Four new SSPX bishops were consecrated July 1 in Écône without papal mandate, directly defying Pope Leo XIV and exposing the six bishops involved to automatic excommunication under canon law.
17,000 faithful from nearly 70 countries attended the rite, led by Alfonso de Galarreta and Bernard Fellay, the two surviving bishops from the society’s illicit 1988 consecrations at the same Swiss site.
Father Davide Pagliarani justified the move as a "state of necessity" and accused post-Vatican II Church authorities of betraying tradition, a defense Rome has repeatedly rejected.
The Vatican has not yet responded, but a formal schism declaration is now in play; if issued, it could deepen the isolation of the SSPX’s roughly 600,000 members and prompt review of limited faculties granted under Pope Francis.
By defying the Pope to 'save' Catholicism, has this group created a new church?
After this new schism, can the rebel Catholic group ever truly reconcile with Rome?
Schism at Écône: The 2026 SSPX Bishop Consecrations and the Deepening Crisis of Catholic Unity
Overview
On July 1, 2026, the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) carried out the unauthorized consecration of four bishops at its Écône seminary, directly challenging Pope Leo XIV and the Vatican. Despite repeated warnings and a final public appeal from the Pope, the SSPX leadership proceeded, openly defying Church authority and established canonical norms. As a result, those involved in the consecrations automatically incurred excommunication, marking a serious breach in Church unity. This act highlights the SSPX's ongoing conflict with the Holy See and deepens the division within the Catholic Church.