Vatican sanctions deepen SSPX rift ahead of Pope Leo’s France visit
A Vatican decree followed the Society of Saint Pius X’s ordination of four bishops without the pope’s consent. The group is appealing the sanctions as Leo XIV prepares to visit Lourdes.
The Vatican’s July excommunications have sharpened a long-running dispute with the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), days before Pope Leo XIV’s visit to France, including a stop at Lourdes. The sanctions followed the group’s ordination of four bishops without the pope’s consent.
The decree targets the SSPX’s six bishops and says lay members who formally adhere to the group are also to be considered schismatic and excommunicated. The scope of that provision among lay members is not specified in the material.
The bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes has barred the SSPX from organising its annual October pilgrimage at the sanctuary. The restriction concerns organising the event; it does not establish that individual members are barred from attending Lourdes.
Founded in 1970 in opposition to reforms of the Second Vatican Council, the SSPX rejects changes to the Mass and has remained at odds with the Vatican. The dispute echoes earlier sanctions: John Paul II excommunicated SSPX bishops in 1988, and Benedict XVI reversed that decision in 2009. Pope Francis later allowed SSPX priests to celebrate some marriages under conditions.
The society is appealing the latest sanctions and says it has written to Leo without bitterness or defiance. It plans to mark his visit with prayer, while its representatives have said they hope he will address euthanasia and abortion in France.
