"Benedict XVI takes care of the unity of the Catholics; he wants to encourage their reconciliation, and at the same time, reconcile the Church with its liturgical past. It is a gesture for the followers of Msgr. Lefebvre, but the Pope knows that the differences are not just liturgical". Those words were spoken by the president of the French bishops and archbishop of Bordeaux, Card. Jean-Pierre Ricard, who thus presented the Motu Proprio "Summorum Pontificum". "In the first place explained the Cardinal to the press – the Motu Proprio is meant for those Catholics (faithful to the Pope and respecting the authority of the Council) who wish to practice with the Missal of 1962. However, the Missal of 1970 remains the ordinary form for the celebration. It is not bi-ritualism, but just one rite which may be celebrated in two forms. Nothing will change for the majority of the Catholics". "The Second Vatican Council added Ricard, referring to the letter by Benedict XVI accompanying the Motu Proprio is not a break by an enrichment, which becomes part of the continuity of the Tradition of the Church. The old liturgy nourished the faith of believers for centuries, and may go on doing that today, too. Through the "Summorum Pontificum", Benedict XVI asks council and traditionalist believers to start a communion and reconciliation path".
