Willing Shepherds - Third Order of Penance of St. Dominic

[Padres1969]

Does anyone know anything about this traditionalist group out of Lawrence, Massachusetts, the Willing Shepherds - Third Order of Penance of St. Dominic? I’ve been trying to figure out who they are and what larger group, if any, they’re associated with be it SSPX, SSPV or another I’m unfamiliar with. They appear to be sedevacantists, or at the very least they come across that way so I’m suspecting they aren’t presently associated with the SSPX, but I’m not ruling it out as one of the priests they’ve been associated with Andrés Morello who if I’m understanding it is or was involved with SSPX at some point.

You may ask what an Episcopalian from California’s interest would be in a so-called Catholic traditionalist group in Massachusetts, and it is primarily personally. My last remaining Grandmother is Catholic and has lived most of her life in the Merrimack Valley. Her home parish for decades was Sacred Heart Parish in Lawrence (my mom was baptized there, went to school there, etc…), The Archdiocese of Boston sold the parish out from under the congregation in 2004 during a consolidation.

These Willing Shepherds purchased/leased the old Gothic Revival church and rectory in 2007, converted the church to the old liturgical east orientation, began using it regularly again, but were also passing themselves off as Catholic (and as I understand it they still do). As a result, I’m interested in who they are and who they’re associated with.

(Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)

 

[ctb95]

I have heard of them. They are a sedevacantist group.

 

[jaimeleglise]

I live in Mass and I was wondering the same thing. Last year I was looking for a 3rd order to join and I came across their website. From what I can tell, they are not in union with the church. What really bothered me is that they don’t allow people to join who attend the Ordinary Form of the Mass instead of the Latin Mass. We are all Catholic and Latin Masses are hard to come by.
God bless you. Thanks for caring.

 

[Padres1969]

I have heard of them. They are a sedevacantist group.

I suspected as much based on their discussion of sedevacantism on their website. But do you know if they’re associated with any larger group or if they’re independent actors so to speak?

 

[PapyrusDouay]

I’m from not too far from there. A few years ago the Archdiocese issued a warning letter about them to Catholic parishes in the area.

They claim to have been supported by Robert McKenna, a former Dominican priest who was illicitly consecrated bishop. Otherwise they don’t seem to be affiliated with any groups like SSPV.

Edit:
here is an article from 2007 about them in a small local newspaper: valleypatriot.com/VP020607sacredheart.html

 

[Padres1969]

I’m from not too far from there. A few years ago the Archdiocese issued a warning letter about them to Catholic parishes in the area.

They claim to have been supported by Robert McKenna, a former Dominican priest who was illicitly consecrated bishop. Otherwise they don’t seem to be affiliated with any groups like SSPV.

Edit:
here is an article from 2007 about them in a small local newspaper: valleypatriot.com/VP020607sacredheart.html

Interesting. So would your guess be that they’re largely independent sedevacantists?

 

[PapyrusDouay]

Interesting. So would your guess be that they’re largely independent sedevacantists?

Yes, that’s my guess. If you look up that bishop who supported them and accepted them as “third order dominicans”, you can see his affiliations and connections to other sedevacantists / sedeprivationist bishops and organizations, and can kind of piece together the “family tree” they come from. But otherwise, yes, it appears to me that they are independent.