Vatican City – On 8 June 2025, Solemnity of Pentecost, the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments presented to the Pope the decree establishing the new Mass formula “For the Care of Creation” (Missa pro custodia creationis), approved by Pope Leo XIV and inserted into the section Pro circumstantiis publicis of the Missale Romanum, editio typica tertia (2008).
The new text – written in Latin and promulgated as an editio typica – is added to the formularies “for various needs” already present in the Missal and aims to respond, according to the Dicastery, to the urgent need for greater ecclesial attention to environmental issues, particularly those highlighted in the encyclical Laudato si’ and the subsequent exhortation Laudate Deum.
The Content of the Decree
The decree opens with a quotation from St Augustine’s Confessions, inserted later to please the current Pontiff, Leo XIV. It is followed by a rather linear theological summary, in which creation is presented as an integral part of the history of salvation, fulfilled in the Paschal Mystery of Christ. In this context, it is stated that “the work of creation is seriously threatened,” and the proposed liturgical response is the introduction of a specific Mass in the Roman Missal.
The decree affirms that the Eucharist is a “source of light and motivation for our concern for the environment,” and that it unites the cosmos with the Creator—an orientation already present in some liturgical texts, but one that the new formula seeks to make more explicit.
A Theological Reading with a Specific Orientation
The formula follows the structure of other Masses for public needs: entrance antiphon, collect, biblical readings, prayer over the offerings, communion antiphon, and prayer after communion. The collect invokes the gift of the Spirit to safeguard the work of the Creator; readings include passages from Genesis, Wisdom, Matthew 6 and 8, as well as Pauline texts.
The language adopted reflects a clearly pastoral and educational intention, aimed at “ecological conversion,” which finds expression even in the Eucharistic celebration. Magisterial references are numerous, ranging from Laudato si’ to Dies Domini, from Dominum et vivificantem to Ecclesia de Eucharistia, including also homilies and addresses of previous Popes.
Liturgical and Pastoral Considerations
According to Cardinal Michael Czerny and Msgr. Vittorio Francesco Viola, who spoke at the press conference, the new formula does not introduce a completely new theme. Creation is already present in the liturgy: in the Genesis account at the Easter Vigil, in the eucharistic symbolism of bread and wine, in the Psalms and in the Liturgy of the Hours.
This well-worn strategy of “nothing new here; previous Popes did it too” is systematically employed to legitimise questionable initiatives, disguising them as continuity with tradition. The intent is clear: to soften resistance and enable otherwise hard-to-justify decisions to go unnoticed. This is clearly the logic driving certain creative mindswithin the Dicastery.
Still, it is evident that the “Mass for the Care of Creation” seeks to give specific visibility to this theme, placing it among the public circumstances for which official prayer may be offered. Moreover, the text is presented in continuity with the traditional “Ember Days” and Rogation Days, moments when the Church has invoked divine blessing upon the fruits of the earth and human labour.
An Initiative Reflecting a Certain Cultural Orientation
Beyond the official presentation, the new formula fits into an ecclesial framework increasingly obsessed with themes of environmental sustainability and climate justice. The central focus on “care for our common home”, while justified by theological and biblical arguments, is clearly influenced by growing global cultural and political pressure.
One cannot ignore the overlap between ecclesial and international institutional language, risking a functional reduction of the liturgy to a tool of thematic awareness-raising. In this light, the Missa pro custodia creationisrepresents a liturgical use with social aims which—though coherent with some recent magisterial stances—raises questions about the integrity of the liturgy’s theological identity.
A Formula Open to Different Interpretations
The risk is not so much doctrinal deviation, but rather a dilution of the liturgy’s Christocentric axis in favour of theme-driven liturgy, which, if not well balanced, may lead to confusion or loss of meaning. It should also be noted that the formula, though approved by the Supreme Pontiff and officially promulgated, is not mandatory nor included in the universal liturgical calendar. Its use remains optional, according to the General Instructions of the Missal, and will be regulated locally by Episcopal Conferences.
It is legitimate to ask whether, faced with the deep crisis currently afflicting the Church and the more urgent global concerns, the Dicastery’s priority should really be the drafting of a new liturgical formula dedicated to creation. This choice invites broader reflection: to what extent should the liturgy take on environmental and social emergencies?And with what tools, without undermining its identity?
Time—and above all the way in which this new formula is received in local communities—will determine whether it meets a real need or proves to be yet another doomed initiative. The risk, far from remote, is that this represents yet another manifestation of an ecclesial approach that ends up confusing the liturgy with current cultural trends.
d.V.L.
Silere non possum