Vatican Latin Mass permissions steady across papal transition

Thirty-four dioceses received Vatican permission to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass in parish churches in 2025, matching the 2024 total and remaining broadly consistent with previous years despite the election of a new pope. The United States accounted for 24 of the 34 decrees issued.

Pope Francis restricted the use of the 1962 Roman Missal with the 2021 motu proprio Traditionis Custodes . Under subsequent Vatican regulations, diocesan bishops must obtain permission from the Holy See to authorize celebrations according to that missal in parish churches.

The 2025 figure was also close to the 35 dioceses and other ecclesiastical jurisdictions that received permission in 2022, the first full year after Traditionis Custodes took effect. The number rose to 55 in 2023 before returning to 34 in each of the following two years.

The figures appear in the Summarium Decretorum for 2025 , the annual summary of decrees issued by the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

The document shows that permission was granted during 2025 for celebrations according to the 1962 Roman Missal in parishes located in 34 dioceses around the world.

Seven of the…