Before God, rooted in Christ,
on Tradition and Orthodoxy.
The ever-remembered Pope Benedict XVI—who may one day be declared a Doctor of the Church—in his motu proprio Summorum Pontificum, of July 7, 2007, on the two uses of the one Roman rite, in its ordinary and extraordinary forms, sought to liberalize the celebration of the so-called “traditional,” “Tridentine,” “St. Pius V,” or “Mass of all time.” He did so in order to foster liturgical peace, and out of respect due to its venerable and ancient use. Thus, any priest could celebrate the “Latin Mass” without the need for special permissions and shielded from ideological reprisals by certain bishops.
In the letter to the worldwide episcopate that accompanied the motu proprio, the Pontiff emphasized that what was sacred for previous generations remains sacred and great for us as well and cannot be suddenly and completely forbidden or even deemed harmful. Only God knows how much the German Pope suffered when, fourteen years later, on July 16, 2021, his successor in the Pontificate abolished that norm with a stroke of the pen and imposed draconian restrictions on the vetus ordo. Something of that suffering has been revealed in these hours by his former personal secretary, Monsignor Georg Gänswein.
Traditiones custodes, issued five years ago, far from healing wounds, deepened them. And contrary to the intentions of its promoter, it contributed to an increase—especially among the young—in interest in Tradition and Orthodoxy. Today a large part of conversions occurs among those who prefer the ancient use. And the transmission of the faith, to a significant degree, is no longer from parents to children, but from young people to young people. I recall here what I have often said: I was ordained a priest in 1972 according to the novus ordo, and I have never celebrated in the extraordinary form.
The Mystery, undoubtedly, continues to captivate. And before a world of liquid relationships, drowning in emptiness and dehumanization, and which, with arrogance, claims to live in the post-truth, the post-human, and the post-Christian, Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life (Jn 14:6), reasserts all His rights. And He shows that, through Him, before the Father, in the Holy Spirit, one’s very existence finds its full meaning, with a view to the better Future. Thus resounds vigorously the Pauline exhortation to the Colossians: Rooted and built up in Christ, supported by the faith that was taught to you (Col 2:7). It is, then, a matter of not allowing ourselves to be enslaved by anyone with the emptiness of a deceptive philosophy, inspired by purely human traditions and the elements of the world, and not by Christ (Col 2:8).
It is not, then, persecutions or the extreme measures of progressivism that will be able to halt this growing movement. As is evident, it goes beyond mere “fashion.” For fashion, over the past sixty years, has been to turn the novus ordo—even contrary to what Sacrosanctum Concilium commanded—into a free-for-all of liturgical devastation.
The four Eucharistic Prayers of the reformed Missal seem to have been displaced by the “zero prayer”; that is, by whatever the celebrant of the moment fancies. These and other doctrinal, moral, and disciplinary collapses emptied seminaries and convents, triggered massive desertions in the clergy and religious life, and unleashed a hemorrhage in the Church. Thus, various evangelical denominations grew, nourished by scandalized Catholics. And even the number of non-believers increased, along with those who claim not to identify with any worship. In Argentina, for example, over the last six decades, the percentage of Catholics has dropped from 90 percent to 57. And the trend continues downward! This is what modernism, the Rahnerian “anthropological turn,” the theology of liberation, and its local version, the theology of the people, among others, have led us to. Something that, as can be seen, is echoed—though with different variants—in various countries. A people without sound theology ends up not knowing God. And the social consequences of that are dramatic.
Remarkably, little is preached in the Church about eternal life, the Last Things, and the glorious coming of Our Lord. Meanwhile, some of the tech magnates speak of the Antichrist. And they organize meetings with businessmen and the powerful to protect themselves from him. The “apocalypse according to Silicon Valley” claims that the Earth is no longer a safe place. And even Mars—where they would seek to settle—is not safe either. Because even there the powerful artificial intelligence, out of control, would arrive seeking revenge. Who would have imagined, just a few years ago, that we would witness this!
It is not easy, undoubtedly, to heal so many ills of the ecclesial body, aggravated in the second decade and nearly half of the third of this century. It is time, then, for greatness, doctrinal solidity, and the consequent restoration of discipline, without favoritism or biased views. Repeatedly there is talk of reading the signs of the times and of knowing how to listen. May we today hear the voice of the Lord and not harden our hearts (cf. Ps 95:7-8).
I am 83 years old and live in a priestly home, something like a retirement home for priests. I move very little and hardly leave my room, except to go to the chapel. I know that very soon the Lord will call me to meet Him, whom I sought to love and serve in the best way, even with my sins and limitations. And for that accounting, I try to prepare myself with more prayer and the offering of my present sufferings.
In this evening of my life, one of the greatest satisfactions I have left is having ordained, as Archbishop of La Plata, 49 priests and three deacons on the way to the Priesthood. Several of them, young and courageous, zealous guardians of sound doctrine, are today in growing communities, with careful liturgy, patient pastoral attention, and missionary zeal. From there vocations are emerging for the whole Church: marriage and family, the Priesthood and religious life. They, and their children, constitute a large part of the consolation and hope of this elderly bishop. –
+ Héctor Aguer.
Archbishop Emeritus of La Plata.
Buenos Aires, Monday, July 13, 2026.
St. Henry. –