SSPX Consecrates Bishops in Defiance of Rome’s Schism Warning| National Catholic Register
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SSPX Consecrates Bishops in Defiance of Rome’s Schism Warning
The unauthorized July 1 rite in Écône, Switzerland, came despite Pope Leo XIV’s appeal to 'please turn back' and could trigger automatic excommunication for the six bishops involved.
The new illicitly ordained Catholic bishops — French Marc Hanappier, French Michel Poinsinet de Sivry, American Michael Goldade and Swiss Pascal Schreiber — stand next to Swiss traditionalist Catholic Bishop of the Society of Saint Pius X Bernard Fellay during a schismatic consecration in Econe, western Switzerland, on July 1, 2026. (photo: Fabrice Coffrini / AFP/Getty)
Victoria Cardiel/EWTN News/Aci Prensa
Vatican
July 1, 2026
Pope Leo XIV is not even two years into his pontificate and he is already facing one of the most delicate episodes of his ministry: a new rupture within the Church.
In a defiant move and despite repeated warnings from Rome, the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) went ahead Wednesday with the consecration of four new bishops without a pontifical mandate — an act of open disobedience to the authority of the pope that, under canon law, carries automatic excommunication for the six bishops involved.
The Vatican’s official response is now awaited and could include a formal declaration of schism, as Rome had warned in the days leading up to the ceremony.
In 1988, after Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the founder of the SSPX, consecrated bishops without a papal mandate, Rome responded two days later. On July 2, St. John Paul II published the motu proprio Ecclesia Dei, in which he spoke openly of a “rupture” of ecclesial communion and created a commission to help reconcile faithful linked to the society.
A repeated act of defiance
The illicit ceremony took place in a meadow in Écône, Switzerland, home to the SSPX international seminary — the same place where Archbishop Lefebvre caused a rupture with Rome exactly 38 years ago by consecrating four bishops without the required pontifical mandate.
That act of defiance was repeated Wednesday, July 1, apparently without regret, despite the paternal plea in which Pope Leo XIV warned Tuesday of the “sin of extreme gravity” they were about to commit.
The ceremony was carried out by the two surviving bishops from the illicit 1988 consecrations. Spanish Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta presided as principal consecrator, assisted by Swiss Bishop Bernard Fellay as co-consecrator.
The new bishops — Swiss Father Pascal Schreiber; American Father Michael Goldade; and French Fathers Michel Poinsinet de Sivry and Marc Hanappier — were designated as auxiliaries of the society with the stated aim of serving the Church, though in practice the act marks a decisive step toward rupture.
Provocative symbolism
The ceremony included several elements loaded with symbolism recalling — not without a certain provocation — the 1988 consecrations. The liturgical feast chosen, the Most Precious Blood of Christ, was the same. So was the throne on which Bishop De Galarreta sat, the one once used by Archbishop Lefebvre. The vestments worn by the bishops were those used by the four bishops ordained 38 years ago.
Thousands of faithful arrived hours early, many dressed in traditional attire and straw hats and carrying folding chairs, in an atmosphere that mixed celebration with solemnity. For the occasion, the SSPX even sold commemorative items, including an exclusive 75 Swiss franc box of wine — about $92.50 — called “Cuvée des Sacres,” featuring pinot noir, syrah, petit arvine, and fendant, with each bottle decorated with the image of one of the consecrated bishops.
Bishop De Galarreta whispered the liturgical formulas into the microphone, strictly in Latin, with his back to...