Vatican Declares SSPX in Schism, Excommunicates All Its Clergy
The decree also bars priests and lay faithful who formally adhere to the group from the sacraments, citing 1988-style excommunications.
- On July 1, the Society of Saint Pius X consecrated four new bishops in Écône, Switzerland, without papal authorization; the Vatican responded Thursday by declaring the group in schism and excommunicating all participants.
- Founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the SSPX opposes Second Vatican Council reforms it views as promoting modernism and justifies its actions citing a "state of necessity" to preserve traditional Catholic doctrine.
- Approximately 15,500 faithful attended the ceremony, where SSPX leaders defended the act as a sacred duty; the Vatican's decree invalidated confessions and marriages administered by the society's priests, reversing previous concessions.
- Superior General Father Davide Pagliarani insisted the group remains "neither schismatic nor hostile to the Church," framing the ordinations as necessary for soul salvation, though Vatican officials maintain these sacraments are illicit.
- Pope Leo XIV faces a significant challenge as these harsh sanctions suggest the Holy See has abandoned decades of attempted reconciliation, treating the group as a parallel church structure rather than a movement within the church.
502 Articles
502 Articles
ANALYSIS | Pope Leo draws hard line on breakaway traditionalists, but it could get messy
As the Vatican excommunicated four bishops of the ultra-traditionalist Society of Saint Pius X this week, notice was also served that the society’s priests and lay Catholics who formally adhere to it are also considered cut off from the Roman Catholic Church — a move that raises the spiritual stakes for thousands of followers worldwide.
Yankton Press & Dakotan
Catholic group that defied pope and caused schism defends its actions and casts itself as the victim
The traditionalist Catholics who defied Pope Leo XIV and caused a schism are defending their actions. The Society of St. Pius X is insisting it was merely saving souls and has been the victim of an unjust sanction by the…
ROME.- Under the shadow of the painful new schism provoked by the Lefebvrist rebels, who were automatically excommunicated by the unlawful consecration of four new bishops, the lesser-known Redemptorists Transalpines—another ultra-conservative traditionalist group, linked in their origin to the Priestly Fraternity St. Pius X (FSSPX), but more extreme because they are “sedevacantist” (i.e., they maintain that the See of Peter is vacant)—are prepa…
Why Pope Leo has excommunicated a group of conservative Catholics
The decision by Pope Leo XIV to excommunicate members of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) is the latest twist in a long-running saga between the Vatican and this contentious traditionalist group. It is yet more evidence of the deep polarisation between conservatives and progressives within the Catholic church. The Vatican issued a statement on July 2 to the effect that SSPX had “committed an act of a schismatic nature” by ordaining four bishop…
Vatican Declares Society of St Pius X in Schism after Swiss Fraternity Defies Pope Leo XIV
The Vatican has formally declared the Society of St Pius X (SSPX) to be in schism with the Roman Catholic Church after the traditionalist fraternity consecrated four bishops without papal approval, extending excommunication beyond the six bishops directly involved to SSPX clergy and lay faithful who formally adhere to the group. The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith said the 1 July ceremony in Écône, Switzerland, was ‘an act of a schismati…
Vatican excommunicates breakaway group in biggest Catholic schism in 156 years
Verbania, Italy • The Vatican on Thursday excommunicated the clergy of a breakaway conservative faction of the Catholic Church, as well as any worshippers who do not leave the group. The expulsion came a day after the faction’s leaders defied a personal plea from Pope Leo XIV and consecrated four new bishops without his permission.
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