Bro JR I was confused by your last couple of sentences. Just to clarify I think you said:
If you are curious about the Byzantine rite then attend a Greek Catholic Church: there’s no need to look outside the Catholic Church in order to attend a Byzantine Liturgy.
Some people want to experience the Eastern Liturgy and they think that the only way to do so is to attend a Divine Liturgy in an Orthodox Church. However, almost every Orthodox Church has a Catholic counterpart, since the Orthodox did not break communion with the Roman Church. They were never part of the Roman Church. For example, Greek Orthodox were Greek Catholics. The Greek Catholic Church is not Roman Catholic, but it is Catholic. It uses the same Byzantine Rite as the Greek Orthodox. It is an independent Church, but it is in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church. The same is true for the other 22 Catholic Churches. They all celebrate the same Divine Liturgy as the Orthodox, using different Eastern Rites and are independent Churches, but in full communion with the Roman Church.
If one wants to have a Byzantine experience, one can attend a Greek Catholic Divine Liturgy. If one wants a Chaldean experience, one can attend the Chaldean Catholic Church and so forth.
I wonder what life or death situation moves the Pope to allow the SSPX to offer Mass at St. Peter’s Basillica in Rome at will and without condition? Perhaps the Pope has determined that the code you believe most obviously applies here doesn’t apply at all?
First of all, let’s clarify one misconception. The Holy Father has no control over St. Peter’s Basilica. St. Peter’s is not a parish church nor a cathedral. The Holy Father’s parish is St. John Lateran. He is it’s pastor. Therefore, he has no idea who celebrates mass in the Basicilica, nor is he consulted or informed. The Basilica has its own rector. Permission to celebrate mass in the Basilica is obtained through the Basilica’s administration, just like any other basilica.
Secondly, the SSPX have been given permission to celebrate mass at one of the side altars in St. Peter’s. This permission is not open ended. They have to ask for it each time they want to do so. When they do so, they are asking for permission for the individual priest to celebrate the mass. They are not asking to celebrate a public mass.
Thirdly, Canon Law says that the priest who can prove that he is validly ordained must be allowed access to a public church to celebrate mass. They certainly can prove that they are validly ordained. Canon Law does not require that the person be legally ordained or that he have faculties to celebrate such a mass, since it’s not a public mass.
Finally, if you observe, the SSPX clergy are never invited to any public liturgical function at the Vatican or sponsored by the Vatican, such as canonizations, high holy days such as Christmas, ordinations, World Youth Day, etc. On the other hand, the Orthodox and Anglicans are always invited, even though they cannot concelebrate. You see them in seats of honor in the front row. The other Ecclesia Dei institutes are invited as well, such as the FSSP. But they are allowed to concelebrate. Suspended clergy cannot concelebrate in such liturgical functions. Hopefully, this will soon be remedied. Crossing my fingers here.
Fraternally,
Br. JR, OSF :christmastree1:
