A Traditional Latin Mass. / Andrew Gardner via Wikimedia (CC BY 4.0).
Washington D.C., Mar 7, 2023 / 17:00 pm (CNA).
Students, faculty, staff, and others who attend the Traditional Latin Mass at Franciscan University will need to venture off campus to worship in the more ancient form of the Mass following their bishop’s decision to ban the campus’ monthly celebration.
Bishop Jeffrey Monforton of the Diocese of Steubenville, Ohio, ordered an immediate end to the Latin Mass on Franciscan University’s campus.
“The Diocese of Steubenville is seeking to meet the pastoral needs of the faithful in accord with the norms, including the recent rescript, issued by the Holy See,” a spokesman for the diocese told CNA.
“The Mass at Franciscan has been [canceled],” the spokesperson said. “The bishop is seeking a dispensation for the Mass at St. Peter’s, where the weekly Latin Mass has been held for years.”
The Latin Mass will still be offered weekly at St. Peter’s Church in Steubenville, which is a parish church about a mile from campus. The parish offers the Latin Mass weekly, which includes a High Mass usually once per month, on the first Sunday. Even though the campus’ Latin Mass is canceled, the Latin Mass at St. Peter will be allowed to continue while the bishop seeks a formal dispensation from the Vatican for that church.
Although the diocese claims the decision is related to an order issued by the Vatican, the Vatican order only appears to put new restrictions on Latin Masses offered in parish churches and does not appear to force bishops to restrict the Latin Mass in non-parish churches or chapels, such as the chapel used by students at Franciscan University to celebrate the Latin Mass. It’s unclear how the Vatican order is related to the bishop’s new rules.
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