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Vatican decrees preventing priests from the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer from exercising ministry in the Christchurch Catholic diocese remain in force.
A notice on the Diocese website says a petition to have the Sons’ removal of priestly faculties overturned was denied.
However a canon lawyer representing the Sons says, after lodging an appeal to the Holy See, the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life has suspended the decree requiring members of the Order to leave the Diocese within 90 days.
Why the u-turn on the diktat?
Just why the Vatican has chosen to go back on its original (and unexplained) order that Gielen expel the conservative group Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer (aka Transalpine Redemptorists, FSSR) has not been disclosed.
Julia du Fresne suggests in her “Canto Fermo” blog that it could be because the Sons have proposed taking court action against Gielen for expelling them.
The Dicastery for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life will review both the Sons’ expulsion and its illicit female branch – despite the Daughters of the Most Holy Redeemer stating they are not nuns, but merely a private association.
Fr Michael Mary FSSR says the Dicasteries will review the case against the Sons and Daughters.
In the meantime, the priests remain suspended and their Masses will remain private until the review is completed.
Vatican review
du Fresne attached to her blog a letter which Fr Anthony Mary FSSR wrote to the Sons’ supporters about the Vatican’s u-turn. In it he had said:
“I have just heard from the Dicastery in Rome that they have suspended our expulsion from the diocese until they have properly reviewed the case.
“The Daughters’ expulsion from the diocese and suppression of their community has also been suspended until the case is properly reviewed.
“As expected, the priests remain suspended and their Masses remain private until after the case is reviewed.
“That is to be expected because it would be a very negative and confrontational thing to force a bishop to return us our faculties. This is not so difficult to live with either.
“The term ‘private Mass‘ does not refer to Mass with neither a server nor a congregation, but rather to an unscheduled Mass, regardless of the number of faithful present and regardless of the degree of solemnity (a High Mass can still be a private Mass).
“We have a priest present for Confessions, and the others of us, while in the diocese of Christchurch, offer our Masses privately.
“I suppose the Bishop of Christchurch is not going to tell people that his case against us and our expulsion have been suspended by Rome. But we will be able to tell anyone who asks. Please pass the news around.”
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