Restricting the Vetus Ordo (Old Latin Mass)

In July 2021, Pope Francis issued Traditionis Custodes, a papal decree which imposed severe restrictions on the celebration of the Mass celebrated for centuries before the Second Vatican Council. In doing so, he abrogated Pope Benedict XVI’s 2007 decree Summorum Pontificum that had broadened access to the old Mass (vetus ordo). The controversial decree led to the closure of many thriving Latin Mass parishes, especially in the US, with many more under threat. Pope Francis insisted the restrictions were necessary to promote unity in the Church, especially as he believes some adherents of the old Mass are opposed to the Second Vatican Council. His eventual stated goal is to have just one form of the Latin rite, the novus ordo introduced in 1970.