Credibilitam Authenticam

So everyone's buzzing at the CWN leak of a letter from the prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments to the USCCB President as the Armageddon vote on the translations nears next month in the City of Angels... On which day there will not be many a serene and kindly gaze in the room.

The most touching phrase of Arinze's missive is where he says of Liturgiam authenticam (OW-tent'-EE-kahm), the blockbuster 2001 instruction on liturgical translations, that "Both [CDW] and the Bishops’ Conferences are bound to follow its directives."

All well and good. Che gioia and all that.

However, following the logic, if same Dicastery issued a similar decree on another aspect of liturgical life, all parties would be "bound to follow its directives" as well....

...and, if said similar instruction -- issued under the signature of said-same cardinal-prefect -- (wisely) reinforced the Roman church's long-held practice that "The vestment proper to the Priest celebrant at Mass, and in other sacred actions directly connected with Mass unless otherwise indicated, is the chasuble, worn over the alb and stole"....

Then to what do we owe this?

Ergo, if rules are rules, then let he who is without sin cast the first stole.

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