Catholics for Catholics Issues Statement on SSPX Excommunication

Articles | July 2, 2026 | by Catholics for Catholics

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On Wednesday, July 1, the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) proceeded with planned consecrations of four new bishops expressly against the direct appeal of Pope Leo XIV. Subsequently, the Vatican announced that all SSPX priests are now “in schism and must therefore be considered schismatics” along with laypeople “who formally adhere to the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X are to be considered schismatics and excommunicated.” Going forward, confessions and marriages performed by SSPX priests will be considered invalid.

NEW: The Vatican has published the process for “reconciliation” of priests & lay faithful from the SSPX —-

Both priests & lay must sign a Profession of Faith and Declaration of Adherence

Priests must be “willing to accept the Second Vatican Council and the legitimacy of the… pic.twitter.com/DqvEGFHg6a

— Michael Haynes 🇻🇦 (@MLJHaynes) July 2, 2026

Dr. Taylor Marshall, who leading up to the consecrations reiterated his historical friendship toward and advocacy for the SSPX but considered the planned consecrations to be imprudent, aired an episode directly addressing the consecrations which were carried out after Pope Leo XIV’s final plea to the society.

On June 29, two days before the consecrations took place, the Holy Father penned a letter to the Superior General Of The Priestly Fraternity Of Saint Pius X with a plea for them to “desist” from the “intended act” and to “please turn back!”

Marshall noted that Pope Leo XIV began with a compliment to the SSPX, referencing “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 the society. Nevertheless, the Holy Father pleaded with them to avoid “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.”

In Marshall’s view, July 1 was a sad day, and after watching the consecrations and receiving a translation of the events, he pointed out three serious concerns with the consecrations, what he referred to as “non-truths:”

• Dissimulation about the Papal Mandate: in the proper rite to consecrate new bishops, you must read a papal mandate. In place of the papal mandate, which the SSPX did not have, they read a letter essentially expressing justification of the act, but it was presented on a parchment scroll with a ribbon which looked like a papal mandate typically would. This presentation was deceitful, according to Marshall. “It is not traditional to make up your own liturgy or to write your own mandate,” he said, referencing the traditional nature of the SSPX. “I’m sympathetic with you, SSPX. You have seen me on my knees at the altar rail at your chapels before, but I cannot wrap my head around this.”
• False Claim of Auxiliary Bishops: Although the SSPX claims they consecrated the four men as “auxiliary bishops,” Dr. Marshall says that in practice, the authorities they claim to have are effectively equivalent to cardinals, not the true definition of an auxiliary bishop. “What they’re claiming is not in canon law unless they’re cardinals, but they don’t claim to be that. And so I think it would have been just much better to avoid the word auxiliary bishops, but they put it in there that these four men are now auxiliary bishops. That is not true, Society,” Marshall said. “You didn’t have a mandate. You wrote your own mandate. And then in the mandate, you claim that these men are auxiliary bishops, but they are not auxiliary bishops. So, it’s not true.”
• False Oath of Obedience to Pope Leo XIV: The consecrations included an oath to the Holy See, which Dr. Marshall argued is inconsistent with their very actions against Pope Leo XIV’s warning.

Marshall did mention that there are specific citations of canon law that the SSPX could use to appeal to Rome to lift the excommunication penalty, and again emphasized his sympathy to the SSPX, bemoaning the “double standard” and “unfair distribution of justice” that he believes has been applied towards the society as opposed to other situations like priests that are exceedingly lenient toward the LGBT agenda, scandals involving sexually immoral clergy, and more.

John Yep, President of Catholics for Catholics, issued this statement regarding the SSPX’s consecration of new bishops without papal mandate and their subsequent excommunication:

Catholics for Catholics understands the crisis within the Church. On one hand, the Vatican cedes the power of naming bishops to the Chinese Communist Party, but on the other hand, excommunicates the SSPX for naming their own Bishops… It’s sad to witness this confusion and to acknowledge that both actions have wounded the Bride of Christ. While we live in a tragic paradox as a Church, we must never leave the barque of Peter through direct disobedience to the Holy Father which is what the Society of St. Pius the X has unfortunately done with their recent episcopal consecration…

There are many ways to fall into the sin of pride for which we are all guilty of. There are “Gay Pride” Masses which cause great scandal but an episcopal consecration that directly disobeys the Holy Father is also a “Pride Mass” of sorts.

It goes without saying that we live in unique times in the Church. No one is saying we should be silent in front of the scandals that abound in our hierarchy. Ironically, the Vatican official who delivered the communique on excommunication to the bishops and priests of the SSPX, Cardinal Fernandez, has also been a great scandal for the Church for his own borderline pornographic books like Heal Me With Your Mouth – The Art of Kissing (Sáname con tu boca) that he published a few years back. 

However, we must exercise the highest level of prudence and humility when dealing with the administration of the Sacraments which we need for our very salvation. Obedience is the guarantee that protects the validity and licit nature of these Sacraments. Let us double our prayers for our Holy Mother Church so that Christ’s own prayer, “Ut Unum Sint” – “That they may be one” John 17 – will come to pass. Our hearts go out to the many good members that make up the SSPX and we pray for them to return to full Communion with Rome.”

God Bless and Fight On!