The Question of the Traditional Mass in Pope Leo XIV’s Pontificate

A guest article by the Canon of Shaftesbury, who serves as a canonist in a major archdiocese.

We find ourselves in the early days of Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate, and there are reasons for cautious optimism. Several signs suggest that the Holy Father wishes to address some of the more pressing challenges inherited from his predecessor.

Guest Article: The Crisis of Modern Ecumenism

"Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformers" (1660) [source]

By the Canon of Shaftesbury, a prominent canonist in a major archdiocese.

Tucho Fernández, Head of the Inquisition, Compares the Inquisition to the Holocaust

 

The "DDF" (Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith) is the successor of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which is the successor of the Congregation for the Holy Office, which is the successor of the Congregation for the Roman and Universal Inquisition. (True, the national inquisitions, such as those of the Spanish realms, were not exactly the same as the universal Inquisition in Rome, but were not unrelated, and used the same procedures in general.)

Yesterday, its leader, Tucho Cardinal Fernández, compared his own congregation to one of the most horrifying episodes of the past century of horrors, the Holocaust promoted by Nazi Germany.

It is nothing short of astonishing. Catholic apologists spend centuries making sure people understand the historical truths of the Catholic past, so often distorted by the enemies of the Church, and along comes someone as unpleasant and ignorant as Tucho to malign the Catholic name once again.

From InfoVaticana:

Leo XIV and the Challenge of Synodality - and of Germany -- by Roberto de Mattei

Leo Riding the German Machine

Roberto de Mattei

Corrispondenza Romana

January 28. 2026

Thirty years ago, French historian François Furet published a famous book that presented itself as an assessment of 20th-century Communism in the aftermath of the collapse of the Soviet Union (The Past of an Illusion, Italian translation published by Mondadori, Milan, 1995). The originality of the work lay in its being a history of Communism, not as a party or state system, but as the attractive force of an idea that turned out to be an illusion, and therefore a utopia.

The path of this utopia, wrote Furet, “is more mysterious than the real history of communism.” Its spread throughout the world was in fact much more widespread than that of Communist power. However, the disappearance of so-called 'Real Socialism' meant the loss of credibility of the historical promise, and therefore its end, because communism ceased to appear as the bright future of humanity. Hence the title of Furet's book: The Past of an Illusion.

The Catholic Problem with "Magic" - An Essay by John Lamont

The Catholic Problem with "Magic" 

(A response to Morello)

by John Lamont

Saul and the Witch of Endor
(Victoria and Albert Museum)

The Loss of the Sense of Sin Is Intimately Connected to the Loss of Doctrine

The following guest post is by Dominic J. Grigio, author of The Disastrous Pontificate: Pope Francis’ Rupture from the Magisterium.

During the Most Holy Mass for the Inauguration of his Pontificate, Pope Benedict XVI said something quite remarkable, ‘Pregate per me, perché io non fugga, per paura, davanti ai lupi — Pray for me, that I may not flee for fear of the wolves.’^[1]

The wolf is a powerful Christian symbol for wickedness and deceit within the Church, especially among those exercising pastoral leadership such as popes, cardinals, bishops and priests. These connotations of deceitful wickedness can be traced back to a warning from Our Lord, ‘Beware of false prophets, who come to you in the clothing of sheep, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.’ (Mt 7:15). The Greek word for ‘ravenous’ used by Matthew is harpax which has two meanings — rapacious or ravening, and robbery by a swindler^[2]. In the context Matthew’s Gospel our Lord’s warning about the ravening wolf disguised as a sheep conveys the danger of the disguised evil of those pastors who steal salvation from souls through imposing doctrinal error.

Address of Leo XIV to the Tribunal of the Roman Rota: Do not let a false notion of compassion obscure the Truth

[Note: the Apostolic Tribunal of the Roman Rota is the is the highest appellate tribunal of the Catholic Church - including regarding annulments.]  

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Peace be with you.

Your Excellency,

Dear Prelate Auditors of the Apostolic Tribunal of the Roman Rota,

At this, our first meeting, I would first of all like to express my appreciation for your work, which is a valuable service for the universal judiciary function that lies with the Pope, and in which the Lord has called you to participate. “Veritatem facientes in caritate” (Eph 4:15): this is an expression that can be applied to your daily mission in the administering of justice.

Pope Leo XIV is starting to make waves — and some are worried (And the strange case of the visit to Spain)

By Wanderer

Argentina

 In keeping with Francis' teachings, Pope Leo is starting to make trouble [original word: lío]. And on several levels. 

For example, what has just happened in Spain. It is known that a few weeks ago he called Cardinal Cobo, Archbishop of Madrid, to tell him that he wants to visit Spain this year. In other words, he invited himself, and no one knows exactly why. The problem is that the official invitation must be issued by the head of state, the king, and by the prime minister, Pedro Sánchez. The former will do as he is told, and the latter was reluctant to sign the invitation. And that is why the dates of the visit have not yet been confirmed. 

TLM Sunday 2026: "Introibo ad altare Dei"

 

The author preparing to offer private Mass during the snow and ice storm of January 25, 2026.

Many priests went up physically alone to the altar of God on this Lord's Day. And many of them, no doubt, offered the Church's ancient worship which, especially among the crop of younger priests, has never been so popular as in the 1970's where a failed attempt was made in so many places to snuff it out.

Francis-Collapse of Catholicism in Latin America

 

Catholicism has been in collapse in Latin America since the aftermath of Vatican II -- but it went into vertiginous tailspin in the pontificate of the Pope from Argentina.

We have often covered this in Rorate.

New Secretary of Dicastery for Clergy an Old Enemy of the Old Mass

 

Pope Leo XIV appointed today Archbishop Carlo Roberto Maria Redaelli, hitherto archbishop of Gorizia, Italy, as secretary of the Dicastery for the Clergy.

Louis XVI, King, Martyr: a Catholic going to death and His Last Will and Testament

 

Procession to eternity

On January 20, 1793, the National Convention condemned Louis XVI to death, his execution scheduled for the next day. Louis spent that evening saying goodbye to his wife and children. The following day, January 21, dawned cold and wet. Louis arose at five. At eight o'clock a guard of 1,200 horsemen arrived to escort the former king on a two-hour carriage ride to his place of execution. Accompanying Louis, at his invitation, was a priest, Henry Essex Edgeworth, an Englishman living in France. Edgeworth recorded the event and we join his narrative as he and the fated King enter the carriage to begin their journey:

Audience of Pope Leo XIV with the FSSP -

 Official communiqué of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter – Fribourg, January 20, 2026

Following a request presented by the Superior General of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, Pope Leo XIV received Father John Berg in private audience at the Vatican on Monday, January 19, 2026. He was accompanied by Father Josef Bisig, one of the founders of the Fraternity, former Superior General, and current Rector of Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary in Denton, USA.

Cardinal Roche is Sad and Worried

 by The Wanderer

Argentina

Those who visit the Dicastery for Divine Worship say that Cardinal Roche has been looking downcast lately; they find him sad and worried. And no wonder. His career as a bishop, now drawing to a close in the shadows of old age, has been a series of failures. His tenure in Leeds was disastrous in many respects, including financially. That is why—and this is no secret—the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales asked Pope Benedict in 2012 to find him another position where he could do no harm to souls or banks. And good old Ratzinger had no better idea than to place him as Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship, making him the natural successor to Cardinal Robert Sarah. (Moral: to be a good ruler, it is not enough to be wise and pious).

Open Letter to the Priests and Pastors of the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, USA

January 15^th, 2026

Feast of Our Lady of Prompt Succor

To my dear Brothers in the Vineyard of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,

Grace and peace to you in this holy Season of the Nativity of Our Lord.

With pastoral concern and fraternal affection, I write to you at a moment of genuine trial for the Church, to recall to your hearts the true nature of that obedience which must ever animate the soul of the priest. You are called, above all, to obedience to Christ Himself, in imitation of His perfect obedience to the Father, who “humbled Himself, becoming obedient unto death, even death on a Cross.” Such obedience is never without cost; yet it is always fruitful, both in this life and in the life to come. Therefore, do not shrink from the Cross that obedience may place upon your shoulders.

Cardinal Roche defends Traditionis custodes: a response

This is Dr Joseph Shaw's 'Briefing' to supporters of the Latin Mass Society. You can join the email list for these occasional briefings here.

At the recent Consistory of Cardinals in Rome, Arthur, Cardinal Roche, distributed a short text on the liturgy to those assembled, which is critical of the Traditional Mass. Readers can see my analysis of the arguments employed there on the FIUV website here [reposted to Rorate Caeli below]. In this Bulletin I want to take a step back to consider its wider implications.

As I note in my analysis, this text does not respond to the criticisms that have been made of the official justification of Traditionis custodes, but simply reiterates this justification, at greater length. The argument is that liturgical pluralism undermines the unity of the Church. Critics have pointed out that the Church has always fostered a plurality of Rites and Usages, with Vatican II itself supporting this policy. Cardinal Roche’s text does nothing to address this. Is there a good kind of pluralism to be distinguished from a bad kind? Is there a difference between a pluralism of Rites (as in Eastern and Western) and pluralism within the Western Rite? Is there a difference between the pluralism represented by the Ordinariate or the (reformed) Ambrosian Rite of Milan, and the pluralism of Ordinary and Extraordinary Form, that we need to understand? There might be arguments along these lines, but no the defender of Traditionis custodes has made a serious attempt to set them out. They have just repeated the original claim, that pluralism is a problem, and in this text Cardinal Roche does so all over again.

What are we to make of this?

Una Voce responds to Roche Consistory Report against the Traditional Mass

During the recent consistory, the meeting of cardinals in Rome, Cardinal Arthur Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship, handed out a two-sided piece of paper containing some reflections on the liturgy to those present: this has been made available by Diane Montagna here. The liturgy had been among the four topics originally proposed for discussion at the meeting, but the cardinals decided to focus on just two, leaving the liturgy out. Cardinal Roche’s document was accordingly handed out without being formally discussed.

Attack on the Traditional Mass and on Orthodoxy in the consistory - Roche and Tucho Fernandez

  Via Messa in Latino; the Roche report against the Mass at the end, made available by Diane Montagna:

Nico Spuntoni for Il Giornale

January 13, 2026

Almost a week has passed since the extraordinary Consistory, and curiosity remains about what the Pope and the cardinals said behind closed doors in the new Synod hall.

 

As Il Giornale had anticipated on December 16, the four topics brought to the twenty working tables were a re-reading of the Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, the Synod and synodality, an in-depth study of the Apostolic Constitution Predicate Evangelium, and the liturgy. However, only the first two were the focus of the Consistory's work. This was because during the first session, the cardinals were asked to make a choice dictated by the limited time available.

THE VELVET REVOLUTION OF LEO XIV: The Consistory, Church governance, the Latin Mass.

 by Jean-Marie Guénois

Rome Correspondent

Le Figaro

January 11, 2026

Unlike his predecessor, who distanced himself from the Roman Curia, the pope has decided to convene all of his cardinals each year to reflect on the strategic direction of the Church.

Leo XIV launched a velvet revolution at the Vatican this week. He casuallysummoned his 245 cardinals for two short days of work on Wednesday and Thursday, which could be the matrix for a new vision of the governance of the Catholic Church. Officially, four issues were on the agenda for this consistory: evangelization, the synod, the Roman Curia, and the liturgy. The pope had even recommended that the men in red prepare carefully, as he was awaiting the opinion of the Church Senate before making any decisions.

Pope Leo’s first extraordinary consistory: A messy learning curve and a handful of hints

by Serre Verweij

for Rorate Caeli

Pope Leo has just held his first extraordinary consistory with the College of Cardinals. The pope gave the cardinals a chance to perform one of their two key tasks, that is, to advise the Pope in governing the universal Church, even before he appointed any of his own cardinals. The meeting came to be viewed as more important when it was announced that it would deal with liturgy, with synodality, with Pope Francis’ controversial curial reforms and the late pope’s first important document Evangelii Gaudium.

Pope Leo XIV: The West is now dominated by Orwellian "inclusive" language that violates fundamental human rights, including that of conscience

 

From his address to the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See:

Today, the meaning of words is ever more fluid, and the concepts they represent are increasingly ambiguous. Language is no longer the preferred means by which human beings come to know and encounter one another. Moreover, in the contortions of semantic ambiguity, language is becoming more and more a weapon with which to deceive, or to strike and offend opponents. We need words once again to express distinct and clear realities unequivocally. Only in this way can authentic dialogue resume without misunderstandings. This should happen in our homes and public spaces, in politics, in the media and on social media.  It should likewise occur in the context of international relations and multilateralism, so that the latter can regain the strength needed for undertaking its role of encounter and mediation.  This is indeed necessary for preventing conflicts, and for ensuring that no one is tempted to prevail over others with the mindset of force, whether verbal, physical or military.

We should also note the paradox that this weakening of language is often invoked in the name of freedom of expression itself.  However, on closer inspection, the opposite is true, for freedom of speech and expression is guaranteed precisely by the certainty of language and the fact that every term is anchored in the truth.  It is painful to see how, especially in the West, the space for genuine freedom of expression is rapidly shrinking.  At the same time, a new Orwellian-style language is developing which, in an attempt to be increasingly inclusive, ends up excluding those who do not conform to the ideologies that are fueling it.

Unfortunately, this leads to other consequences that end up restricting fundamental human rights, starting with freedom of conscience.  In this regard, conscientious objection allows individuals to refuse legal or professional obligations that conflict with moral, ethical or religious principles deeply rooted in their personal lives.  This may be the refusal of military service in the name of non-violence, or the refusal on the part of doctors and healthcare professionals to engage in practices such as abortion or euthanasia.  Conscientious objection is not rebellion, but an act of fidelity to oneself.  At this moment in history, freedom of conscience seems increasingly to be questioned by States, even those that claim to be based on democracy and human rights.  This freedom, however, establishes a balance between the collective interest and individual dignity.  It also emphasizes that a truly free society does not impose uniformity but protects the diversity of consciences, preventing authoritarian tendencies and promoting an ethical dialogue that enriches the social fabric.

---

The full address is available below:

JERUSALEM - "My take on all of this is that I think the world cannot be redeemed."

Right before Christmas, two tragic events burst through the quietness of early New England winter: the attack at Brown University, in Providence, Rhode Island, which left two deceased young students; and the murder of a celebrated MIT professor in his own home in Brookline, Massachusetts. We pray for their souls, and for consolation of those left behind.

Dominic J. Grigio, “Why I Wrote The Disastrous Pontificate”—Exclusive for Rorate

Prefatory note: On January 7, 2026, a major new book, The Disastrous Pontificate: Pope Francis' Rupture from the Magisterium, was released by Os Justi Press. Endorsed by a constellation of luminaries including Rev. Gerald E. Murray, Edward Feser, Eduardo Echeverria, Philip F. Lawler, John Rist, Michael Sirilla, Claudio Pierantoni, and Josef Seifert, the work has already attracted international attention for its comprehensive research and bold claims. Today, in an exclusive for Rorate Caeli, the author, Dominic Grigio, tells us why he wrote it. If you'd like to hear it being read aloud, go here, or scroll to the bottom.—PAK

During his last general audience before his abdication Pope Benedict XVI declared his confidence in the barque of the Church weathering the storms of history, ‘Nor does the Lord let it sink; it is He who guides it, surely also through those whom He has chosen.’^[1] Yet amid the escalating crises of his successor's pontificate, it seemed to me that the barque was being deliberately steered onto the rocks. Good and faithful Catholics—those who simply cherished the Traditional Latin Mass and the Church's perennial doctrines and moral teachings—were being cast overboard, incurring scornful ire and punitive measures merely for their fidelity.

Address of the Pope at Opening of Consistory of Cardinals

Dear Brothers,

I am very pleased to welcome all of you. Thank you for your presence! May the Holy Spirit, whom we have invoked, guide us during these two days of reflection and dialogue.

I consider it highly significant that we have gathered in Consistory on the day after the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, and I would like to introduce our work by proposing something drawn precisely from this mystery.

The Consistory of Cardinals Starts Today

 Also today, Leo XIV started a new catechesis series on... Vatican II. The Council that will never go away, apparently.

On the consistory, Nico Spuntoni of La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana has the report:

Today and tomorrow, the Sacred College will hold a meeting, which was requested during the pre-conclave congregations. The main topics will be the Synod, synodality, and liturgy, but Bergoglio's method of working groups will remain unchanged.

A Sermon for the Epiphany

For the Epiphany: Homage to T.S. Eliot

 by Fr. Richard Cipolla

The stars have always been important to me. My name is Melchior and  I am a king of a small country, but I have always been interested in the stars. I believe the stars are not just objects in the sky.  They are part of the mystery of the universe and tell us things> I have studied the stars for most of my life, and so have my two friends, who are also kings of small countries near mine.  So when I saw this star, this particular star that shone brighter than any other star I have ever seen, I knew that it meant something great, something very important. It announced the birth of someone very special, a king that was much more than I was a king, a king whose power was greater than any other king.  

“If I Were the Bishop”

The following op-ed, by guest writer Mark Rose, is in the style of Paul Harvey’s “If I were the Devil.”

If I were the Bishop—if I were the successor to the Apostles, charged with the care of souls in the United States—I’d want to make the Church irrelevant. I wouldn’t do it with persecution; that only makes the faithful stronger. I’d do it with “modernization.”

The Traditional Mass a Topic at the January Consistory?

 By Paix Liturgique (Christian Marquant)

Nicola Spuntoni, in an article published in Il Giornale on December 16, reveals that the Pope, who has convened an extraordinary consistory for January 7 and 8, will be sending the cardinals a letter before Christmas outlining the three-point agenda for this consistory: their participation in the governance of the Church, synodality, and the liturgical question.