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SSPX superior: consecrations ‘even more necessary in 2026’ The Society of St Pius X has defended its decision to proceed with episcopal consecrations this summer, with its Superior General warning that any declaration of excommunication or schism against the Society “would be objectively unjust”. In a letter addressed to SSPX priests ahead of the consecrations due to take place at Écône on 1 July, Fr Davide Pagliarani said the “state of necessity” invoked by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988 was “even more evident in 2026”. “While the state of necessity could already be invoked in 1988, this state of necessity is, unfortunately, even more evident in 2026,” he wrote. The text, dated 7 March and released publicly by the Society on 21 May, was accompanied by an introduction from the SSPX Secretary General, Fr Foucauld le Roux, who said the purpose of publishing the letter was to help clergy and faithful prepare spiritually for the ceremony. “This text does not revisit the question of the consecrations themselves, but is devoted to recalling the spirit in which they must be prepared for and lived,” Fr le Roux wrote. The publication of the letter comes four months after the SSPX announced that bishops would again be consecrated at its seminary in Switzerland, the site of Archbishop Lefebvre’s consecrations in June 1988. Those consecrations, carried out without papal mandate, led Rome to declare that Archbishop Lefebvre, Bishop Antonio de Castro Mayer and the four newly consecrated bishops had incurred automatic excommunication. Although the excommunications of the surviving bishops were lifted by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009, the Society remains canonically irregular and without official status in the Church. In his latest letter, Fr Pagliarani repeatedly insisted that the SSPX was acting out of fidelity to the Catholic Church rather than separation from it. “The Society is nothing more than a means of remaining faithful to the Church,” he wrote. “If we are taking exceptional measures today to preserve the faith, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and the priesthood, it is because we want the whole Catholic Church – and every soul without distinction – to be able to benefit freely from them one day. All this belongs to the Church, and we are only its guardians.” Fr Pagliarani also directly addressed the prospect of fresh sanctions from Rome, stating that the Society neither desired nor celebrated such a development. “If we come to be declared excommunicated and schismatic, this would not mean that we seek such a sanction or rejoice in it, for it would be objectively unjust,” he wrote. Furthermore, Fr Pagliarani wrote: “It is one thing to rejoice in receiving a new humiliation to offer to God, and it is quite another to rejoice in an evil and an objective injustice that causes scandal to the whole Church.” The SSPX superior urged members to avoid bitterness and resentment during the controversy surrounding the consecrations, warning against triumphalism and hostility towards Church authorities. “We must always show kindness,” he wrote. “When there is no understanding on the other side, when there is not even a willingness to listen to what we have to say and understand our reasons, it is very easy – humanly speaking – to fall into resentment.” He added that members should remain “firm and gentle at the same time”, “especially towards the hierarchy of the Catholic Church”. The letter contains repeated references to charity and suffering, including a lengthy citation from St John’s Gospel. “It is with this same charity that, now more than ever, we must love souls and Holy Mother Church, even if its official representatives were to declare us excommunicated and schismatic once again,” Fr Pagliarani wrote, before quoting John 16:1-4: “They will put you out of the synagogues: yea, the hour cometh, that whosoever killeth you, will think that he doth a service to God.” Fr Pagliarani also rejected accusations that the SSPX had become a “parallel Church”, arguing instead that the Society existed to safeguard Catholic tradition until it could once again flourish throughout the wider Church. “We ask nothing for ourselves,” he wrote. “Our only reward will be to see one day Holy Mother Church reclaim her Traditions.” The Superior General described the debate surrounding the consecrations as “providential”, saying the issue had provoked concern throughout the Catholic Church. “The announcement on 2 February left no one in the Catholic Church indifferent,” he wrote. “Almost everyone feels concern and the need to express their approval or disapproval.” He added: “Sometimes words, opinions, and simple statements are no longer enough. They must be accompanied by meaningful actions that Divine Providence can use to shake consciences – and even the Church herself.” Fr Pagliarani concluded his letter by urging members and faithful to prepare for the consecrations through prayer and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. “It is with these sentiments and this charity that we must prepare for the ceremony on 1 July,” he wrote, “and strive to prepare all the faithful under our care.” The tensions between the Vatican and the SSPX stem from the Second Vatican Council. Relations improved significantly during the pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI, who lifted the excommunications of the SSPX bishops and expanded permission for the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass through Summorum Pontificum in 2007. Under Pope Francis, however, tensions between Rome and traditionalist groups deepened following the publication of Traditionis Custodes in 2021, which imposed major restrictions on the old rite of Mass. Despite those disputes, Pope Francis granted SSPX priests faculties to hear confessions during the Jubilee Year of Mercy before extending them indefinitely, while also allowing local bishops to delegate SSPX priests to witness marriages. Image credit: SSPX

Three monks secretly left the Transalpine Redemptorists’ monastery on Papa Stronsay by boat after allegedly arranging their departure with the Diocese of Aberdeen without informing superiors Three monks of the Transalpine Redemptorists have left the order’s monastery on the island of Papa Stronsay after secretly arranging their departure from the remote Orkney community. The Press and Journal reported on 20 May that two priests and a subdeacon coordinated their exit with Bishop Hugh Gilbert of Aberdeen and left the island by boat without informing their superiors. The arrangement was allegedly discovered only on the day of their departure after the use of a monastery laptop came to light. The three men are understood to have left Papa Stronsay quietly and are now believed to be staying at an undisclosed location under the care of the Diocese of Aberdeen. Fr Anthony Mary, the superior of the community, criticised the manner of the departure and said the remaining members had been left without any explanation. “They tried to leave quietly, but it came to light on the very day they intended to go,” he said. “One of the fathers discovered it after they used a laptop without permission.” Describing the departure itself, Fr Anthony said the men had left without speaking to their superiors or fellow members. “They left on the evening boat, and we have heard nothing since – no word, no explanation, nothing,” he said. “It is as though we never existed.” The priest also alleged that Bishop Gilbert had “worked against us” and said repeated attempts to contact both the bishop and the departing clerics had produced no personal response. “I wrote to the bishop three times and to the priests four or five times,” he said. “There has been no reply to me personally. Recently, the bishop said he would respond at some stage. But trying to live as a good Catholic and follow the faith has become very difficult.” The congregation recently published a document rejecting the legitimacy of every pope since Pope Paul VI. The document, entitled The Dogma to Steer By , described Pope Leo XIV as a “pretender”, called for his replacement and declared the group’s intention to withdraw cooperation with the Vatican, which it accused of having been overtaken by “modernist enemies”. The document is interesting because it does not follow the usual norms of sedevacantism, where adherents normally reject the papacies since Pius XII or, on occasion, since Pius X. The monks, however, appear to accept John XXIII as a legitimate pope while rejecting the “papal pretenders Paul VI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, Francis, and Leo XIV”, who, according to the text, “have engaged in actions embodying indifferentism”. The text also claims that the “Church has been infiltrated by enemies from at least the time of Pope Gregory XVI”, but that it is only since the Second Vatican Council that popes have “caused a spiritual catastrophe of the greatest imaginable proportions”. The monks also say that they are working and praying for an “Imperfect General Council”, in which “all the Catholic bishops of the world who have kept the true Faith” will “pronounce on the status of the present claimants to the papacy and restore order to the Church”. They continue that, until that day comes, which they acknowledge may still be some time away, they will seek to be “guided by the Magisterium of the holy Popes who have always taught the one true Faith in its integrity and purity”. Following publication of the text, Fr Michael Mary, founder of the Transalpine Redemptorists, reportedly came under investigation by Rome. Speaking separately, Fr Michael said the three men had left because of “theological differences” and had opposed the direction taken by the community. “We’ve lost three priests – two priests and a subdeacon – who have really not been in agreement from the beginning,” he said. “They hung on for quite a while, not wanting to abandon their vocations, but what we’ve come to now has been the last straw.” He added that the departing members had ultimately concluded they could no longer remain. “They were unable in their consciences to go along with us. So, they left us,” he said. The departures took place only weeks after the disappearance of Brother Justin Evans, 25, a member of the community who was reported “lost to the sea” on 11 April. Although a body was later recovered, it has not yet been positively identified. The Transalpine Redemptorists were founded in 1988 and were initially closely associated with the Society of St Pius X. Following Pope Benedict XVI’s lifting of the SSPX excommunications in 2009, the community entered into closer relations with Rome and was later recognised as a religious institute under the authority of the Diocese of Aberdeen.

Bishop Athanasius Schneider, Fr Gerald Murray and the Society of Saint Pius X have accused the Vatican of being “complicit” in promoting homosexuality after the publication of the Synod Study Group 9 report The publication of Synod Study Group 9’s report has become a crisis and controversy that the Vatican cannot ignore, although such appears to be its current policy. Mounting criticism of the report – released by Study Group 9, born out of the Synod on Synodality – has already included cardinals such as Müller and Eijk, numerous priests and veteran commentators. Such rebuke has largely centred on the message contained within the report, which presented an unfiltered promotion of homosexual ideology and lifestyles whilst remaining notably quiet about Catholic teaching on the matter. But now attention is turning elsewhere as clerics accuse the Vatican of being complicit in promoting homosexuality by virtue of allowing the report to be published, and by the Vatican’s near silence in the face of the scandal. Speaking recently to Raymond Arroyo, Bishop Athanasius Schneider described the report as “a propaganda text, which very carefully and cunningly uses certain traditional documents or biblical expressions, but which fundamentally aims to promote the acceptance of homosexual ideology.” Such themes within the Study Group report are by no means surprising given that the group itself comprises a number of LGBT advocates, and Fr James Martin SJ was revealed to have had key influence in drafting it. But Schneider warned that the Holy See is far from being innocent. It was “issued by an organ of the Holy See,” he noted, and thus many Catholics will be led to believe that it is Church teaching. “The majority of ordinary Catholics are unaware of the distinctions between a magisterial text, a Vatican text, and a study group in the Vatican.” Therefore, he warned, “the message given to the entire world and to Catholics is that, from now on, the Holy See is basically accepting, de facto, same-sex relationships, same-sex activity and the so-called LGBTQ agenda, which is an un-Christian worldly ideology.” The General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops has indeed sought to distance itself from the text, stating that “these reports cannot be attributed” to them, and that the group “worked, as is logical, autonomously.” However, for the auxiliary bishop – who has personally conveyed his concerns about the Church’s doctrinal crisis to Pope Leo XIV – such a response is lacking. “It’s not convincing at all,” he stated. “It is [the study group report] officially under a Vatican dicastery or organ called the Synod Secretariat, which has officially published [the text], though of course as a study group.” For the Synod Secretariat to assign responsibility to the Study Group is “a trickery to close our eyes,” opined Schneider, “and then to transmit, and be a propaganda platform for this homosexual ideology – to infect ever more the Catholic Church through the acceptance of this style of life.” The auxiliary of Astana, Kazakhstan, is known for being outspoken in his ecclesial commentaries. But he is not alone in his thoughts on this point. Prominent canon lawyer and New York cleric Fr Gerald Murray also accused the Vatican of being at fault. Writing a commentary in The Catholic Thing , Murray attested that the Synod Secretariat “has become the Holy See’s officially sponsored agent of destruction of Catholic doctrine, which is disparaged and dismissed as being deductive principles set forth in an immutable and rigid manner – sterile, regressive and ossified statements, as being ‘pre-packaged’ doctrines, which are merely abstractions and theories.” Murray, like Schneider, is a cleric in good standing with the Church and walks a fine line between highlighting doctrinal crises and moral relativism while also promoting loyalty to the See of Peter, in contrast to those tempted to argue that the See is vacant. His commentary is unabashed when law, morals or doctrine are at stake. “Why would the Synod of Bishops publish interviews with men who reject Catholic teaching on the nature of marriage, inspired as it is by the Holy Spirit, as part of its effort to discern the workings of the Holy Spirit in the Church today?” he queried. “This Vatican-sponsored destructive subversion must come to an end now,” wrote Murray. “Souls are endangered by the scandalous false teachings being propagated by the Synod. Pope Leo needs to strengthen the brethren in the Faith by putting an end to this poisonous betrayal of God’s truth.” The Vatican’s response appears to be limited simply to the perfunctory hand-washing attempt by the Synod Secretariat, who are doubtless relying on the natural continuation of the news cycle and the lack of attention given by many Catholics to the details. Yet for the Society of St Pius X, turning a blind eye to such events is not an option. The state of emergency within the Church is worse now than in 1988, the SSPX’s superior general has repeatedly stated during the spring. Outlining the Holy See’s “complicity” with the LGBT lobby – as reportedly evidenced by Fiducia Supplicans and the conciliatory approach to the German bishops – the Society pointed to the Study Group report as the final piece of the puzzle. Fiducia Supplicans destroyed the Holy See’s ability to clamp down on LGBT promotion, the Society argued, whilst simultaneously “faith and moral conviction are deserting the Curia”. “If anyone doubts this, let them read the report of Study Group No. 9, which aligns with the Synodal Path and its conclusions on the LGBT issue,” the Society’s official news portal argued. “While we wait for the ‘dialogue’ to produce ‘consensus’ between Rome and the German Catholic Church, the problem is spreading among German Catholics and beginning to cross borders, with the blessing of the Curia. Under these circumstances, we must speak of complicity.”

Religious orders and dioceses across Spain are increasingly turning to professional investment managers and ethically screened funds as ageing communities, falling vocations and rising maintenance costs force Catholic institutions to modernise their finances Spain’s religious orders are increasingly turning to professional investment managers and ethical funds as declining vocations, ageing communities and rising maintenance costs force Catholic institutions to modernise the way they manage their finances. According to Bloomberg News, the change was evident during a seminar held at the Theological Institute of Religious Life in Madrid, where members of religious congregations met bankers and financial advisers to discuss investment strategies, artificial intelligence and the economic uncertainty caused by Donald Trump’s second term in the White House. The gathering is indicative of a shift taking place across the Spanish Church, which has traditionally relied on donations, rental income and a system allowing taxpayers to allocate 0.7 per cent of their income tax to the Catholic Church. But falling numbers in religious life and growing financial pressures have led many dioceses and congregations to professionalise the management of their assets. Figures published by the Spanish bishops’ conference show the number of men and women in religious orders in Spain fell by around 45 per cent between 2014 and 2024. The number of priests has also continued to decline during the same period, though recent years have seen a small increase in the number of seminarians. Many religious communities possess valuable property portfolios, including schools, hospitals, convents and apartments in major cities, but these assets have not always been managed with profitability in mind. Guillermo Vanrell, head of finance and administration for a diocese in eastern Spain, said he was struck by the outdated state of Church administration when he first entered the role more than a decade ago. “I hadn’t seen an Olivetti typewriter since I was a kid,” he said, recalling how receipts were still being produced manually. He said diocesan investments had been concentrated in fixed-term deposits and banking products with little long-term strategy behind them. Since then, he has worked to modernise accounting systems and restructure investments while monitoring financial markets more closely. The scale of Church assets can vary widely between religious institutions. Smaller congregations often struggle with limited resources, while larger orders may oversee international portfolios worth hundreds of millions of euros. Many institutions must also navigate both civil and canon law obligations, particularly where schools, hospitals and heritage properties are concerned. The growing complexity of Church finances led CaixaBank and the Universidad Pontificia Comillas in Madrid to establish Spain’s first postgraduate programme dedicated to the administration of ecclesiastical property and religious institutions. Some congregations have been forced to make difficult decisions about properties they can no longer afford to maintain. The owners of Hospital La Milagrosa in Madrid sought outside advice when the cost of modernising the hospital became unsustainable. The religious order eventually reached an agreement with the Vithas Group, which now manages the hospital and has pledged to invest €30 million in renovations, while the congregation retained ownership of the property itself. As Church institutions become more active investors, Vatican guidance has increasingly shaped how Catholic organisations approach financial markets. In 2022 the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences published Mensuram Bonam , a document setting out “faith-consistent investing” guidelines for Catholic institutions following a series of financial scandals linked to Vatican finances. The document warned against investments in industries connected to weapons, pornography, contraception and addictive products while encouraging support for businesses linked to sustainability, human dignity and social responsibility. María Canel, who oversees the finances of the Religiosas de la Pureza de María near Barcelona, said there had once been “a fear of investing”, but that attitude had changed significantly. She recalled rejecting a fund after discovering that it included investments linked to the arms industry despite assurances that it complied with Catholic social teaching. The demand for ethically screened investments has contributed to the growth of explicitly Catholic funds in Spain. According to financial advisers, around a dozen such funds now operate in the country with combined assets worth approximately €650 million. Many are linked to major banking groups including Santander, Sabadell and Ibercaja, although independent firms also operate within the sector. Earlier this year the Vatican Bank, working alongside Morningstar, launched two equity indices designed to comply with Catholic ethical principles. Companies listed within the indices include Deutsche Telekom, ASML, Apple, Nvidia and Tesla.

The Armenian Apostolic Church has said that Pope Leo XIV and Catholicos Aram I discussed the possibility of convening a “Third Vatican Council” during a private meeting at the Vatican focused on Christian unity, Artsakh and the Middle East The idea of convening a “Third Vatican Council” was discussed during a private meeting between Pope Leo XIV and Catholicos Aram I at the Vatican. The meeting took place on May 18 and focused on Christian unity, the plight of displaced Armenians from Artsakh, the continuing detention of Armenian prisoners in Baku and the situation in Lebanon. While the Vatican’s own account of the audience made no mention of a council, a statement released by the Armenian Apostolic Church said the two Church leaders discussed “the establishment of a common date for Easter, a day of commemoration for all martyrs, and the convening of a Third Vatican Council”. According to the statement, Aram I stressed the “urgent necessity” of such initiatives for the life of the “universal Christian Church”. The Armenian Church added that Pope Leo XIV expressed “understanding and support” concerning the issues raised during the meeting. No details were given about what form a Third Vatican Council might take or whether it would involve only the Catholic Church or a wider ecumenical gathering of Christian Churches. The Second Vatican Council, convened by Pope John XXIII in 1962 and concluded under Pope Paul VI in 1965, remains the most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Speculation about a future council has surfaced periodically in recent decades, though no pope has publicly advanced plans for another ecumenical council. The proposal emerged during a broader conversation between Leo XIV and Aram I concerning the condition of Christians in the Middle East and relations between Churches. According to the Armenian statement, Aram I also raised the issue of Artsakh and the right of displaced Armenians to return “under international guarantees”. He further stressed the need to protect Armenian churches and historical monuments in accordance with international law. The Catholicos additionally referred to the continuing detention of former Artsakh officials and political leaders held in Baku, saying their release remained an urgent matter. The meeting also addressed Lebanon, where Aram I underlined the importance of preserving the sovereignty of the Lebanese state and ensuring the authority of the government throughout the country. He also spoke of the importance of Israel withdrawing from southern Lebanon and respecting existing ceasefire agreements. The Armenian statement said the two Church leaders also discussed ecumenical relations and the future direction of inter-Church dialogue. Aram I emphasised that alongside theological discussions, “moral and ethical issues” should occupy a greater place within ecumenical cooperation and international Christian initiatives. The Vatican has sought closer ties with the Oriental Orthodox Churches since the Second Vatican Council, with relations between Rome and the Armenian Apostolic Church improving markedly during the pontificates of Pope St John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Francis. Pope Francis maintained warm relations with Armenian Christian leaders and frequently referred to the suffering of Armenian Christians in the Middle East. In 2015 he described the mass killing of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire as “the first genocide of the 20th century”. Aram I, who has led the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia since 1995, has long been active in ecumenical affairs and previously served as moderator of the World Council of Churches.

The Vatican has confirmed that dioceses across the world will spend the next two years preparing for a major “Ecclesial Assembly” in Rome in 2028 as part of the next phase of the Synod on Synodality The Vatican has unveiled a detailed timetable for the next phase of the Synod on Synodality, confirming that dioceses across the world will spend the next two years preparing for a major ecclesial assembly in Rome in October 2028. Entitled Towards the Assemblies 2027-2028 , the text presents the next stage of synodality. The process will culminate in what the Vatican is calling an “Ecclesial Assembly”, distinct from a Synod of Bishops but intended to gather representatives from across the global Church for a final act of discernment in Rome. The document, published on May 20 by the General Secretariat of the Synod, sets out the “stages, criteria, and tools for preparation” that will guide local Churches through what Rome describes as the “implementation phase” of the synodal process launched by Pope Francis in 2021. Under the plan, dioceses, bishops’ conferences and continental episcopal bodies will each hold assemblies between 2027 and 2028 aimed at assessing how the Synod’s final document is being put into practice. The Vatican said the process would culminate in an Ecclesial Assembly in Rome “together with the Holy Father”. The text divides the process into four stages titled “Recollecting”, “Interpreting”, “Orienting” and “Celebrating”. The first phase, scheduled for the first half of 2027, will involve diocesan and eparchial assemblies intended to evaluate the reception of the Synod’s final document at local level. Bishops will oversee the preparation of narrative reports describing “what concrete form of a missionary synodal Church and what new paths of synodality are emerging” within their communities. Dioceses will also prepare letters addressed to other Churches highlighting what the Vatican described as “the principal fruits that have emerged in the process of implementing the synod”. National and regional bishops’ conferences will then gather during the second half of 2027 to prepare theological-pastoral reports before continental assemblies take place during the opening months of 2028. Those continental meetings will produce “perspective reports” that will contribute to the drafting of the instrumentum laboris , or working document, for the Rome assembly. The final stage will take place in October 2028 at the Vatican. Although officials have repeatedly insisted the gathering will not constitute another Synod of Bishops, the new document states that the assembly’s conclusions will be “offered to the Holy Father as the fruit of the process of discernment”. The text places strong emphasis on papal oversight throughout the process, concluding that the entire journey will take place “under the guidance of the Holy Father”. The publication provides the clearest indication yet that Pope Leo XIV intends to continue the synodal project initiated by his predecessor. Since his election, the Pope has repeatedly referred to synodality as a defining characteristic of ecclesial life, describing it as “a style of cooperation” and an exercise in listening. The Vatican stressed that the implementation phase was not intended to reopen the consultation process that began in 2021, but rather to assess what has already been achieved since the Synod’s conclusion. “It is not a matter of repeating the Synod consultation, nor of adding further tasks to the ordinary life of communities,” the document states, “but rather of rereading what has already been experienced, recognizing its fruits and difficulties.” Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod, said the assemblies were intended to be “a profound ecclesial and spiritual experience of discernment”. “What we are proposing to the local Churches is not an additional task, but rather a time of shared discernment and thanksgiving, in which to reread together what the Spirit is causing to grow in the Church and to recognize the steps we are called to take,” His Eminence said. The document also calls for broad participation within the assemblies themselves. It says organisers should ensure “balance between men and women and among different generations”, while also involving priests, deacons, Religious, members of ecclesial movements and “persons living in situations of fragility or marginality”. It adds that “particular care should be devoted to the involvement of parish priests”. Representatives of other Christian communities and religions may also take part “where appropriate”. Responsibility for organising the assemblies will rest with diocesan bishops at local level, presidents of bishops’ conferences nationally, and the heads of continental ecclesial bodies at regional level. The Vatican further encouraged organisers to continue using “conversation in the Spirit”, the discussion method strongly promoted during the Synod assemblies in Rome in 2023 and 2024. The implementation phase formally began after the late Pope Francis approved the Synod’s final document last year and handed it directly to the Church without issuing a separate post-synodal apostolic exhortation. Before his death, Francis repeatedly described synodality as irreversible and insisted the process marked a new way of governing and listening within the Church. Materials produced during each stage will be submitted to the Synod Secretariat according to a fixed timetable. Diocesan reports must be completed by June 30, 2027, bishops’ conference reports by December 31, 2027, and continental reports by April 30, 2028 ahead of the final assembly in Rome.