(OSV News) -- The traditionalist Society of St. Pius X said it would proceed with the consecration of new bishops this summer, a move without a papal mandate that could lead to an automatic excommunication.
In a statement published Feb. 2, the society, commonly known by its acronym SSPX, said that its superior general, Father Davide Pagliarani, "publicly announced his decision to entrust the bishops of the Society with the task of proceeding with new episcopal consecrations."
The consecrations are scheduled for July 1, the society said.
According to the statement, the decision was made following a breakdown in recent communication with the Holy See. In August, Father Pagliarani, who has served as the society's superior general since 2018, requested an audience with Pope Leo XIV to discuss the society's future and the need for new bishops.
However, it continued, the superior general reported that a response received from the Vatican "in recent days" failed to address their requests therefore "in harmony with the unanimous advice of his Council," Father Pagliarani "judges that the objective state of grave necessity in which souls find themselves requires such a decision," the statement read, explaining the green light for episcopal consecrations.
The statement concluded with excerpts from a message written by Father Pagliarani marking the 50th anniversary of the 1974 declaration made by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, founder of the SSPX.
"The Society (of St. Pius X) is not primarily seeking its own survival. It primarily seeks the good of the Universal Church and, for this reason, the society is, par excellence, a work of the Church, which, with unique freedom and strength, responds adequately to the specific needs of an unprecedentedly tragic era," it read.
Father Pagliarini's decision to justify episcopal ordinations due to "the objective state of grave necessity" echoed similar justifications used by Archbishop Lefebvre to justify the ordination of four men as bishops in 1988.
A canonical study conducted by the SSPX on its founder's actions claimed that the Code of Canon Law justified such actions when "a bishop is at least subjectively convinced that it is a question of a state of necessity detrimental to souls."
However, in his apostolic letter "Ecclesia Dei" ("The Church of God"), St. John Paul II classified the consecrations as "a schismatic act" and a "disobedience to the Roman Pontiff."
Consequently, the late pontiff excommunicated Archbishop Lefebvre and the four priests ordained bishops, thus ruling that no objective necessity justified defying papal authority.
St. John Paul's apostolic letter however also established Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei," with the "task of collaborating with the bishops, with the Departments of the Roman Curia and with the circles concerned, for the purpose of facilitating full ecclesial communion of priests, seminarians, religious communities or individuals" who were associated with SSPX and "who may wish to remain united to the Successor Peter in the Catholic Church."
For decades, the Vatican and leaders of the Society of St. Pius X had been seeking a way to fully reintegrate its members back into the life of the Catholic Church.
Talks between the Vatican and the society began under St. John Paul and continued throughout the papacies of Popes Benedict XVI and Francis.
Pope Benedict lifted the excommunications in 2009, opening the way for more regular talks.
During the 2015-2016 Year of Mercy, Pope Francis made special provisions to validate the absolution offered by SSPX priests through the sacrament of confession. After the Holy Year ended, the pope extended that provision "lest anyone ever be deprived of the sacramental sign of reconciliation through the church's pardon."
In April 2017, the pope continued pursuing initiatives aimed at a reconciliation with the SSPX by allowing their bishops to ensure the validity of marriages celebrated in the traditionalist communities.
In 2019, Pope Francis suppressed the "Ecclesia Dei" commission and moved its responsibilities to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.
The traditionalist society said that "in the coming days," Father Pagliarani "will provide further explanations regarding the present situation and his decision."
