Breakaway Catholic group excommunicated after defying warnings from Pope Leo
The Vatican said Thursday that priests and members of a Catholic separatist group appointed four new bishops They are in schism and excommunicated, against the wishes of Pope Leo XIV.
The Society of St. Pius
In response, the Vatican’s doctrinal office issued a decree on Thursday that the four bishops and two bishops who attended the ceremony would be excommunicated. Excommunication means that they are excluded from the services of the church.
An explanatory note stated that priests of the community and lay members “formally affiliated” with the group were also in schism and excommunicated.
The decree warns all “clergy and laity” not to officially follow the society, as they will automatically be subject to the penalty of excommunication.
In his latest appeal to the group on Monday, Leo warned that the appointments would be a “divisive” act and “an extremely serious sin” and that the Vatican’s decision would be a far-reaching restriction on the group.
Alfonso de Galarreta of Spain, Bishop of the Society of Saint Pius X (center), gives episcopal blessings to four new bishops. – Cyril Zingaro/Keystone/AP
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state, expressed “deep regret” about the ceremonies on Wednesday, saying they “disrupted the unity of the Church and led to very specific sanctions (mainly excommunication).”
Leo has not made any public comments since the ceremonies took place.
The association, known as SSPX, was founded in Switzerland in 1970 by the French bishop Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, but was officially suppressed five years later by the Bishop of Fribourg. The group appointed four bishops without papal approval in 1988, which led to their excommunication.
The Vatican’s latest action goes beyond the sanctions limited to bishops in 1988. Although Pope Francis has allowed the community to conduct marriage and confession rites, the latest Vatican ruling states that any marriage or confession offered by the group will be deemed “invalid.”
But the note states: “The Church, as a caring mother, will welcome with sincere love and active concern all who wish to return to full unity.”
Central to the split from the mainstream church was Lefebvre and his followers’ opposition to the church reforms initiated by the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s.
Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in Econe, Switzerland, in August 1976. -Francois Lochon/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images
“Lefebvrists” do not accept what the council teaches about religious freedom, ecumenism (teaching about other Christian denominations and religions), and reforms to Catholic worship, such as celebrating mass in languages other than Latin. One of the most important reforms of the council was the condemnation of all forms of antisemitism.
Leo XIV made church unity a priority during his papacy, and the cornerstone of this unity was the connection between pope and bishop.
On June 16, the pope pointed out to reporters that the Lefebvrists “refuse to accept some fundamental elements of the Church, especially some points of the Second Vatican Council.” He said of the planned ceremonies: “I’m sorry if that’s the choice they made, but we need to move forward.”
The group has an active presence in the United States, with a headquarters in Missouri and a seminary for training priests in Dillwyn, Virginia. One of the newly appointed bishops Wednesday is Father Michael Goldade, who heads the seminary.
“The ‘Modernist church’ is a desert that kills everything it touches,” Goldade said at the ceremony held after the ceremonies.
For more CNN news and newsletters, create an account at: CNN.com
