Pope to loosen limits on old Latin Mass

VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI has decided to loosen restrictions on use of the old Latin Mass, a Vatican official said Wednesday, a major concession to ultraconservatives who split with the Vatican to protest reforms.

The decision is part of Benedict’s efforts to woo back Catholics who joined a rebel archbishop in protest over the changes.

The pope’s intent is to “help overcome the schism and help bring (the ultraconservatives) back to the church,” said the official, who asked that his name not be used because the papal document has not yet been released.

It was not immediately clear when the pope will make his decision public, but the official said it was expected soon. The Times of London, in a report Wednesday, said the pope has signed the order and it could be published in the next few weeks.

The 16th-century Tridentine Mass – the name of the old Latin Mass – was swept away by the so-called New Mass that followed the 1962-65 Second Vatican Council. The reforms called for Mass to be said in local languages, for the priest to face the congregation instead of having his back to worshippers as he faced the altar and for the use of lay readers.

To celebrate the old Latin Mass now, a priest must obtain permission from the local bishop.

The issue of the Mass will only be one of the points in the papal document that will reach out to the ultraconservatives, the Vatican official said.