Fr Davide Pagliarani

SSPX superior: consecrations ‘even more necessary in 2026’ The Society of St Pius X has defended its decision to proceed with episcopal consecrations this summer, with its Superior General warning that any declaration of excommunication or schism against the Society “would be objectively unjust”. In a letter addressed to SSPX priests ahead of the consecrations due to take place at Écône on 1 July, Fr Davide Pagliarani said the “state of necessity” invoked by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988 was “even more evident in 2026”. “While the state of necessity could already be invoked in 1988, this state of necessity is, unfortunately, even more evident in 2026,” he wrote. The text, dated 7 March and released publicly by the Society on 21 May, was accompanied by an introduction from the SSPX Secretary General, Fr Foucauld le Roux, who said the purpose of publishing the letter was to help clergy and faithful prepare spiritually for the ceremony. “This text does not revisit the question of the consecrations themselves, but is devoted to recalling the spirit in which they must be prepared for and lived,” Fr le Roux wrote. The publication of the letter comes four months after the SSPX announced that bishops would again be consecrated at its seminary in Switzerland, the site of Archbishop Lefebvre’s consecrations in June 1988. Those consecrations, carried out without papal mandate, led Rome to declare that Archbishop Lefebvre, Bishop Antonio de Castro Mayer and the four newly consecrated bishops had incurred automatic excommunication. Although the excommunications of the surviving bishops were lifted by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009, the Society remains canonically irregular and without official status in the Church. In his latest letter, Fr Pagliarani repeatedly insisted that the SSPX was acting out of fidelity to the Catholic Church rather than separation from it. “The Society is nothing more than a means of remaining faithful to the Church,” he wrote. “If we are taking exceptional measures today to preserve the faith, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and the priesthood, it is because we want the whole Catholic Church – and every soul without distinction – to be able to benefit freely from them one day. All this belongs to the Church, and we are only its guardians.” Fr Pagliarani also directly addressed the prospect of fresh sanctions from Rome, stating that the Society neither desired nor celebrated such a development. “If we come to be declared excommunicated and schismatic, this would not mean that we seek such a sanction or rejoice in it, for it would be objectively unjust,” he wrote. Furthermore, Fr Pagliarani wrote: “It is one thing to rejoice in receiving a new humiliation to offer to God, and it is quite another to rejoice in an evil and an objective injustice that causes scandal to the whole Church.” The SSPX superior urged members to avoid bitterness and resentment during the controversy surrounding the consecrations, warning against triumphalism and hostility towards Church authorities. “We must always show kindness,” he wrote. “When there is no understanding on the other side, when there is not even a willingness to listen to what we have to say and understand our reasons, it is very easy – humanly speaking – to fall into resentment.” He added that members should remain “firm and gentle at the same time”, “especially towards the hierarchy of the Catholic Church”. The letter contains repeated references to charity and suffering, including a lengthy citation from St John’s Gospel. “It is with this same charity that, now more than ever, we must love souls and Holy Mother Church, even if its official representatives were to declare us excommunicated and schismatic once again,” Fr Pagliarani wrote, before quoting John 16:1-4: “They will put you out of the synagogues: yea, the hour cometh, that whosoever killeth you, will think that he doth a service to God.” Fr Pagliarani also rejected accusations that the SSPX had become a “parallel Church”, arguing instead that the Society existed to safeguard Catholic tradition until it could once again flourish throughout the wider Church. “We ask nothing for ourselves,” he wrote. “Our only reward will be to see one day Holy Mother Church reclaim her Traditions.” The Superior General described the debate surrounding the consecrations as “providential”, saying the issue had provoked concern throughout the Catholic Church. “The announcement on 2 February left no one in the Catholic Church indifferent,” he wrote. “Almost everyone feels concern and the need to express their approval or disapproval.” He added: “Sometimes words, opinions, and simple statements are no longer enough. They must be accompanied by meaningful actions that Divine Providence can use to shake consciences – and even the Church herself.” Fr Pagliarani concluded his letter by urging members and faithful to prepare for the consecrations through prayer and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. “It is with these sentiments and this charity that we must prepare for the ceremony on 1 July,” he wrote, “and strive to prepare all the faithful under our care.” The tensions between the Vatican and the SSPX stem from the Second Vatican Council. Relations improved significantly during the pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI, who lifted the excommunications of the SSPX bishops and expanded permission for the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass through Summorum Pontificum in 2007. Under Pope Francis, however, tensions between Rome and traditionalist groups deepened following the publication of Traditionis Custodes in 2021, which imposed major restrictions on the old rite of Mass. Despite those disputes, Pope Francis granted SSPX priests faculties to hear confessions during the Jubilee Year of Mercy before extending them indefinitely, while also allowing local bishops to delegate SSPX priests to witness marriages. Image credit: SSPX