Cardinal Burke received in audience by Pope Leo XIV

His Eminence Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke was warmly received in a private audience by Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican this morning, 22 August 2025.

The Holy See Press Office confirmed that among the dignitaries granted a private audience today was Cardinal Burke. Although no details of the conversation have been made public, the meeting is widely regarded as highly significant.

For Catholics devoted to the Traditional Latin Mass, Cardinal Burke being welcomed into the Pope’s presence will be seen as a hopeful sign. Few figures have been so outspoken in recent decades in their defence of the usus antiquior of the Roman Rite, more commonly known as the Traditional Latin Mass.

Under Pope Benedict XVI, the Tridentine Mass was explicitly affirmed never to have been abrogated and was made widely accessible. That freedom was sharply curtailed in 2021 under Traditionis Custodes, issued by Pope Francis, which imposed sweeping restrictions.

Cardinal Burke emerged as one of the strongest critics of those measures, describing them as “severe and revolutionary” and warning that the Church risked impoverishing her liturgical life by stifling one of its most venerable expressions.

His relationship with Francis was fraught with tension. In November 2014, Francis removed him as prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, later appointing him patron of the Order of Malta. Tensions deepened when Burke joined three other cardinals in submitting dubia to the pope in September 2016, questioning the teaching of Amoris Laetitia. In 2017, Francis sidelined him further during a governance crisis within the Order of Malta, and in November 2023 reports surfaced that Francis had revoked Burke’s Vatican apartment and stipend. On 29 December 2023, the two men met privately for the first time in seven years, after which Burke quipped, “Well, I’m still alive.”

The election of Pope Leo XIV earlier this year has revived hopes among traditionalists. Seen by many as a pontiff of clarity and doctrinal firmness, Leo has so far struck a tone of reconciliation with figures who had been at odds with the Vatican during the previous pontificate. In July he wrote warmly to Cardinal Burke on the occasion of his golden jubilee of priesthood, thanking him for fifty years of service. That letter, read by many as a gesture of reconciliation, paved the way for today’s audience.

Cardinal Burke himself has been tireless in making his appeal. In June this year, addressing the Latin Mass Society of England and Wales by video link, he urged Pope Leo to “end the persecution” of the older liturgy and restore the freedoms of Summorum Pontificum.

For those who cherish the Latin Mass, today’s meeting carries the weight of anticipation. No announcement has yet been made regarding the status of Traditionis Custodes, but the gesture alone is enough to stir new hope.

‍