rome —
The Vatican announced Thursday that priests and members of the Catholic breakaway group, which appointed four new bishops against the wishes of Pope Leo XIV, are in schism and have been excommunicated.
The ultra-traditionalist Society of St. Pius
In response, the Vatican’s Secretariat for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a decree on Thursday excommunicating four bishops, along with two bishops who participated in the ordination ceremony. Excommunication means being excluded from the sacraments of the Church.
In a statement, the association added that clergy members affiliated with the association and laypeople who “officially support” the group will also be divided and excommunicated.
The decree warns all “clergy and laity” not to formally follow the Society, as they will be subject to the penalty of automatic excommunication.
In his final appeal to the group on Monday, Mr. Leo warned that the ordination would be a “divisive” act and a “very grave sin” and warned that the Vatican’s ruling would be a widespread crackdown on the group.
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin on Wednesday expressed “deep sadness” over the ordination, saying it “destroys the unity of the Church and imposes a very specific sanction, basically excommunication.”
Leo has not commented publicly since the ordination took place.
The association, known as SSPX, was founded in Switzerland in 1970 by French prelate Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, but was formally suppressed by the Bishop of Fribourg five years later. In 1988, the group appointed four bishops without papal approval, leading to their excommunication.
The Vatican’s latest measures go further than the 1988 sanctions, which were limited to bishops. Pope Francis had also authorized the organization to administer the sacraments of marriage and confession, but the Vatican’s latest ruling says marriages and confessions offered by the organization will be considered “null and void.”
But the note says: “As a caring mother, the Church welcomes with sincere love and active consideration all those who wish to return to full communion.”
At the heart of the split from the mainstream church was Lefebvre and his supporters’ opposition to the church reforms introduced by Vatican II in the 1960s.
Lefebbrists do not accept the council’s teachings on religious freedom, ecumenism (teachings about other Christian denominations and religions), and reform of Catholic worship, including celebrating Mass in languages other than Latin. One of the major reforms in the council was to condemn all forms of anti-Semitism.
During his papacy, Pope Leo XIV made the unity of the church a priority, and the cornerstone of that unity was the union between the pope and the bishops.
On June 16, the Pope pointed out to journalists that Lefebvists “refuse to accept certain fundamental elements of the Church, including some points of the Second Vatican Council.” Regarding the upcoming ordination, he said: “If they have made that choice, it’s unfortunate, but we have to move forward.”
The group is active in the United States, with its headquarters in Missouri and a seminary that trains priests in Dillwyn, Virginia. One of the new bishops appointed Wednesday is Father Michael Goldade, who will lead the seminary.
“The ‘Modernist Church’ is like a desert that kills everything it touches,” Golded said at the service after the ordination ceremony.
