Rome, Italy, May 26, 2021 / 03:00 am (CNA).
The leader of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre has defended changes to the order’s rituals amid criticism that the swearing-in rite no longer features a sword.
Cardinal Fernando Filoni, the order’s Grand Master, told CNA that the changes did not mark a break with tradition and were part of a broader reform linked to the renewal of the order’s statutes last year.
He said that the recent reforms followed the rationale set out by St. Paul VI. In a homily in 1967, the pope spoke of a renewal faithful to the order’s original statutes.