Some further thoughts on yesterday's post

I had a link from Rorate yesterday on a situation involving the cancelation of the TLM at Fisher More college. I couldn't organize my thoughts last night, but, here they are.

• It is certainly true that we don't know the whole truth to the situation. There could be some details missing....and perhaps it's a mountain being made out of a molehill, but why punish the students by taking away the Mass, the substance of what's forming them?
• Let's play worst case scenario...that the priest denied the validity of Vatican II or the new missal. Do we really want to have a situation where the Mass is dependent directly upon the beliefs of the priest that is offering it? I would have sworn that the sacraments operate ex opere operato....and are not dependent upon the holiness (or lack there of) of the minister of the sacraments. If we want to make Mass dependent upon the beliefs of the person, then they would need to be applied equally....that is to say those priests with heretical beliefs shouldn't be offering Mass...how many souls would be lost because we'd have few priests being able to offer Mass if this had to be the case? Granted theological questions on the missal shouldn't make it to the pulpit, I agree on that point, but we have no idea whether this type was being proclaimed from the pulpit (I highly doubt such a thing since there was approval from the previous Bishops for each of the chaplains)
• Since he's a new Bishop, most certainly he needs to get a feel for who's who in his diocese. That said, 3 weeks is hardly enough time to review a school, come to conclusions about the school. Reviews take months, sometimes years....the abruptness of the decision is cause for concern. 
• To say that there are different theologies from the NO and the TLM would not be heretical, it'd be factual. Just as there are different theologies in the various forms of the missals....each missal has the same Truth in them, but the Liturgy too is a source of theology.
• While SP takes the TLM out of the hands of the Bishop, and places it into the hands of the priest. No Bishop has the power to abrogate the TLM....especially the Pope. The Bishop can give faculties, can prevent a priest from publicly offering Mass, but can't bar the priest from a particular type of Mass to offer....it's so to speak above his pay grade (TM). 
• I know that many have compared the situation to Padre Pio and the injustices against him. There have been several times where individuals in the Church have been treated unjustly, and have later been vindicated. However, against a group, I would not agree to the advice of shutting up and letting the process work. As a group I think there are different dynamics at play which don't exist in an individual situation. Fortunately in Canon law there are proper recourses to address grievences. This should be done. In a situation where students are being denied a particular form of the Mass, I don't think it's justified. The charism of the school is based upon the traditional form of the sarcaments (Mass, etc)....and I'd love to tell you that you can plug the OF in, implore all the traditional options that are available and get the same result...but it doesn't quite work that way. While from the objective point because Jesus is the same in the OF and the EF they'll be nourished, that is certainly true, however it's not just receiving Jesus in Holy Communion, it's the prayers, the spirituality, the total ethos that comes from the EF, take one piece out of the puzzle, and everything is out of sync...
• Fr Z has some comments here....from the ground there are comments here
• From reading the 2 above, it seems there are deeper problems than initially reported. But is taking away the Mass the right thing to do in this situation? I think the situation could have been handled better...a statement of validity, an oath of fidelity, something like that for the administration, but to punish the students, I think is a bit much. 
• Prayers for the situation to be resolved at the earliest possible date

Pax Vobis