The Vatican has declared that the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) is in a state of schism after four bishops were ordained without the approval of Pope Leo XIV.
As a result, SSPX bishops Alfonso de Galarreta of Spain and Bernard Fellay of Switzerland have been automatically excommunicated for a second time.
The two bishops were first excommunicated in 1988 after being consecrated without papal approval by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the founder of the SSPX. Their excommunications were lifted by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009 in an effort to improve relations with the group.
However, the Vatican says the latest unauthorized ordinations have again placed the bishops outside full communion with the Catholic Church.
The SSPX was founded in 1970 and has long disagreed with some reforms introduced by the Second Vatican Council, leading to decades of tension with the Vatican.
- EWTN News