(LifeSiteNews) — An open “Letter from the Americas,” asking the Pope not to issue any more restrictions on the traditional Latin Mass, has been published.
“We, the undersigned, ask that no further restrictions be placed on the traditional Latin Mass so that it may be preserved for the good of the Catholic Church and of the world,” write the collected signatories, who include Sound of Freedom producer Eduardo Verastegui.
Organized by famed poet and writer Dana Gioia, the Letter from the Americas follows the publication of a similar letter, brainchild of composer Sir James MacMillan, in The Times earlier this month.
READ: Leading British figures pen defense of Latin Mass to echo Agatha Christie’s famous petition
Led by Gioia, the signatories from the two American continents stated they were “inspired” by MacMillan’s petition and that “we join our voices with theirs in asking that no further restrictions be placed on the traditional Latin Mass.”
Similar to those who signed the open letter organized by MacMillan, there are Catholics, non-Catholics, and even atheists among the signatories from the Americas:
We are Catholics and non-Catholics, believers and nonbelievers. We are scientists, novelists, comedians, inventors, poets, painters, business leaders, composers, singers, musicians, playwrights, filmmakers, advocates for the poor, sculptors, conductors, philanthropists, human rights activists, and patrons of the arts. We share a love for the beauty, the reverence, and the mystery embodied in the ancient liturgy of the Latin Mass.
The Catholic signatories of the statement expressed their “filial loyalty” to Pope Francis, writing that they come to him “with the humility and obedience but also the confidence of children, telling a loving father of our spiritual needs.”
“We pray that you will not lump us with some of the angry and disrespectful voices magnified by social media,” they added. “Most of us attend the Novus Ordo regularly, and all of us acknowledge the most important thing about the dominant rite of the Latin church: each time the ‘new’ Mass is celebrated, Jesus Christ comes to us in the Eucharist, really and fully present and uniting us to his Body, Blood, and Divinity.”
They argued that any restrictions on the traditional Mass would backfire; “to deprive the next generation of artists of this source of mystery, beauty, and contemplation of the sacred seems shortsighted.”
Noting the ability of the traditional Mass to inspire people across the ages, the signatories described the rite as “a magnificent achievement of civilization and part of the common cultural heritage of humanity. It is medicine for the soul, one antidote to the gross materialism of the postmodern age.”
READ: Catholic composer Sir James MacMillan starts petition asking Pope Francis not to ban Latin Mass
MacMillan’s open letter harked back to the famous 1971 Agatha Christie letter, published by The Times, in which Catholics and non-Catholics (including Agatha Christie and leading members of British society) appealed to Pope Paul VI in support of the traditional Mass. As Sir James MacMillan noted – in an accompanying op-ed in The Times – the 1971 letter “became known as the ‘Agatha Christie letter’ because, apparently, Pope Paul VI was so startled to see the name of the ‘queen of crime’ that he allowed the old Mass to survive.”
Then, as now, the diverse and prestigious list of signatories served as “proof the traditional Latin Mass cannot be understood as a mere refuge from modernity,” the Letter from the Americas states. “Some of the most creative minds on our planet are inspired by the Latin Mass—its beauty, its reverence, its mystery—to make new works of art and also to serve the least among us.”
The initial signatories include:
- Dana Gioia: chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, former California Poet Laureate
- Eduardo Verastegui, actor, singer, producer
- Morten Lauridsen, composer
- Andrew Sullivan, author and editor
- Nina Shea, international religious freedom advocate
- Angela Alioto, International Director of the Knights of Saint Francis, Civil Rights Trial Attorney, former president San Francisco Board of Supervisors
- Frank La Rocca, composer, Mass of the Americas
- Blanton Alspaugh, Grammy-Award-winning classical music record producer
- David Conte, Chair and Professor of Composition, San Francisco Conservatory of Music
- Larry Chapp, theologian, founder of Dorothy Day Workers Farm
- Dr. Scott French, Former Assistant professor Stanford University Medical School
Cordileone welcomes letter
San Francisco’s Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone – who recently supported MacMillan’s open letter via an op-ed in the Register – also strongly welcomed Gioia’s efforts. Speaking to The Pillar, Cordileone remarked, “The stereotype is that Latin Mass lovers are rigid and backward looking; why, then, do so many great creatives love the Latin Mass?”
He added that many devotees of the traditional liturgy “have experienced rejection and marginalization from the Church’s pastors – the very ones called to nurture them spiritually – simply because of their desire to worship in the way the Church has for many centuries.”
“Pope Francis has called for a listening Church,” said Cordileone. “These petition signers are speaking to Pope Francis with great humility and in a spirit of obedience, and with the kind of confidence that children have in going to a loving father, in order to speak of their spiritual needs.”
Verastegui voices his concerns
Verastegui, the renowned actor and film producer and now signatory of the Letter from the Americas, also issued his own heartfelt letter to Pope Francis. Dated July 14, Verastegui expressed his fear over possible prohibitions on the traditional Mass, saying the ancient liturgy “has a very rich and pious liturgy that invites many Catholics to meditate and contemplate more on the mystery of faith, which helps us to focus and concentrate in order to deepen our understanding of how to worship Jesus Christ in a more profound and mystical way.”
Verastegui revealed that in his native Mexico “there are many of us who would like the Tridentine Mass not to be abolished, but to be preserved for the spiritual benefit of all Catholics who wish to go to communion every day at the traditional Mass.”
“I beg you not to allow this to happen,” he petitioned Francis. “You are our Father, our Pastor, our spiritual protector, the custodian of the historical, cultural and liturgical richness of the Church of Christ. Please do not allow the Latin Mass to be forbidden and grant us the wish that every priest who wishes to celebrate it may do so.”
While some have attested that incoming restrictions on the traditional Mass are very likely imminent, other journalists – including this correspondent – have not received any such confirmation from their Vatican sources. Time, it seems, will be the revealing factor as to the rumored restrictions.