Annibale Bugnini
Encyclopedia
Annibale Bugnini, C.M.
(June 14, 1912–July 3, 1982) was a Roman Catholic
prelate
. Ordained in 1936 and named archbishop in 1972, he was secretary of the commission that worked on the reform of the Catholic liturgy
that followed the Second Vatican Council
.
Bugnini remains a very controversial figure among Catholic
s, especially of the traditionalist bent, due to his role in the mid-twentieth-century liturgical reform (both before and after Vatican II) and due to allegations that he was a Freemason
(a serious accusation against any Catholic, but especially a senior member of the hierarchy). He denied these allegations during his lifetime, and they remain unproven.
in Umbria
. In 1928 he began his theological studies with the Congregation of the Mission
. He was ordained a priest
on 26 July 1936 and spent ten years in parish work in a Roman
suburb. From 1947 became involved in the production of the missionary publications of his order and at the same time became the first editor of Ephemerides Liturgicæ. From 1949 he taught Liturgical Studies at the Pontifical Urban College
(now the Pontifical Urban University), later becoming a professor at the Pontifical Lateran University
.
appointed him Secretary to the Commission for Liturgical Reform. This body was responsible for the creation of a new rite for the celebration of the Easter Vigil
(1951) and then for the creation of new ceremonies for the rest of Holy Week
(1955). That same year, the Commission changed the rubrics of the Mass and Office, suppressing most of the Church's octaves and a number of vigils, and abolishing the First Vespers of most feasts. The Commission went on to reform the Code of Rubrics (1960) which led to new editions of the Roman Breviary
in 1961 and the Roman Missal
in 1962. The liturgical changes implemented by the Commission for Liturgical Reform between 1951 and 1962, which are still reflected in the 1962 Missal and Breviary, laid the ground for the creation of a new form of the Roman rite after Vatican II.
announced the Second Vatican Council and on June 6, 1960, Fr. Bugnini was appointed the Secretary of the Pontifical Preparatory Commission on the Liturgy. This body drafted the document that would become Sacrosanctum Concilium
, the Council's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy.
Fr. Bugnini had been secretary of the Council's Preparatory Commission for the Liturgy. The Council - for which Fr Bugnini was appointed as a peritus - voted in the new Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, December 4, 1963. On January 3, 1964, Pope Paul VI appointed Bugnini as Secretary of the Consilium for the Implementation of the Constitution on the Liturgy ("the Consilium" for short).
announced that he was dissolving the Congregation for Divine Worship and merging it with the Congregation of the Sacraments.
On January 4, 1976, the Vatican announced Bugnini's appointment as Pro-Nuncio
to Iran. There, not only did he deal with the ordinary business of a papal nunciature, but he also studied and acquired knowledge of the country, its history, and its cultural, religious, and social traditions. The result was his book La Chiesa in Iran ("The Church in Iran"). Once he completed that book, he wrote the well-known resource, "The Reform of the Liturgy 1948-1975."
As Papal Representative to Iran, Bugnini tried in 1979 to obtain, in the name of the pope, the release of the American hostages
. The elderly Nuncio
met with Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
, the Iran
ian leader, to deliver Pope John Paul II
's appeal for the release of the hostages, but the Ayatollah rejected the appeal. The 52 Americans were eventually released on January 21, 1981, after 444 days in captivity.
community, believe that Bugnini was a Freemason. Relations between the Church and Freemasonry have been hostile, and Catholics who become Freemasons are automatically excommunicated and therefore are not permitted to receive Holy Communion. It is claimed that Bugnini's alleged Masonic connections explain in part what is perceived by some as the modernistic
course of the liturgical reform, and that the discovery of his affiliation prompted his sudden transfer by the Pope from his post in the Roman Curia
to that of Papal Nuncio to Iran.
According to Bugnini, a cardinal told him in the summer of 1975 that a "dossier" proving him to be a Freemason had been brought to the Pope's desk. The allegations became public in April 1976, shortly after Bugnini's appointment as nuncio to Iran, and were reported in the Italian press.
The Vatican made no immediate denial of the rumours. Two months later, in June 1976, claims were made publicly that Bugnini, together with over 100 other Vatican officials, were Masons. In October 1976, the Vatican affirmed that "not one of the accused Vatican prelates has ever had anything to do with Freemasonry".
The English traditionalist Catholic
writer Michael Davies
investigated the allegations and claimed to have made contact with a priest who "came into possession of what he considered to be evidence proving Mgr Bugnini to be a Mason" and who had "this information placed in the hands of Pope Paul VI by a cardinal". The Australian theologian Fr. Brian Harrison, while disputing Davies' account of the affair, said that he too had heard (from a source whom he does not name) that a Roman priest had found evidence against Bugnini in a briefcase that he had left behind in a conference room. The story about the briefcase also appears in Piers Compton's 1981 book The Broken Cross, though this publication connects a number of conspiratorial allegations and is consequently of disputed credibility. Specifically, Compton writes that Bugnini's membership was recorded in "the Italian Register" on April 23, 1963, "and that his code name was Buan."
The Vatican prelate Cardinal
Silvio Oddi
was quoted as commenting: "I can swear that [Bugnini] was not a Freemason.... I remain convinced that these accusations were made up by someone in his office... who wanted to eliminate him".http://www.catholic.net/RCC/Periodicals/Inside/05-96/abbot.html
Clinic on July 3, 1982. He had served as papal nuncio for the last six years of his life and died at 70 years of natural causes.
, who is now President of the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses
.
Lazarists
Congregation of the Mission is a vowed order of priests and brothers associated with the Vincentian Family, a loose federation of organizations who claim St. Vincent de Paul as their founder or Patron...
(June 14, 1912–July 3, 1982) was a Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
. Ordained in 1936 and named archbishop in 1972, he was secretary of the commission that worked on the reform of the Catholic liturgy
Mass of Paul VI
The Mass of Pope Paul VI is the liturgy of the Catholic Mass of the Roman Rite promulgated by Paul VI in 1969, after the Second Vatican Council...
that followed the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
.
Bugnini remains a very controversial figure among Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
s, especially of the traditionalist bent, due to his role in the mid-twentieth-century liturgical reform (both before and after Vatican II) and due to allegations that he was a Freemason
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
(a serious accusation against any Catholic, but especially a senior member of the hierarchy). He denied these allegations during his lifetime, and they remain unproven.
Early life
Annibale Bugnini was born in Civitella del LagoCivitella del Lago
thumb|rightCivitella del Lago is a village in the Italian region of Umbria, administratively a frazione of the commune of Baschi. It is located just above lake Corbara, an artificial lake on the course of the river Tiber. The inhabitants during the winter are about 300 growing in summer to more...
in Umbria
Umbria
Umbria is a region of modern central Italy. It is one of the smallest Italian regions and the only peninsular region that is landlocked.Its capital is Perugia.Assisi and Norcia are historical towns associated with St. Francis of Assisi, and St...
. In 1928 he began his theological studies with the Congregation of the Mission
Lazarists
Congregation of the Mission is a vowed order of priests and brothers associated with the Vincentian Family, a loose federation of organizations who claim St. Vincent de Paul as their founder or Patron...
. He was ordained a priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
on 26 July 1936 and spent ten years in parish work in a Roman
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
suburb. From 1947 became involved in the production of the missionary publications of his order and at the same time became the first editor of Ephemerides Liturgicæ. From 1949 he taught Liturgical Studies at the Pontifical Urban College
Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples
The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in Rome is the congregation of the Roman Curia responsible for missionary work and related activities...
(now the Pontifical Urban University), later becoming a professor at the Pontifical Lateran University
Pontifical Lateran University
The Pontifical Lateran University is a university by pontifical right based in Rome, Italy. The university also hosts the central session of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family...
.
Serving Pius XII
On May 28, 1948, Pope Pius XIIPope Pius XII
The Venerable Pope Pius XII , born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli , reigned as Pope, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City State, from 2 March 1939 until his death in 1958....
appointed him Secretary to the Commission for Liturgical Reform. This body was responsible for the creation of a new rite for the celebration of the Easter Vigil
Easter Vigil
The Easter Vigil, also called the Paschal Vigil or the Great Vigil of Easter, is a service held in many Christian churches as the first official celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus. Historically, it is during this service that people are baptized and that adult catechumens are received into...
(1951) and then for the creation of new ceremonies for the rest of Holy Week
Holy Week
Holy Week in Christianity is the last week of Lent and the week before Easter...
(1955). That same year, the Commission changed the rubrics of the Mass and Office, suppressing most of the Church's octaves and a number of vigils, and abolishing the First Vespers of most feasts. The Commission went on to reform the Code of Rubrics (1960) which led to new editions of the Roman Breviary
Breviary
A breviary is a liturgical book of the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church containing the public or canonical prayers, hymns, the Psalms, readings, and notations for everyday use, especially by bishops, priests, and deacons in the Divine Office...
in 1961 and the Roman Missal
Roman Missal
The Roman Missal is the liturgical book that contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the Mass in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church.-Situation before the Council of Trent:...
in 1962. The liturgical changes implemented by the Commission for Liturgical Reform between 1951 and 1962, which are still reflected in the 1962 Missal and Breviary, laid the ground for the creation of a new form of the Roman rite after Vatican II.
Vatican II and the Consilium
On January 25, 1959, Pope John XXIIIPope John XXIII
-Papal election:Following the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, Roncalli was elected Pope, to his great surprise. He had even arrived in the Vatican with a return train ticket to Venice. Many had considered Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan, a possible candidate, but, although archbishop...
announced the Second Vatican Council and on June 6, 1960, Fr. Bugnini was appointed the Secretary of the Pontifical Preparatory Commission on the Liturgy. This body drafted the document that would become Sacrosanctum Concilium
Sacrosanctum Concilium
Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, is one of the constitutions of the Second Vatican Council. It was approved by the assembled bishops by a vote of 2,147 to 4 and promulgated by Pope Paul VI on December 4, 1963...
, the Council's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy.
Fr. Bugnini had been secretary of the Council's Preparatory Commission for the Liturgy. The Council - for which Fr Bugnini was appointed as a peritus - voted in the new Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, December 4, 1963. On January 3, 1964, Pope Paul VI appointed Bugnini as Secretary of the Consilium for the Implementation of the Constitution on the Liturgy ("the Consilium" for short).
After Consilium
On July 16, 1975, Pope Paul VIPope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
announced that he was dissolving the Congregation for Divine Worship and merging it with the Congregation of the Sacraments.
On January 4, 1976, the Vatican announced Bugnini's appointment as Pro-Nuncio
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
to Iran. There, not only did he deal with the ordinary business of a papal nunciature, but he also studied and acquired knowledge of the country, its history, and its cultural, religious, and social traditions. The result was his book La Chiesa in Iran ("The Church in Iran"). Once he completed that book, he wrote the well-known resource, "The Reform of the Liturgy 1948-1975."
As Papal Representative to Iran, Bugnini tried in 1979 to obtain, in the name of the pope, the release of the American hostages
Iran hostage crisis
The Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in support of the Iranian...
. The elderly Nuncio
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
met with Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini
Ruhollah Khomeini
Grand Ayatollah Sayyed Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini was an Iranian religious leader and politician, and leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution which saw the overthrow of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran...
, the Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian leader, to deliver Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
's appeal for the release of the hostages, but the Ayatollah rejected the appeal. The 52 Americans were eventually released on January 21, 1981, after 444 days in captivity.
Allegations of Freemasonry
Some Catholics, particularly in the traditionalist CatholicTraditionalist Catholic
Traditionalist Catholics are Roman Catholics who believe that there should be a restoration of many or all of the liturgical forms, public and private devotions and presentations of Catholic teachings which prevailed in the Catholic Church before the Second Vatican Council...
community, believe that Bugnini was a Freemason. Relations between the Church and Freemasonry have been hostile, and Catholics who become Freemasons are automatically excommunicated and therefore are not permitted to receive Holy Communion. It is claimed that Bugnini's alleged Masonic connections explain in part what is perceived by some as the modernistic
Modernism (Roman Catholicism)
Modernism refers to theological opinions expressed during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but with influence reaching into the 21st century, which are characterized by a break with the past. Catholic modernists form an amorphous group. The term "modernist" appears in Pope Pius X's 1907...
course of the liturgical reform, and that the discovery of his affiliation prompted his sudden transfer by the Pope from his post in the Roman Curia
Roman Curia
The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See and the central governing body of the entire Catholic Church, together with the Pope...
to that of Papal Nuncio to Iran.
According to Bugnini, a cardinal told him in the summer of 1975 that a "dossier" proving him to be a Freemason had been brought to the Pope's desk. The allegations became public in April 1976, shortly after Bugnini's appointment as nuncio to Iran, and were reported in the Italian press.
The Vatican made no immediate denial of the rumours. Two months later, in June 1976, claims were made publicly that Bugnini, together with over 100 other Vatican officials, were Masons. In October 1976, the Vatican affirmed that "not one of the accused Vatican prelates has ever had anything to do with Freemasonry".
The English traditionalist Catholic
Traditionalist Catholic
Traditionalist Catholics are Roman Catholics who believe that there should be a restoration of many or all of the liturgical forms, public and private devotions and presentations of Catholic teachings which prevailed in the Catholic Church before the Second Vatican Council...
writer Michael Davies
Michael Davies (Catholic writer)
Michael Treharne Davies was a British teacher, and traditionalist Catholic writer of many books about the Catholic Church following the Second Vatican Council...
investigated the allegations and claimed to have made contact with a priest who "came into possession of what he considered to be evidence proving Mgr Bugnini to be a Mason" and who had "this information placed in the hands of Pope Paul VI by a cardinal". The Australian theologian Fr. Brian Harrison, while disputing Davies' account of the affair, said that he too had heard (from a source whom he does not name) that a Roman priest had found evidence against Bugnini in a briefcase that he had left behind in a conference room. The story about the briefcase also appears in Piers Compton's 1981 book The Broken Cross, though this publication connects a number of conspiratorial allegations and is consequently of disputed credibility. Specifically, Compton writes that Bugnini's membership was recorded in "the Italian Register" on April 23, 1963, "and that his code name was Buan."
The Vatican prelate Cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
Silvio Oddi
Silvio Oddi
Silvio Angelo Pio Oddi was a diplomat in the service of the Holy See and a cardinal....
was quoted as commenting: "I can swear that [Bugnini] was not a Freemason.... I remain convinced that these accusations were made up by someone in his office... who wanted to eliminate him".http://www.catholic.net/RCC/Periodicals/Inside/05-96/abbot.html
Death
Archbishop Annibale Bugnini died in Rome at the Pius XIPope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI , born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, was Pope from 6 February 1922, and sovereign of Vatican City from its creation as an independent state on 11 February 1929 until his death on 10 February 1939...
Clinic on July 3, 1982. He had served as papal nuncio for the last six years of his life and died at 70 years of natural causes.
Other
The personal secretary of Archbishop Bugnini was Archbishop Piero MariniPiero Marini
Piero Marini is a Roman Catholic archbishop who is president of the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses. For twenty years he served as Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations, in charge of the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff...
, who is now President of the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses
Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses
The Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses is part of the Roman Curia of the Roman Catholic Church. The Pontifical Committee was constituted and erected in 1879 by Pope Leo XIII and which received approval of its updated Statutes in 1986 from Pope John Paul II.-Aims:The...
.