In a small wine bar, situated in walking distance from the Santissima Trinità dei Pellegrini (the Church of the Most Holy Trinity of Pilgrims, a centre for Old Rite celebrations of the liturgy) in Rome, a young man in his twenties sat across from a young woman of the same age. They were having an animated discussion.

I was sipping a glass of Vermentino at a table nearby and my ears pricked up when I heard the pair discussing Fr Z – the blogger Fr John Zuhlsdorf and defender of all things “extraordinary form” – and so I joined their conversation. It turned out they were stalwart defenders of the Mass in the Old Rite, and took the time to passionately argue their case to me. Just attend a Tridentine celebration for six Sundays in a row, they assured me, and you’ll be converted. But what, I asked, about the reforms of the liturgy that had taken place over recent decades? After all, the world’s bishops – including Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who went on to form the traditionalist splinter group, the Society of Saint Pius X – had voted for reforming the Mass during the Second Vatican Council.

These historical details seemed of little consequence to my wine bar companions. My thoughts turned to that conversation when the Vatican released the news last Saturday that Pope Francis was suppressing the Pontifical Commission, Ecclesia Dei, and transferring its responsibilities to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Ecclesia Dei had been set up in 1988 by John Paul II to reconcile the Lefebvrists and to manage traditionalist requests to celebrate the old rite Mass. But, as Francis has explained, since Benedict XVI lifted restrictions on celebrating the extraordinary form in 2007, the outstanding issues are now “doctrinal in nature”.