Bishop Rob Mutsaerts, auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of ’s-Hertogenbosch, in the Netherlands. (photo: Danny Gerrits - wikiportret.nl via Wikimedia (CC-BY-SA 4.0). / Danny Gerrits - wikiportret.nl via Wikimedia (CC-BY-SA 4.0).)
Bishop Mutsaerts, 63, suggested that the pope’s decision indicated that he was “losing authority.”
By CNA Staff,
AMSTERDAM —A Dutch Catholic bishop has launched a strongly worded attack on Pope Francis’ motu proprio restricting Traditional Latin Masses, saying that the document seemed to be a “declaration of war.”
In an essay posted on his blog on July 22, Bishop Rob Mutsaerts described the pope’s intervention as “dictatorial,” “unpastoral,” and “unmerciful,” and argued that it would benefit the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), a breakaway traditionalist group.
The comments by the auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of ’s-Hertogenbosch, in the southern Netherlands, contrast with those of other European bishops who have broadly welcomed the motu proprio, such as Bishop Jean-Pierre Batut of Blois and Bishop Olivier Leborgne of Arras in France. …
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