(LifeSiteNews) — A group of anonymous “theologians, pastors, and canonists” have written an open letter ahead of the May 7 conclave that urges the College of Cardinals to consider dozens of concrete steps to restore traditional Catholic teaching and practice.

The document was posted to Rorate Caeli by Dr. Peter Kwasniewski on Wednesday, April 30, the Feast of St. Catherine of Siena in the traditional calendar. The writers, who are never named, say a “senior cardinal” had “encouraged” them to draft it.

“The theologians, pastors, and canonists who composed the following statement wish to express our belief that the Church’s teaching, or rather the teachings of many churchmen, and also what is presented as her liturgy and discipline, have for a long time now been influenced by the spirit of the world; and we wish, with filial freedom, to express our opinions about the path to restoration and renewal,” they added.

Listed in the open letter are 62 action items concerning doctrine, liturgy, and discipline. Many of the proposals take direct aim at innovations and errors that have proliferated in recent years, particularly since the 2013 election of the late Pope Francis.

In matters of doctrine, for example, the letter writers criticize the Synod on Synodality as “foreign to apostolic tradition,” urge the hierarchy to condemn in vitro fertilization (IVF), euthanasia, and the ordination of women, and call for the correction of Pope Francis’ 2018 change to the Catechism of the Catholic Church that declares, in opposition to traditional teaching, that capital punishment violates the “dignity of the person” and is thus “inadmissible.”

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Moving on to the liturgy, the open letter defends the traditional Latin Mass (TLM) and denounces its suppression via Traditionis custodes: “The impossibility of suppressing the traditional Latin Mass should be defined, and any attempt to forbid priests of the Latin rite from celebrating it should be condemned.”

The letter also advocates for the abolition of Holy Communion in the hand, “an abuse fraudulently presented as a return to primitive custom,” adding that it should only be distributed by priests and “given exclusively on the tongue.”

Among the more notable prescriptions on discipline is a call for bishops to reprove Catholic-identifying lawmakers under their pastoral care who promote “measures contrary to the principles of natural law — such as abortion, euthanasia, in vitro fertilization, pseudogamy, or usury” — and to exclude them from Holy Communion if they are “unrepentant.”

The document further recommends that bishops organize “ceremonies of reparation for the many crimes of tolerating or promoting heresy that have been committed within the Church in recent decades,” similar to those that have been organized “for the sexual abuse committed by some members of their clergy.”

For the full list of proposals, click here to read the open letter.

LifeSiteNews readers are invited to pray for the cardinals now tasked with electing a new pope. Click here for our full coverage of the conclave.