It's Official: Pope Repeals Excommunications of SSPX Bishops!

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DEO GRATIAS!!! Here’s the reply of the FSSP:

Press release of the FSSP following upon the Decree of the Congregation for Bishops

Fribourg (Switzerland), Saturday, January 24th, 2009 – www.fssp.org

The Congregation for Bishops, having made public today the decree lifting the excommunication declared in 1988 regarding the four bishops ordained without pontifical mandate by Archbishop Lefebvre, The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter wishes to express its joy at the news of this step forward towards unity.

Since its foundation, the Fraternity of Saint Peter has not ceased to witness to its double attachment to the Seat of Peter and to the Tradition of the Church, praying constantly that a reconciliation could be achieved between the Holy See and the Society of Saint Pius X.

Today the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter unites itself completely to the hope of the Holy See, desiring “that this step be followed by the prompt accomplishment of full communion with the Church of the entire Fraternity of Saint Pius X, thus testifying true fidelity and true recognition of the Magisterium and of the authority of the Pope with the proof of visible unity”. (Decree of the Congregation for Bishops, 21 January 2009)

The Fraternity of Saint Peter would like to express its profound gratitude to the Sovereign Pontiff. It sees in this magnanimous gesture a call to unity for all Catholics in order to spread in the world, faced with all the contradictions of our day, the Reign of Christ.

Once more DEO GRATIAS!!! :highprayer:
 
Milliardo said:
Well, this is good news and all, but it still remains: what is the response of the SSPX (sorry, I have no time to read back 11 pages; I have to go to church in 10 minutes’ time)? That is the crucial part. As far as I can remember, Rome has tried to court the SSPX several times, and each time the society has given the same answer: thanks, but no thanks.
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Heres Bishop Fellays letter on the subject:

http://www.dici.org/dl/fichiers/Letter_Sup_Gen.pdf
 
white_sheep said:
Yes, there was. It’s in the article I posted. On August 15, 1988 there was going to be a priest of the SSPX ordained as his successor.
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What that item says is (emphases mine)
… It is ***said ***that Lefebvre was promised that the Pope would appoint a bishop from among the members of the SSPX, chosen according to the normal procedures, and that episcopal ordination would take place on 15 August.
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An alleged “promise” is not at all the same as a “written guarantee” is it? And again, keep in mind that I am not a rad-trad or a diehard SSPX-er.
 
I think there is a bigger story here in the unilateral capitualtion of Rome to the SPPX.

You see it hinted at in the reply from the SPPX.

The church in the West is in near collapse. That this comes after a majority oif American Catholics voted for a totally pro-choice candidate, after many priests and congregations balked at supporting a pro-traditonal marriage initiative in Calif. - where the official site of one of the diocese assured readers that no diocesan money was used to promote Proposition 8, when half the Catholic adoption agencies in the UK immediately went along with that countires insistence of adopting kids to gay couples. WEith the bishops there basically doing nothing about this.

Not to mention the coming of FOCA in the US. I guess that, as in England, most Catholic agencies/hopitals will reamin open and start allowing abortions to be performed.

Perhaps Rome sees this latter happeneing. Knows it can’t do anything or, if it tried, it would make formal the defacto large American schism.

Again, a move of desperation IMO. And probably too little too late.
 
Rogerteder said:
Well, I was wrong. God Bless the Holy Father, and I hope this leads to a full reconciliation of the Society of St. Pius X, and Holy Mother Church. I didnt think the Holy father would lift the excommunications, but I am glad he did (seriously). Question: Are the Bishops still alive?
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Yes the four bishops absolved are still alive.
 
rien said:
I think there is a bigger story here in the unilateral capitualtion of Rome to the SPPX.

You see it hinted at in the reply from the SPPX.

The church in the West is in near collapse. That this comes after a majority oif American Catholics voted for a totally pro-choice candidate, after many priests and congregations balked at supporting a pro-traditonal marriage initiative in Calif. - where the official site of one of the diocese assured readers that no diocesan money was used to promote Proposition 8, when half the Catholic adoption agencies in the UK immediately went along with that countires insistence of adopting kids to gay couples. WEith the bishops there basically doing nothing about this.

Not to mention the coming of FOCA in the US. I guess that, as in England, most Catholic agencies/hopitals will reamin open and start allowing abortions to be performed.

Perhaps Rome sees this latter happeneing. Knows it can’t do anything or, if it tried, it would make formal the defacto large American schism.

Again, a move of desperation IMO. And probably too little too late.
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I, for one, see absolutely nothing of the kind in Mgr Fellay’s letter. It is certainly not political.

And can you please explain what your political agenda has to do with this thread?
 
Why bother accusing me of being curt and overly dramatic when you just said he had paranoid delusions? Ooops, was that histrionic enough?
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When did I say he had “paranoid delusions”???🤷

When you calm down about a 1000 degrees, then I will speak to you. Meanwhile I will have no part in your shrill, attention-seeking attempts.
 
Christus_Rex said:
But you get a better glimpse of it by reading post about the SSPX from the past. Today, most of the SSPX haters are in a state of despair and don’t have the energy to say much.
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Good. Then do you now understand that some posters like me consider this wonderful news and encourage all who are interested to attend the SSPX chapels but were hesitant to enjoy a visit to Mass there. In other words, like many others, I have never hated the SSPX despite accusations that suggested I did.
 
pnewton said:
Good. Then do you now understand that some posters like me consider this wonderful news and encourage all who are interested to attend the SSPX chapels but were hesitant to enjoy a visit to Mass there. In other words, like many others, I have never hated the SSPX despite accusations that suggested I did.
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It sounds like you took my statement personally, as if it was directed to you. Actually, I’ve been impressed with your replies in this thread.
 
tuviskazinai said:
I find serious fault with this line of reasoning. First of all, relegating the Jews to the category of “such people” blatantly disregards their spiritual closeness to God, as taught most recently and definitively (but not exclusively) in Nostra Aetate. But even more importantly, it blatantly disregards their intrinsic human dignity. I don’t think we can say of any non-Christian that just because he has chosen not to enter our Church and recite our Creed, he is an “infidel” who is any less worthy of respect and dignity than we are.
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Go and look up the definition if infidel then.
tuviskazinai said:
There are good and bad ways to “chase after” human respect, and I daresay that most of these ways do not damn people to Hell. But you use the term “human respect” disparagingly. Why?
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Because you cannot serve both God and the world.
tuviskazinai said:
I can accept that the reconciliation with the SSPX is worth the risk of ruffling feathers – as long as the Pope goes on to clarify that the Church does not endorse Williamson’s vicious comments. I believe that he may, because after all, he listened to the Jewish community’s protests of the Tridentine rite, and responded by changing “for the conversion of the Jews” to “for the Jewish people.” Right? So ecumenism and inter-religious sensitivity are not just for dissident Catholics!
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Risk of ruffling feathers should not come into it, this is why human respect is bad you see, it is simply a question of justice, is it just to remove the excommunications or not that is the only thing that should come into consideration, not whether some people will disagree or be upset etc.
tuviskazinai said:
But my last response to your post is…speaking of dissident Catholics…the SSPX was never punished “for the sins of infidels.” They were punished because they flagrantly disobeyed the Pope’s own orders. I am guessing that if a bishop tried to ordain a woman or a married priest, you would be outraged. But when Lefebvre tried to ordain his own dissident priests who said that the Vatican is being run by the Antichrist, you show sympathy for them? I really don’t understand that…?

Peace,
+AMDG+
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Yes but if the Pope decided not to lift the excommunications for the sole reason that he did not want to ruffle the feathers of certain infidels then they would in effect remain excommunicated because of the protests of the enemies of the Church, the same people who spread such vile lies like Pope Pius XII is responsible for the death of Jews in the holocaust or that Christ was just a man and a blasphemer at that.
 
narrowpath said:
Several posters have said that one should not go to an SSPX priest for confession, as the rules about SSPX concerning the laity have not yet changed. Can one reieve other sacraments, like the Eucharist at SSPX chapels?
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They members of the SSPX are still suspended, the situation of the SSPX priests and the sacraments they offer has not changed. All that has changed is that the four Bishops are no longer excommunicated.

You might find this helpful:

wdtprs.com/blog/2009/01/misconceptions-what-the-lifting-of-the-sspx-excoms-means-for-people/
 
Leonius said:
All that has changed is that the four Bishops are no longer excommunicated.
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That in itself is a major, major accomplishment. At least it takes a lot of the bullets away from the Society attackers.

Hope it doesn’t take another 20 years for the removal of all suspensions.
 
Question with the repeal of the excommunications of these bishops what does this mean? Do they remain bishops ? If so how so ? What are their Sees ? According to the church councils a bishop must have a dioceses to be a bishop. even if it is only a titular dioceses.

And what about the actions that these men did as bishops when they were not in communion with the Holy See ? Are they valid?
For example one of these men concecrated another man as bishop, is this ordination valid ? If this is the case what about Bishop Cox who in turned ordained Sinaed O’Connor a priest.

I think as traditionalist we should return to the old tradition of the people of the diocese giving assent to a person becoming bishop.

Just wondering,

Br Mark, OSB
 
ProVobis said:
That in itself is a major, major accomplishment. At least it takes a lot of the bullets away from the Society attackers.

Hope it doesn’t take another 20 years for the removal of all suspensions.
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Yes it is wonderful news believe me I am very happy about it, I did not mean that in a negative way merely pointing it out for clarity.
 
Rogerteder said:
Well, I was wrong. God Bless the Holy Father, and I hope this leads to a full reconciliation of the Society of St. Pius X, and Holy Mother Church. I didnt think the Holy father would lift the excommunications, but I am glad he did (seriously). Question: Are the Bishops still alive?
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Excomunications cannot be lifted post mortem… heck they don’t even exist post mortem. This process can educate you. I must say that following this matter opens the door into a very interesting way that the Church works. I have no doubt that our great Pope would not have lifted these if there were not some sort of “normalization” plans in discussion. I would think that realatively speaking they will be reinstated rather quickly, because contrary to what spin is mostly throw around here I believe they want to be in communion with Rome.
 
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