Following the unauthorized episcopal consecrations carried out by the ultra-conservative Society of St Pius X, the Vatican has officially confirmed the excommunication of the six individuals involved.
The Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith announced that the four newly consecrated bishops of the traditionalist group, as well as two other bishops will be expelled from the Church. As a result, the clergymen lose all their ecclesiastical offices and honours.
By carrying out the consecration against the express will of Pope Leo XIV, they had committed an "act of a schismatic nature," according to the published Vatican decree.
This term refers to an act intended to cause a schism within the Catholic Church. The powerful Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith warned clergy and laity within the community against joining the schism.
Swiss, American and two French nationals affected
Those specifically affected by the excommunication are the Spanish bishop Alfonso de Galarreta, who performed the consecration, and the four new bishops: Pascal Schreiber from Switzerland, Michael Goldade from the United States, and Michel Poinsinet de Sivry and Marc Hanappier from France. Bishop Bernard Fellay from Switzerland is also affected due to his involvement.
The Society of St Pius X had consecrated new bishops on Wednesday in Écône, Switzerland, despite explicit warnings from the Vatican. The Vatican had already made it clear weeks earlier that such a move without the pope's consent would result in automatic excommunication.
Escalation in a long-standing dispute
This latest development has seen a conflict that has been smouldering for decades escalate.
The community was founded in 1970 by the French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and rejects key reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). This council fundamentally altered relations with other Christians, Jews and other religions, as well as with the laity, and permitted Mass to be celebrated in local languages rather than in Latin.
As early as 1988, Lefebvre had consecrated four bishops against the will of pope John Paul II. He and the newly consecrated bishops were subsequently excommunicated.
However, pope Benedict XVI lifted this severe ecclesiastical penalty in 2009 as a gesture of reconciliation.
The German pope's decision sparked worldwide criticism because the four bishops consecrated at that time included the British Holocaust denier Richard Williamson.
