The Vatican reported on July 2 the excommunication of the four new bishops of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Piusknown as Lefebvrians.
Pope Leo XIV faces this episode firmly in his intention to keep the Catholic Church unitedas the cardinals ask, in the face of the Lefebvrian schism, consummated live on social networks.
The excommunication includes the two consecrators, the Spanish Alfonso de Galarreta and the Swiss Bernard Fellay, “for having committed an act of a schismatic nature through the episcopal consecration of four priests, without papal mandate“.
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith explains that Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta, who celebrated the ordinationsand the new bishops Pascal Schreiber, Michael Goldade, Michel Poinsinet de Sivry and Marc Hanappier “have incurred ipso facto in excommunication latae sententiae (immediate), reserved for the Apostolic See”.
In addition, Bishop Bernard Fellay will also be excommunicated, for having directly participated in the liturgical celebration as consecrator and having thus publicly adhered to the schismatic act.
The prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, Argentine Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, warns the rest of the clerics and lay faithful that, if they join the schism of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius excommunication penalty of full right”.
The consecrations of the four new bishops were celebrated in Switzerland before nearly 15 thousand peoplebetween faithful and curious, in a ceremony broadcast on social networks in several languages.
With this act, the Fraternity He ignored the requests of Pope Leo XIVwho had urged them to back down under the warning of incurring excommunication.
The Lefebvrians emerged in 1970 in Switzerland, promoted by the French archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, as a reaction to the reforms introduced by the Second Vatican Council, which they considered a break with doctrinal and liturgical tradition.
John Paul II excommunicated its founder and four bishops he ordained in 1988 without his approval, while Benedict XVI lifted the excommunication in 2009, although the fight with the Church continued.
The Lefebvrians have 733 priests, 250 nuns, 145 religious men and 264 seminarians worldwide. In total, the congregation exceeds 1,500 consecrated members and about 500 thousand faithfuland has a presence in more than 60 countries.