Faith of Our Fathers: A Brief History of Catholic Traditionalism in the United States, From Triumph to Traditionis Custodes by Stuart Chessman

Abstract

Reviewed by: Faith of Our Fathers: A Brief History of Catholic Traditionalism in the United States, From Triumph to Traditionis Custodes by Stuart Chessman William Dinges Faith of Our Fathers: A Brief History of Catholic Traditionalism in the United States, From Triumph to Traditionis Custodes. By Stuart Chessman. Brooklyn, NY: Angelico Press, 2022. 138pp. $17.95. In July of 2021 Pope Francis released Traditionis Custodes (TC), a motu proprio that, while not a complete suppression of the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite (Latin Tridentine Mass [LTM]), nevertheless restored the status quo ante. The document abrogated the earlier norms, instructions, and permissions of Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI and made usage of the LTM much more difficult. Owing to pastoral concerns along with pressure from the traditionalist consecration threats of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, Pope John Paul II re-instated the LTM in 1984, although under strictly controlled conditions. In 2007, Pope Benedict gave what amounted to carte blanche approval for the LTM by way of his apostolic letter, Summorum Pontificum (SP). Pope Francis’s 2021 directive followed a survey of the world’s bishops indicating that use of the LTM had been “exploited to widen the gaps, reinforce the divergences and encourage disagreements,” all of which exposed the church to the “peril of division.” Are Catholicism’s neuralgic “liturgical wars” now at an end? Think again. Stuart Chessman’s short-order history echoes other traditionalist publications promoting restoration of the LTM to its “full integral expression,” while deprecating the Second Vatican Council, pillaring Pope Francis, and bemoaning the post conciliar church’s alleged “path of destruction.” Although clearly written, Faith of Our Fathers hardly passes as a history of traditionalism in any academic sense of the term. The coverage is a grab-bag of personal reflections on the blog of the [End Page 87] Society of St. Hugh of Cluny of which the author is a “leader.” The narrative consists of ten short chapters (blogs) and an appendix with several select documents expressing previous episcopal concerns surrounding use of the LTM, requirements for meeting the 1984 indult Mass stipulations, along with a short bibliography of traditionalist sources. Footnotes are sparse, unsubstantiated generalizations abound, and the author’s focus is confined to East Coast traditionalist activities, although peppered with occasional references to similar efforts abroad. Overall, Chessman gets things right regarding the enduring—and growing—interest in the LTM, especially among some younger laity and clergy alike. He correctly observes SP’s role in vindicating the LTM restorationist cause and correctly notes how social media and the blogosphere have amplified these efforts. Chessman also acknowledges Archbishop Lefebvre’s early role in pressuring the Vatican’s reinstating the LTM. He also attests to the way Pope Francis’s papacy has alienated conservative Catholics whose earlier initiatives weighed heavily toward upholding papal authority. Chessman acknowledges traditionalism’s aspirations beyond “saving the Mass,” notably the movement’s push for a full and “integral” expression of Catholicism. He notes the negative impact of the corona virus on the spread of traditionalism, infighting among traditionalists themselves, and the fact that TC will likely further intensify liturgical conflict. As with other traditionalist literature, Faith of Our Fathers draws no attention to the historical location of traditionalist Catholic dissent within America’s contemporary polarized environment, especially regarding the affinities between right-wing religion in general and the attendant concerns over globalist agendas, the woke establishment, the Great Reset, conspiracy theories, and an array of tropes surrounding what has allegedly been lost or stolen from our cultural, social, and political past—in this case, the LTM. Nor is there any serious discussion of the theological and ecclesial implications of a movement claiming the high ground of Catholic orthodoxy while simultaneously rejecting in one manner or another what the church understands as the reform imperative of a Holy Spirit-inspired ecumenical council. Faith of our Fathers would be of limited help in classroom settings with students who had little or no background knowledge of the traditionalist phenomenon and its various mutations since Vatican II. The book should, however, be on the radar of those tracking Catholicism’s liturgical wars, or of anyone doubting Pope Francis’s concern...