Source : Perth Now news
The Vatican has responded aggressively to a traditionalist society that consecrated bishops without Pope Leo’s consent, declaring the Society of St Pius X in schism, excommunicating its bishops and warning its faithful.
The Vatican’s doctrine office went above and beyond the minimal sanctions foreseen by the church’s canon law to respond to the consecrations on Wednesday of four new bishops at the right-wing society’s Econe, Switzerland, seminary.
The Vatican excommunicated the four new bishops and the two bishops that took part in the ceremony.
It declared the consecrations a “schismatic act” and declared the society itself had created a schism, or intentional rupture with the Catholic Church.
The Vatican warned the faithful who go to the society’s masses to stop, declaring “those who adhere formally” to the society are considered themselves schismatic and excommunicated.
It also invalidated the sacraments of confession and marriage that the society’s priests administer.
