation below), Grillo now says that, yes, the Bishops' report is all too real, and, yes, it is very positive -- but the bishops were simply wrong.
Let us all recall that Francis put into writing in Traditionis custodes what can only be called a lie: "At this time, having considered the wishes expressed by the episcopate..."; and in the accompanying letter, Francis lied even more shamefully: "With the passage of thirteen years, I instructed the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to circulate a questionnaire to the Bishops regarding the implementation of the Motu proprio Summorum Pontificum. The responses reveal a situation that preoccupies and saddens me, and persuades me of the need to intervene."
What we now know, in fact, was that the situation revealed by the responses was fantastically positive. Whoever persuaded Francis to write the lies that he put in writing created a moment of immense shame and perpetual regret for the good name of the Apostolic See.
Grillo's latest words are a response to the measured analysis of the situation by the prestigious Vaticanist Sandro Magister, also transcribed below.
First, Grillo:
Right after the explosive news on the actual positive nature of the global bishops' report on Summorum Pontificum was published last week, Monsignor Nicola Bux, one of the great liturgical names of our times and a major advisor under Benedict XVI, released a book with more details on the event. We now know that Vatican insiders close to Francis lied about it, and Francis himself did not tell the truth about it (on paper, in Traditionis custodes, the restrictions document).
Monsignor Bux spoke at length about these matters in an interview granted to Stefano Chiappalone, of Italian news website Bussola Quotidiana, and published today:
Msgr. Bux, so it was not the majority of bishops who were pushing to “do away” with the traditional Mass?
by Kevin Tierneyfor Rorate Cæli
Following Diane Montagna’s bombshell revelation of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith's summary of the Bishops opinion on Summorum Pontificum, it was wondered by many how the defenders of Traditionis custodes would respond. While the first 24 hours saw a flurry of defenses call into question her reporting (none of them very compelling), defenders have received their talking points and have settled upon a defense. What they do not realize is this defense puts them into an even more precarious position.
The leak could be strategic: For years, only the very negative feedback from the French Bishops' Conference on the survey by the then Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on the “Old Mass” was known - completely in line with Francis. Now that a new pope is in office, who has repeatedly revived traditions abandoned by his predecessor - from the Corpus Christi procession and the handing over of the pallia to new archbishops to the traditional vacation spot - a new picture is being painted.
In a piece on the explosive revelation of the generally positive response of the world's bishops to Summorum Pontificum, the news website of the German Bishops' Conference uses the most diplomatic of languages:
Pope Francis appears to have ignored the advice of the bishops previously consulted worldwide when he restricted the Traditional Latin Mass. According to documents that have now become public, the responses to a survey conducted by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on the implementation of the rules for the pre-conciliar liturgy put in place by Pope Benedict XVI were significantly more positive than the Pope himself presented. [emphasis added]
Yes: Francis lied. He lied.
Summorum Pontificum itself foresaw a report, in order to adjust any issues with implementation -- and the report now obtained was generally positive. As Montagna reports:
Thousands of souls are without home today, after the generous post-Summorum application in the Archdiocese of Detroit is replaced with episcopal Tradition-hating whim.
Just a few dandelions remain standing from what was a flowering garden...
Let us pray for our abandoned brothers and sisters, and that the Church may have good and holy bishops.
Motet for the Feast of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, in a composition published in 1572 by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525-1594), whose 500th birthday is being celebrated this year.
The hauntingly beautiful 'Tu es Petrus' at the conclusion of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass with Pope Leo XIV on the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul. May God bless the Holy Father, on this the first time he celebrates the Feast of the Prince of the Apostles as Roman Pontiff. pic.twitter.com/rDIKwmk5UZ
— Catholic Sat (@CatholicSat) June 29, 2025
My small parish gave birth to a priestly vocation in less than seven years. How did we do it? It’s not rocket science. It’s called Tradition. And this includes the source and summit of Tradition: the holy Mass.
A young man, who was converted away from a worldly and hedonistic lifestyle by exposure to the traditional Latin Mass, quite logically figured out that his continued conversion would more likely than not be best supported by such continued exposure.
It has been 50 days since Pope Leo XIV was elected, but the world does not have a clear picture of him yet. Some cardinals and professional Vatican analysts seem to be getting a more detailed profile of the Pope (one which is apparently more orthodox than many initially had expected), but the world at large does not view him as a new Pope Benedict XVI to be opposed vigorously (yet).
13% of Catholics say they have attended a Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) at least once in the last five years, including 2% who say they attend a TLM weekly today.
Interview granted by the Father Abbot of the most influential Traditional abbey in the world, Our Lady of Fontgombault (France), to French Catholic periodical La Nef -- Lothar Rillinger (for Kath.net) and Christophe Geffroy (for La Nef, for complementary questions) are the interviewers.
Dom Jean Pateau: “Unity is not uniformity”
The detestable Italian professor was introduced by some malevolent Vatican spirit to Francis and created the document that would later be signed by the late pope as "Traditionis custodes", whose aim is explicitly to destroy the Traditional Latin Mass in the long term.
But it seems Grillo has at last bitten more than he can chew (or at least at last because it happened during this new pontificate). In an article from early June, the Father of Traditionis Custodes, lambasted Carlo Acutis, the young man beatified by Francis and to be canonized by Leo XIV in October.
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In recent weeks, the world witnessed an unprecedented escalation in the war between Israel and Iran. A war that could assume the proportions of a global conflict, with a not remote probability that nuclear weapons would be employed. Against this terrible backdrop, the modern West is now helpless and incapable of reacting: instead of acknowledging its own errors, starting with the denial of those Christian roots that constituted the essence of its glorious past, it now seems to be in the grip of a mad rush toward moral suicide. Indeed, the British Parliament, after passing laws to impose penalties on those who interfere, even silently praying, with access to “abortion services,” has gone even further by passing an amendment to existing abortion legislation that “women should be excluded from the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and the Infant Life Preservation Act 1929 in relation to their pregnancies, bringing England and Wales into line with Northern Ireland.” The amendment, tabled by Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi, passed with 379 votes in favor and 137 against.
Here is to be found one of the deeper aspects of the dogma of the Communion of Saints. The closer one of these privileged souls is to God, the author and source of every good which can adorn and rejoice souls, the greater is her beneficent action on those around. What graces she can demand from the Spouse, wresting them from Him for the whole Church!
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| Projection from 2014 based on active France-bred vocations from religious orders |
Leo XIV met with the outgoing board of the French Bishops' Conference (CEF) last week, and, as Silere non Possum notes, it is the silence on vocations -- particularly of the traditional communities, completely ignored in the bishops' 2025 dramatic report -- that is noteworthy:
Notably absent: the communities linked to the traditional liturgy
By James Baresel
In the twentieth chapter of Loss and Gain, Saint John Henry Newman gives an extended description of how Catholics attended Mass: “Each in his place, with his own heart, with his own wants, with his own thoughts, with his own intention, with his own prayers, separate but concordant, watching what is going on, watching its progress, uniting in its consummation;—not painfully and hopelessly following a hard form of prayer from beginning to end, but, like a concert of musical instruments, each different, but concurring in a sweet harmony, we take our part with God's priest.”
Father Richard Cipolla
From the sixth chapter of the Gospel according to St. John: “At this the Jews quarreled among themselves saying:’ How can he give us his flesh to eat’”?
Who are these Jews? These are the co-religionists of Jesus’ time, those who could not bear to hear Jesus’ words about his flesh and blood as real food and real drink. But “the Jews” are also those who at any time and any place cannot bear to hear these words of Jesus. They are those who murmur in opposition, they who ask “What is the point of this feast of Corpus Christi? We have Holy Thursday to celebrate the institution of the Eucharist. That is a logical feast. Why this other feast, what is the point, and what does this tell us, what does this teach us, what difference does this feast make in my life?”
In order to have a shared point of reference in political activity, and not exclude a priori any consideration of the transcendent in decision-making processes, it would be helpful to seek an element that unites everyone. To this end, an essential reference point is the natural law, written not by human hands, but acknowledged as valid in all times and places, and finding its most plausible and convincing argument in nature itself. In the words of Cicero, already an authoritative exponent of this law in antiquity, I quote from De Re Publica: “Natural law is right reason, in accordance with nature, universal, constant and eternal, which with its commands, invites us to do what is right and with its prohibitions deters us from evil... No change may be made to this law, nor may any part of it be removed, nor can it be abolished altogether; neither by the Senate nor by the people, can we free ourselves from it, nor is it necessary to seek its commentator or interpreter. And there shall be no law in Rome, none in Athens, none now, none later; but one eternal and unchanging law shall govern all peoples at all times” (III, 22).
