HOSE HUMAN BEINGS who remain tethered to reality—and by ‘reality’ I mean the Sacramental life, with constant cognizance of one’s eternal destiny—take pains to avoid sensationalism, tabloid journalism, and people whose entire existence is dedicated to amassing “clicks.” I certainly don’t want to be considered a sensationalist lunatic; and precisely for that reason I usually avoid mentioning the GRADUALE SIMPLEX. If one speaks with honesty about that book, one quickly descends into language that makes one come across as hysterical, unrestrained, and melodramatic.
Speaking Candidly • The fact is, the GRADUALE SIMPLEX was a colossal failure. Similar to polyester vestments and church wreckovations, its sad legacy is bound up with everything irresponsible about the 1960s liturgical reforms. Indeed, when Msgr. Hannibal Bugnini sang this book’s praises in his 1983 tome (La riforma liturgica) his unbridled dishonesty makes him come across as a lunatic. The claims made by Bugnini vis-à-vis the GRADUALE SIMPLEX—even its contents—are simply false.
I recently came across a fascinating 12-page document (by Father Herman J. Graf) which describes the GRADUALE SIMPLEX:
* PDF Download • GRADUALE SIMPLEX—12 pages
—Published in August of 1970 by Father Herman J Graf (Society of the Divine Word).
Our readers will find much in this document utterly engrossing. At the same time, some of the statements are contradictory and—especially with the benefit of hindsight—come across as infected through and through with a Pollyannaish view of “change for the sake of change.”
Pandora’s Box • As far as the radical reformers were concerned, the GRADUALE SIMPLEX had one purpose (and one purpose only). Its promulgation by the CONSILIUM introduced a principle: viz. that the Propria Missae could lawfully be replaced. Once that crevice was opened, it was “game over.” The radical reformers drove an Eighteen-Wheeler through that loophole. It was like Pandora’s box … and the rest was history. Without exaggeration, I can affirm that no change made after Vatican II (with the possible exception of versus populum) did more harm to the authentic renewal of the sacred liturgy than that principle.
The Catholic Church is still reeling from shameful abuse of that ‘principle’ but—as we mentioned in a recent article—the Propria Missae have begun a remarkable and wonderful comeback over the last 20 years, which no one in the 1980s or 1990s could have even hoped for!
