Pope Leo pleads with SSPX not to proceed with episcopal consecrations
June 30, 2026
Pope Leo XIV pleaded with the Society of Saint Pius X not to proceed with its planned consecration of four bishops without a pontifical mandate.
In a letter dated June 29 and released today—a day before the scheduled ordinations—Pope Leo told the Society’s superior general that “with a paternal heart, and aware of the responsibility entrusted to me by the Lord as the Successor of the Apostle Peter, I address you and, through you, the bishops, priests, seminarians and faithful connected to the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X.”
“The Church recognizes the devotion to liturgical life, commitment to priestly formation, apostolic zeal and desire for fidelity to Tradition that characterize many people and communities connected to your Fraternity,” Pope Leo continued. “This has motivated the attentive and generous attitude that my Predecessors have consistently shown to you.”
“In this spirit, and filled with Christian affection, I plead with you and ask you with all my heart: please turn back!” the Pope added. “I urge you to consider carefully the spiritual good of the faithful, because the schismatic act you are about to undertake would deprive them of the licit and, in some cases, even valid reception of the Sacraments, which they love and seek for their sanctification.”
The Pontiff concluded:
The Church is open to a path of dialogue and understanding that the Holy Spirit can make possible and fruitful. I pray for you, because to tear the seamless garment of Christ is a sin of extreme gravity.
May the Lord enlighten your consciences and awaken your hearts. With a sorrowful yet hopeful heart, I feel it is my duty, through the authority received from Christ, to ask you to desist from your intended act. I entrust these intentions to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Mother of Good Counsel.
Pope Leo’s letter follows a Vatican warning of excommunication if the consecrations proceed. Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, issued the warning on May 13.
The Society was founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (1905-1991). Archbishop Lefebvre’s ordination of four bishops in 1988 without a pontifical mandate led to the automatic excommunications of the prelate and the four bishops (Canon 1387). In 2009, the Congregation for Bishops issued a decree remitting the excommunications, a decision that Pope Benedict XVI explained in a subsequent letter.
Two of the four bishops ordained in 1988—Bishop Bernard Fellay and Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta—are still alive. Bishop Bernard Tissier de Mallerais died in 2024; Bishop Richard Williamson, expelled from the Society in 2012, died last year. Following his expulsion, Bishop Williams ordained additional bishops without a pontifical mandate; the SSPX issued a statement in 2015 denouncing the first of these episcopal consecrations.
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