Schneider Pleads for Liturgical Peace at St. Mary Major
Pilgrims barred from St. Peter's heard Bishop Schneider uphold the never-abrogated Mass and call the exclusion a "scandal."
On October 24, Bishop Athanasius Schneider of Astana celebrated a Pontifical Mass at the Basilica of St. Mary Major for traditional Catholic pilgrims who had been denied entry earlier that day to St. Peter's Basilica.
The group was in Rome for the annual pilgrimage to St. Peter's. A letter from the Vatican Secretariat of State halted their planned procession and prayer at the tomb of the Apostle. Turned away from the Vatican basilica, the pilgrims gathered at St. Mary Major instead, where Schneider offered the ancient Roman rite and preached.
Defending a Rite Never Abrogated
Bishop Schneider invoked Our Lady, Queen of Peace. He defended the Traditional Latin Mass as never abrogated and recalled papal affirmations, including those of Pope Benedict XVI. He pleaded for an end to discrimination against the faithful devoted to the Church's ancient liturgy and for liturgical peace within the Church.
Hours after the Mass, Bishop Schneider spoke in an interview about the episode. He called the treatment of the pilgrims a "scandal" and questioned the gap between that exclusion and public language of synodality and inclusion aimed at Catholics attached to the older form of the Roman Rite.
A Different Welcome a Year Ago
The October 24 refusal stands in contrast to last year, when Cardinal Raymond Burke was permitted to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica. For the pilgrims this year, no such access was granted.
The denial was conveyed in the letter from the Secretariat of State. Despite the closed doors at the Vatican basilica, the pilgrimage continued over the weekend with Masses at other churches across Rome for the faithful who had come to pray near the tomb of St. Peter.