Updated
Updated · spectator.com · Jun 12
SSPX Plans 4 Bishop Ordinations on July 1, Risking Excommunication
Updated
Updated · spectator.com · Jun 12

SSPX Plans 4 Bishop Ordinations on July 1, Risking Excommunication

3 articles · Updated · spectator.com · Jun 12

Summary

  • Four bishop candidates—one American, one Swiss and two Frenchmen—have been named by the Society of Saint Pius X ahead of planned July 1 consecrations in Écône, Switzerland.
  • The traditionalist priestly society says it needs its own bishops to keep ordaining priests trained exclusively in pre-Vatican II doctrine and liturgy, arguing the Church is in a grave crisis.
  • Cardinal Fernandez has warned the move could trigger excommunication after SSPX said it sought Pope Leo’s approval and an audience but received no response.
  • The confrontation reprises 1988, when founder Marcel Lefebvre consecrated four bishops without papal approval; those excommunications were later lifted by Benedict XVI.

Insights

Is the SSPX's defiance a last stand for tradition or the final step toward creating a separate church?
With excommunication looming, why does the Vatican take a hard line with traditionalists while tolerating dissent elsewhere?