Excellent article by Archbishop Aguer:
The Recovery of the Mass
The media and, especially, social networks point out that in several European countries, especially among young people, the «Mass of all time» is being lived with fervor, accompanied by numerous processions and pilgrimages. The youthful crowds that reenacted the traditional Paris–Chartres pilgrimage have drawn attention, with an average age of 22. It is a recovery of Catholic tradition, which had been stifled in those countries by liberalism, progressivism, and atheism.
The «Mass of all time» can be called so because it dates back to the 7th and 8th centuries and remained in force for centuries until at least the Council of Trent, which revised and reissued it so that it would reach our days. Its essential character is its identification with the Sacrifice of the Cross, instituted as the Sacrament of the Sacrifice at the Last Supper of Jesus with His Apostles. This Sacrament is the mystery of the Passion and the Resurrection, consecrated by the Holy Spirit. The Mass is directed to the Glory of the Triune God, to whom it offers the Sacrifice of Jesus. In the Catholic Church it is offered as the oblation of bread and wine, which, through the unalterable words of the Consecration, become the Body and Blood of Jesus; food of immortality for the faithful.
The Mass identifies Catholicism from the Council of Trent to Vatican II. During the pontificate of Paul VI (Giovanni Battista Montini), who succeeded the brief pontificate of John XXIII, who convened the Ecumenical Council, a new Mass was invented. Some modification or another could have been introduced to the «Mass of all time,» as was done during its centuries-long validity. But no; Vatican II intended to touch everything, and from its spirit a new Mass was to spring. Always valid, of course; but not without ambiguities that remained at the discretion of the celebrants.
The author of the new Mass was Monsignor Annibale Bugnini, recognized as a Mason according to undeniable documents, though secret according to the nature of Masonry. In it, the priest, standing, faces the people; the biblical readings are multiplied, and over time several Eucharistic Prayers were authorized, which recreate the single Canon of the «Mass of all time.» It would seem that in the Mass of Paul VI and Bugnini, the priest who offers the rite should strive to turn toward God and ensure that the faithful are not confused.
The ends of the Mass are several, but the latreutic one—the adoration and praise of God—is the principal; undoubtedly, prayer and communion enrich the people of God. This is the Mass I celebrate, in which I was ordained almost 54 years ago; I do so with the greatest devotion I can. But I remember that in my childhood, as an altar server, I regularly attended the «Mass of all time,» a rite that was never invalidated and that accompanied that of Paul VI until today, when, as I said at the beginning, it is being rediscovered with enthusiasm by the youth.
Pilgrimages such as Paris–Chartres, and those of Rawson–Luján (Argentina), Oviedo–Covadonga (Spain), Rome–Subiaco (Italy), and others that are springing up here and there, speak to us of something undeniable: orthodoxy and Tradition are in good health and are a guarantee of the future. Some bishop who entered Mass on a skateboard, or some priests who dress up as clowns when celebrating, should take note, for example. Such abuses can only provoke a stampede. As the Church rightly teaches, «no one, even if a priest, may remove or add anything» to what is established in the liturgical books. It is not a matter of creativity, but of fidelity.
+ Héctor Aguer
Archbishop Emeritus of La Plata.
Buenos Aires, Monday, June 1, 2026.
Saint Justin, Martyr. –