HE CATHOLIC HERALD printed comments by Arthur Cardinal Roche (6 March 2025) that cry out for a response. Roche currently serves as PREFECT of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship. (That’s the newest name for what was formerly called the “Congregation of Rites.”) Some people believe the cardinal is deliberately trolling Catholics in that interview—and refuting such an idea might prove difficult. For instance, above all else Roche is notorious for his ruthless persecution of Catholics who profit spiritually from the Traditional Mass.1 Yet during the interview he pretends to be unaware of who’s doing that:
“What interests me is why people get hot under
the collar about others celebrating the Tridentine
Mass. I think this has been a mistake.”
That’s like Adolf Hitler saying: “I’d give anything to get my hands on whoever is responsible for invading Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Greece, Poland, and France!” I don’t want sound polemical or nasty—but at the same time, I’m a human being with a functional brain. It’s beyond absurd for Cardinal Roche to pretend he’s not been the foremost leader when it comes to persecuting Catholics who find the TLM helpful to their relationship with God.
Just One Point:
I don’t have time to analyze the interview with Cardinal Roche. Nor am I convinced anyone cares what I think. Nevertheless, I feel compelled to “highlight” or “unpack” or “elaborate upon” one claim made by Cardinal Roche:
When I was at school, I used to serve Mass, and the priest would say to me: “Remember, boy, it’s 20 minutes, amice to amice.” What he meant was that as soon as he put the amice around his neck, I was to start counting the minutes until he took it off at the end of Mass. If, by chance, he reached the last Gospel by 15 minutes, I had to pull the back of his chasuble.
For a number of reasons, his statement sounds fishy.
Indeed, it seems doubtful Cardinal Roche is telling the truth—perhaps due to a faulty memory.
My History • I know a thing or two about serving for the TLM. Since the mid-1990s, I’ve had the honor of serving for countless TLM priests from all over the world: England, Australia, Ireland, France, Germany, Austria, and so on. I served as MASTER OF CEREMONIES for Father Arnaud Devillers and Father Josef Bisig while each was Superior General of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter. I was in charge of the music for various Masses offered by many FSSP District Superiors as well as Father John Berg, who’s been elected FSSP Superior General three times. I’ve served at the TLM in major cathedrals as well as celebrations which took place deep in the forest. The account given by Cardinal Roche would horrify any TLM priest I’ve ever met.
Incoherent Statement • I’m not sure what Cardinal Roche was trying to say. Why was he watching the clock during Mass instead of giving the Holy Mass his full attention? He claims he was supposed to tug the priest’s chasuble if he’d said Mass at the fifteen minute mark. Why? So the priest would slow down and make it closer to 20 minutes? For what purpose? Who would have cared if his Mass lasted 20 minutes, 30 minutes, or 40 minutes? And how would anyone have known? Did someone offer the priest a prize if he could complete Mass right at the 20 minute mark? Again: Why? The account given by Cardinal Roche sounds preposterous.
Let’s Be Clear • Low Mass duration varies considerably. The readings can be long or short. There may be a long Sequence (or not). There may be a long Tract (or not). There may be a Gloria (or not). There may be a Creed (or not). Is there any logical way to explain the account given by Cardinal Roche?
The “Bad Old Days” • Perhaps Cardinal Roche is trying to leave a certain impression in the minds of those who read his interview. I suspect he wants to convince them of the following:
Priests in the “bad old days” were so sloppy (unlike now). It must have been awful to have been alive back then. How lucky we are to live in a post-conciliar world where priests take the Mass seriously. But in those days, none of the priests knew Latin and rushed through Mass as quickly as possible, making it into a type of game.
Setting The Record Straight • In spite of what some have claimed, it was rather rare until the 1950s for anyone to receive Holy Communion at Mass except the Celebrant himself. I myself witnessed such Masses during Covid-19, and it was a revelation. Suddenly I understood why the COMMUNION ANTIPHON in the Graduale is so short—usually just a few words. Once we understand the situation back then, we realize that 20 minutes for a Low Mass isn’t excessively brief.
Have We Made Progress? • Today, we have a different situation. Many priests—and even bishops—don’t offer Mass every day. In my view, this is quite sad. Furthermore, when a priest does offer Mass (whether concelebrating or not) he mainly just sits there while others handle most of the items. A choir sings the propers, a layman proclaims the readings, and so forth. The 1970 MISSALE ROMANUM deleted many of the priest’s prayers (e.g. the ancient OFFERTORY prayers) and eliminated tons of scripture. Should we be amazed that certain priests come across as completely unfamiliar with the Bible?
Those Priests Were Heroic • In my view, priests in the “olden days” were amazing. There was no such thing as a “day off” for them. Every day—every day of their life—they had to offer Mass and pray their Breviary (which sometimes took 2-3 hours). Can you imagine how tired they must have been? They didn’t have all the technological gadgets we do, making everything convenient and painless. They had to rise when the sun came out and get to work! I haven’t even mentioned the numerous additional jobs most of them had: hearing confessions, preparing homilies, studying, teaching, writing, serving as chaplains, and so on.
Case In Point • A priest who lived in the “bad old days” was Dom Joseph Pothier. If I live for 100 years, I’ll never understand how Pothier was able to produce everything he did, in addition to singing the Divine Office each day (for hours), offering Mass each day, and serving as a professor of Theology. While in exile (!!!) Dom Pothier single-handedly produced the following: 1880 Les Mélodies Grégoriennes [288 pages]; 1883 Liber Gradualis [960 pages]; 1885 Hymni de Tempore et de Sanctis [240 pages]; 1895 Liber Responsorialis [482 pages]; 1891 Chants Ordinaires De La Messe [77 pages]; 1889 Variae Preces [281 pages]; 1891 Liber Antiphonarius [1,034 pages]; 1888 Processionale Monasticum [384 pages]; and the spectacular 1891 Vesperale [771 pages].
Conclusion • One could argue we live during inhuman times. Consider the various “terminally online” Catholics who spend hours each day recording themselves. They then upload these ‘podcasts’ to the internet, but 95% of what they post is an incoherent “stream of consciousness.” Once upon a time, people used to prepare their talks. That is to say—because they had respect for their audience—speakers used to prune, revise, and refine their presentations. But those days are gone. Perhaps Cardinal Roche gave his interview in the spirit of such ‘garbage podcasts.’ If that was indeed his intention, I should have resisted reacting to it. But the story he told just struck me as so bizarre and defamatory, I felt compelled to respond.
1 Even though their salaries are paid for by the laity, Roche’s congregation clandestinely keeps an “enemies list” of young priests who desire to celebrate the EF. It is beyond my comprehension why the faithful have not demanded with one voice disclosure of this list. Moreover, what specific criteria are applied when young priests are denied the right to celebrate the TLM? The criteria (if they exist) should be made public immediately.
