(LifeSiteNews) — The General House of the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X announced Monday that it plans to proceed with new episcopal consecrations later this year, citing what it described as an “objective state of grave necessity” for the continuation of its sacramental ministry.
In a press release dated February 2, Superior General Father Davide Pagliarani said the SSPX’s bishops have been tasked with carrying out the consecrations on July 1. The announcement was made at the Society’s International Seminary of Saint-Curé-d’Ars in Flavigny-sur-Ozerain, France, at the ceremony in which new seminarians receive the cassock.
No indications were given as to which priests would be consecrated, or how many there would be.
The statement explains that Pagliarani had sought an audience with the Holy See last August to present what he called the Society’s “current situation” and the need to ensure the continuation of its episcopal ministry. The release noted that the Society’s bishops have traveled globally for nearly four decades to administer the sacraments, particularly Holy Orders and Confirmation, to faithful attached to traditional Catholic practice.
After what the statement described as months of prayer and consultation, Pagliarani said he recently received a letter from the Holy See that “does not in any way respond to our requests.” Acting, he said, in agreement with the Society’s council, he concluded that the circumstances warranted proceeding with consecrations.
The announcement included extended quotations from Pagliarani’s November 21, 2024, address marking the 50th anniversary of a declaration by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the SSPX. In that address, Pagliarani said the Society seeks to serve the “good of the Universal Church” through adherence to what it calls the Church’s “unchanging Tradition,” and that its work of forming priests is guided by the “timeless Magisterium.”
Founded in 1970, the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X has operated without canonical status since its suppression in 1975. In 1988, following a breakdown of negotiations, Lefebvre consecrated four bishops without a mandate from the Vatican. In response, the Vatican declared that an automatic excommunication had been incurred by Lefebvre, his co-consecrator Bishop Antonio de Castro Mayer of the Diocese of Campos, Brazil, and the four new bishops.
The SSPX disputed the validity of this declaration, claiming that circumstances meant that no excommunication had been incurred, and the status of the SSPX continued to be debated. In 2009, the Vatican declared that it had lifted the excommunications on the four surviving bishops. Since that time, two of the bishops (Bernard Tissier de Mallerais and Richard Williamson) have died.
The SSPX operates seminaries, schools, and chapels worldwide, using liturgical forms and theology from before the Second Vatican Council. Its leadership has periodically engaged in dialogue with the Holy See over doctrinal and canonical issues, with intermittent periods of formal talks.
Pagliarani said further explanations regarding the decision and the Society’s current position would be provided in the coming days. The press release closed with a Marian blessing, dated from the Society’s headquarters in Menzingen, Switzerland.
As of Monday, the SSPX has not named candidates for the proposed consecrations or specified where the July 1 ceremonies will take place, leaving both details and any formal response from the Vatican pending.
