The pogrom goes on.
It goes on despite not knowing what Leo XIV has in mind.
The OUTGOING/GONE Bishop Garcia of Monterey (California) is terminating the TLM that has been going on for 17 years. Yes, “out”. Bp. Daniel Garcia was named Bishop of Austin on 2 July 2025, but he has still been running Monterey. Figure that out.
He was installed by Francis in Monterey in 2018. He was named by Leo XIV to Austin on 2 July 2025 and he was installed in Austin on 18 September 2025…. four days after he signed this letter.
On 19 September, Bishop Slawomir Szkredka was named Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Monterey in California.
Now he shuts down the TLM? Before a new bishop can be appointed to Monterey who might want to make his own decisions?
I wish that people would send photos that were straight on, so that they could be more easily OCR’d. Saves a lot of time.
NB: Two full pages of justifications.
I note a couple of things.
Firstly, he based his action on Traditionis custodes (aka Taurina cacata), which we now know was based on a falsehood: the claim that the majority of bishops surveyed leaned toward negative when it was in truth the opposite. The whole thing is an unjust and cruel house of card.
He wrote: “The primary focus of every bishop… is to lead the Church toward unity.”
One can defend that to an extent (cf. LG23, UR 5). However, it seems to me that the primary focus of every bishop should be the sanctification and salvation of souls. Moreover, why does “unity” in the minds of these bishops mean “uniformity”? He used the word “unity” 8 times on the first page, 3 times in one paragraph, 2 times in another, plus 4 times on the second page.
He wrote: “rare situation… of having two liturgies being celebrated in the one Latin Rite.”
Has this bishop never heard of the Ambrosian Rite? Braga Rite? Lyonnaise Rite? The Mozarabic Rite? How about the so-called Zaire Rite? And there’s the Dominican Rite, the Cistercian Rite, Norbertine Rite…. For dumb.
There is this howler: “Whoever wishes to celebrate with devotion according to earlier forms of the liturgy can find in the reformed Roman Missal according to Vatican Council II, all the elements of the reformed rite….”
I don’t even know where to start. Shall we start with the massive redacted orations or the offertory prayers? There is a list.
I’ll pass over the shallow reference to “active participation”. He has an MA in liturgy from the liberal St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN.
There’s this:
“There is also the matter of the Pastor there at Sacred Heart and St. Benedict’s being able to give his full attention to the entire parish rather than taking his limited time spent with a small group of individuals who are not worshiping according to ordinary (and one) right of the Latin Church.”
Wait just a cottin pikin’ minute! What about “the periphery”? What about the good shepherd (aka pastor) seeking out the minority? This underscores the condescension toward the people who want the traditional sacred worship.
“Those people… who do different things…”. Thank heaven I’m not like that group over there! We stand in unity to get the white thing. Not like those people, who kneel a lot. All that bowing and scraping. They don’t sing our unity songs, like “One Bread, One Body”, “Gather Us In” and “Make Us One”.”
Did you notice that he says he sent various people to talk to the TLM community: The chancellor, the director of the tribunal. He consulted the vicar general and presbyteral council. This is all “cover”, of course. However, note that he does not say that HE met with them.
Then comes the oily close:
I invite you all to join in unity with the parish of Sacred Heart and St. Benedict, and in cooperation with your pastor, as they gather around the table of the Lord celebrating the rich Eucharistic Sacrifice, each Sunday, which has been a great fruit of the Council. May this a liturgy charge your hearts with charity and trust to build the unity Pope Leo spoke about in the Mass he celebrated early in his pontificate in St. Peter’s Square: …
He goes on to give a quote from Leo about the macro view of the Church which has effectively nothing to do with the micro situation of Monterey.
Yeah… this is going to persuade.
Note the “rich Eucharist Sacrifice… a great fruit of the Council”. Since the Eucharistic Sacrifice is from the Lord at the Last Supper, he can only mean the Novus Ordo. I would challenge him to explain the results of the survey a few years ago revealing that some 60% of Catholic’s don’t believe what the Church teaches about transubstantiation. Since those people probably have contact with something, anything, Catholic only on Sunday for Mass, I think we can draw a line more or less straight between how Mass is celebrated and what people believe… sorry, don’t believe.
Other demonstrable fruits of the Council have without question been the huge increase in vocations to the priesthood, the building and filling of new convents, long lines at confessionals, the increased number of weddings and bapt…. oh, no, wait!
Those things happen among the more traditionally inclined. My bad.
Finally, the letter was dated “September 14, 2025”.
The Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross.
18 years to the day that Summorum Pontificum went into effect.
What a cheap shot.
In the end, it is about their dislike not just of the traditional Roman Rite, it’s about their dislike of the people who desire it. They don’t like the people.
What a disappointment.
Those poor people.
It looks like bishops are moving fast to smash the traditional faithful before Leo or the next bishop can do something.
Also, can. 428 §1 says:
“When a see is vacant, nothing is to be altered.”
The Diocese of Monterey was vacant when Garcia signed that letter.
UPDOWNDATE:
Just last week, Cardinal Dolan joined us in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the canonization of our Foundress, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. Elizabeth’s legacy is not one of exclusion or hatred, but of radical welcome, tireless service, and unwavering love of neighbor. Many of Mr. Kirk’s words stand in stark contrast to the charity and compassion that defined those of Elizabeth Seton.
