Archbishop Timothy Broglio, military ordinary of the United States and president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) until November 2025, has called for greater freedom to celebrate the traditional Mass. He did so in an interview given in French to the media outlet Tribune Chrétienne. In it, he referred to the restrictions imposed in 2021 by the motu proprio Traditionis custodes, issued by Pope Francis.
“The traditional Mass, as we call it, nourishes generations. If it still serves a purpose, why not allow it to be celebrated?” the prelate asked. Broglio stated that he knows “many young people who are truly attached to this rite” and added: “I don’t think it’s necessary to suppress this desire to worship God in this way.”
“A solution in search of a problem”
The archbishop recounted that someone had described Traditionis custodes to him as “a solution in search of a problem.” Without commenting on the situation in other places, he made it clear that in his jurisdiction the restrictions did not respond to any specific difficulty: “I don’t know if in other countries there were problems, if there were divisions or difficulties, but I must say that here it wasn’t a problem. It was easy to facilitate this celebration, and I see that many young priests are very happy to celebrate this Mass.”
His conclusion was a direct request: “I think we need to give, if we can put it that way, a bit of liturgical freedom to everyone.”
Francis justified the motu proprio in a letter to the bishops. In it, he invoked the consultation carried out in 2020 with the episcopal conferences on the application of Summorum Pontificum, the document with which Benedict XVI had liberalized the use of the 1962 missal in 2007. As The Catholic Herald recalls, subsequent revelations about the content of that survey pointed in the opposite direction. According to those revelations, a large part of the responses positively assessed the existing practice and warned that restricting the ancient rite could prove counterproductive.
After the publication of Traditionis custodes, Broglio authorized priests who were already celebrating the traditional Mass to continue doing so while they processed the formal authorization required by the new norm. His stance is not new either. During the session of the Synod on Synodality in October 2023, when asked about this issue, he replied that the Church “is big enough for everyone.” On that occasion, he praised the fervor of these faithful, their attention to family life, and their commitment to passing on the teachings of the Church to their children.
The question mark over Leo XIV
For now, Pope Leo XIV has given no indication that he intends to review Traditionis custodes in the short term. Cardinal Arthur Roche, prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, has stated that the Pontiff has no intention of modifying the current discipline regarding the traditional Mass.
Some analysts, however, have questioned whether Roche was speaking in a personal capacity or on behalf of the Pope. Among those inclined toward the former is Broglio’s successor at the head of the USCCB, Archbishop Paul Coakley. “I’m not sure we’ve heard the last word from this pontificate on Traditionis custodes,” he told Raymond Arroyo of EWTN. “Cardinal Roche has spoken, but until Pope Leo speaks, I’m not sure we’ll know for certain what the path will be.”
Coakley also expressed support for dioceses addressing the pastoral needs of Catholics connected to the traditional Mass. With Broglio’s words, two USCCB presidents—the former and the current—have now shown openness to greater flexibility on this matter.