Questions

[Questioner28]

Would it have been possible for a Pope in the past to make the Tridetine mass the one and only valid form of mass permanently ? What processes would a Pope in the past go through to do this ? Or let’s say a Pope decided he liked Gregorian chant above all other forms of music during liturgy, could he have made Gregorian chant the only music allowed during Mass ?
Could a Pope before Paul VI have made it illegal to cease the use of the Papal tiara ?
Is the Papal tiara something that a Pope is free to use at anytime ?
Merry Christmas !

 

[Questioner28]

More Questions:
What was catechism like around Martin Luther’s time ? Were people required to take classes before receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation ?
What is a plenary indulgence and what does obtaining one do ?
Did the church sell indulgences ?
If the church sold indulgences who had the authority to sell them ?

 

[JamesTheJust]

Would it have been possible for a Pope in the past to make the Tridetine mass the one and only valid form of mass permanently ? What processes would a Pope in the past go through to do this ? Or let’s say a Pope decided he liked Gregorian chant above all other forms of music during liturgy, could he have made Gregorian chant the only music allowed during Mass ?
Could a Pope before Paul VI have made it illegal to cease the use of the Papal tiara ?
Is the Papal tiara something that a Pope is free to use at anytime ?
Merry Christmas !

I’m not sure, but I think the answer to all those questions is “yes”.

 

[JamesTheJust]

More Questions:
What was catechism like around Martin Luther’s time ? Were people required to take classes before receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation ?
What is a plenary indulgence and what does obtaining one do ?
Did the church sell indulgences ?
If the church sold indulgences who had the authority to sell them ?

1. The Roman Catechism (also called, the Catechism of the Council of Trent or the Catechism of Pius V) was first published in 1566 under the authority of the Council of Trent. It was not intended for common use by the laity, but as a general use reference book for priests and bishops. The online version is at cin.org/users/james/ebooks/master/trent/tindex.htm
2. No
3. A plenary indulgence atones for all the temporal punishment accumulated up to that point.
4. Yes, and no. The proper way to obtain indulgences was to attend Confession, receive the Eucharist, pray for the intentions of the Holy Father, and to perform some act of charity. Several officials, in a hurry to raise funds for St Peter’s Basilica, illegally “changed” the requirements for an indulgence and told the people that all they had to do was charitably donate to the Church. These monks were the ones who angered Martin Luther and were later condemned by the Church for breaking the rules.

This is a BIG subject. I can recommend some paper on it if you’d like.

1. An appointed official

 

[PaulfromIowa]

Would it have been possible for a Pope in the past to make the Tridentine mass the one and only valid form of mass permanently?

No. A pope cannot bind future popes to any particular liturgy.

Could a Pope before Paul VI have made it illegal to cease the use of the Papal tiara?

See the above answer. A pope cannot tell future popes what to wear.

Is the Papal tiara something that a Pope is free to use at anytime?

A pope could wear anything on his head that he wants to. I doubt that we will see a pope wearing a crown or tiara anytime soon.

 

[bben15]

Would it have been possible for a Pope in the past to make the Tridetine mass the one and only valid form of mass permanently ? What processes would a Pope in the past go through to do this ? Or let’s say a Pope decided he liked Gregorian chant above all other forms of music during liturgy, could he have made Gregorian chant the only music allowed during Mass ?
Could a Pope before Paul VI have made it illegal to cease the use of the Papal tiara ?
Is the Papal tiara something that a Pope is free to use at anytime ?
Merry Christmas !

1. A Pope in his Papacy could theoretically make the EF the OF and abolish the Mass of Paul VI, but that would be hard and would take years to implement because 1) A lot of churches today aren’t designed for an EF and 2) Barely any diocesan priest knows the EF. Plus, his successor would probably just reverse what his predecessor did. But, he could just theoretically issue a bull saying that the 1962 Missal is the only permitted Missal, and that would be the end of it.
2. First off, Gregorian chant is the official music of the Church. Again, he theoretically could make it the only allowed music, but not all cantors are trained in GC, so we’d be having a lot of Low Masses.
3. Trying to bind a future Pope would be like trying to control the direction of the wind. The Pope can wear whatever he wants on his head. He could wear a baseball cap if he wanted to. The Pope is free to use the Papal Tiara at any time, but I doubt it will happen.

 

[thistle]

Would it have been possible for a Pope in the past to make the Tridetine mass the one and only valid form of mass permanently ? What processes would a Pope in the past go through to do this ? Or let’s say a Pope decided he liked Gregorian chant above all other forms of music during liturgy, could he have made Gregorian chant the only music allowed during Mass ?
Could a Pope before Paul VI have made it illegal to cease the use of the Papal tiara ?
Is the Papal tiara something that a Pope is free to use at anytime ?
Merry Christmas !

NO. One Pope cannot bind future Popes in matters of disciplinary law. The Form of the Mass is not doctrine but is discipline so basically apart from the consecration and priest receiving Communion anything else in the Mass can be changed.