Le cardinal Burke répond à nos questions : entretien exclusif à Chartres

On the occasion of the 44th pilgrimage to Chartres, Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke granted us an interview at the cathedral presbytery in the hours following his arrival among the pilgrims. We are pleased to offer you today the publication of this exchange, in video format (with link) and in full text (downloadable PDF), to extend and deepen this special moment. In it, he answers our questions on the mission of the Church according to the call of Pope Leo XIV, on the place of the sacraments and the transmission of faith, and on Marian devotion. He focuses particularly on the Vetus Ordo: he reminds us that the books of 1962 were still those of the Council Fathers during the Council, and invites us to revisit, without anachronism and in light of the archives that are beginning to be opened, the process that led, after Vatican II, to the liturgical reform—a historical work that he considers still largely to be in greater depth. According to him, one can be fully Catholic by living the sacraments according to the 1962 books, and this centuries-old liturgy retains all its missionary power today, especially among younger generations. The Cardinal also spoke about the future of the Church in France and Europe, the upcoming visit of Pope Leo XIV to our country, and what he experienced and felt in his interactions with the pilgrims of Chartres. We reiterate our gratitude to Cardinal Burke for the generosity of his time and the depth of his answers, which can only encourage each pilgrim to "embark on mission," strengthened by the conviction that traditional pedagogies and spirituality have their rightful place, with and under Peter, within the Catholic Church. This message resonates with particular force just weeks before the arrival of Leo XIV in France.