The Catholic Church is one of few Christian Churches left that espouses a pro-life message with no equivocation (Lutheran Church-Missouri and Wisconsin Synods). Even Southern Baptists flirted with the pro-abort message in the 70's before self correcting. Other than the pro-life message, everything else traditionally Catholic has been put up for grabs.
It's obvious that with Vatican II in the mid 60's, the Catholic Church has become a moral relativist and has lost its way. There's not much to distinguish between it and the uber-liberal United Church of Christ. Many Catholic Churches have removed the now useless Communion rail. The lazy priest sits and watches from his King Tut throne as the newest revolving gender neutral lay person giggles as she hands out the Host like a green-visored card dealer in Vegas. "Body of Christ" she banally repeats as she drops the Host into the communicants hands all the while looking over his shoulder hoping to see the end of the line. "Ahhhmen!!" he responds while garnering a glancing pass at her plunging Vneck sleeveless blouse.
The "Peace be with you" dialogue now substitutes for going to Confession, with each parishioner absolving those they shake hands with of all their sins. "Peace be with you. Fuggit about it!!." And you are cleansed until next week. A wily politician could hand out campaign buttons during the hand shaking. All that's missing are the party poppers. The dignified organ music and traditional songs have been replaced with some girl gesticulating wildly across the altar as if in some drug induced stupor, wearing a semi-translucent dress, grooving to a lively rendition of 'Jam for Jesus' while her Abercrombie and Fitch tee shirt clad boyfriend wails on his 12 string guitar. All this has given High Mass a new meaning along with the Glade Plug-Ins strawberry scented incense.
Catholic attendance is at an all time low as Catholic tradition has been eviscerated for an easier 'feel good' doctrine, making room for the Belligerent Bishops to Protestantize and liberalize the Holy Mass, playing to his audience like a rock star or a televangelist. Seminaries were emptied of the Father Flannigan type when Vatican II was implemented to make room for a more 'diverse' cadre' of priests whose only interest is playing to his audience and 'appealing' to his 'diverse' Bishop.
His Holy Father's motu proprio, which in July 2007 granted priests free rein to say the Latin Mass in private (art. 2), also established the right of the faithful to attend the Mass "of their own free will" (like they would be rounded up, drugged, hogtied and gagged in the pew?). Benedict goes on to decree that "In parishes, where there is a stable group of faithful who adhere to the earlier liturgical tradition, the pastor should willingly accept their requests to celebrate the Mass (in Latin)". If you'll note, the Belligerent Bishops who have been undermining Tradition and indeed the Church for 50 years aren't included anywhere!
In response to an email as to plans to offer a Latin Mass within 70 miles of this residence, a kindly priest but typically naive wrote: "While the Bishop was here, he clarified for us the expressed wishes of the Holy Father and the Archbishop. Pope Benedict has given each priest the permission to say the Trinitine (sic) Mass in private any time he wants or has the opportunity. However, public permission is reserved for the local Bishops. In our Archdiocese, Archbishop Hughes will appoint one parish on the northshore to play host for the mass. I just found out that only the Archbishop has say in the matter as to what church it will be offered at. The Archbishop will assign a parish church and appoint priests who will offer the mass. As it stands, no decisions have been made." That was 4 years ago. I'm still waiting.
Sooo, where might the Belligerent Archbishop get his talking points? Let's see, "Art. 2. In Masses celebrated without the people, each Catholic priest..., may use the Roman Missal... For such celebrations,... the priest has no need for permission from the Apostolic See (Rome) or from his Ordinary (the Belligerent Archbishop).
Art. 4. Celebrations of Mass as mentioned above in art. 2 may - observing all the norms of law - also be attended by faithful who, of their own free will, ask to be admitted.
Art. 5. § 1 In parishes, where there is a stable group of faithful who adhere to the earlier liturgical tradition, the pastor should willingly accept their requests to celebrate the Mass according to the rite of the Roman Missal published in 1962, and ensure that the welfare of these faithful harmonises with the ordinary pastoral care of the parish, under the guidance of the bishop in accordance with canon 392 (which now includes Benedict's motu proprio, the Latin Mass).
Art. 7. If a group of lay faithful, as mentioned in art. 5 § 1, has not obtained satisfaction to their requests from the pastor, they should inform the diocesan bishop. The bishop is strongly requested to satisfy their wishes.
Art. 10. The ordinary (the Belligerent Bishop) of a particular place, if he feels it appropriate, may erect a personal parish...following the ancient form of the Roman rite. (But this does not abrogate or proscribe Art. 2, 4 and 5).
It's easy to see what the Belligerent Bishops have keyed in on. They read in Art. 10. that they are entitled to establish a church to conduct the Latin Mass. So we come full circle to my priestly email respondent, "the expressed wishes of...the Archbishop. As it stands, no decisions have been made."
So, 23 years after Pope John Paul II's special indult 'Quattuor abhinc annos', issued by the Congregation for Divine Worship, which granted permission to use the Roman Missal (which was never outlawed by Vatican II, indeed was defined as the Ordinary), and 19 years after John Paul II with the Apostolic Letter given as Motu Proprio, 'Ecclesia Dei,' exhorted bishops to make "a wide and generous application" of the Tridentine Mass available to the faithful, most diocese, have 'somehow' arrived at no decisions yet for the wide and generous application of the Latin Mass.
23 years.
Judica me, Deus, et discerne causam meam de gente non sancta: ab homine iniquo et doloso erue me.