Lefebvrians: the Vatican decrees excommunication – what it is and how it works

The bishops of the Priestly Fraternity of St Pius X, Alfonso de Galarreta and Bernard Fellay (principal consecrator and co-consecrator respectively), and the newly consecrated bishops Pascal Schreiber, Michael Goldade, Michel Poinsinet de Sivry and Marc Hanappier have incurred “ipso facto” excommunication “latae sententiae” for having committed “an act of a schismatic nature”, namely the “episcopal consecration of four priests, without a papal mandate and against the will of the Supreme Pontiff”. This is stated in the decree signed by Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. It is the most serious penalty in the life of the Church, and the very name evokes the punishments of hell: excommunication.

In its Latin etymology, ‘ex-communicare’ means ‘to exclude from communion’. A measure which, as Pope Leo XIV also noted in his letter of 29 June addressed to the Superior General of the Fraternity, Fr Davide Pagliarani, is taken, in this case, following a ‘schismatic act’ (namely, episcopal ordinations without a papal mandate), which would deprive the faithful of the Fraternity “of the lawful and, in certain cases, even valid reception of the sacraments”. Therefore, Pope Prevost emphasised, this is a matter of “extreme gravity”. Excommunication in itself entails not only exclusion from participation in the Eucharist, but also from the sacramental and spiritual life of the entire Church.

In technical terms, it is called ‘latae sententiae’: that is to say, it is automatic, simply by virtue of the fact that this act was committed in disobedience to the Pope. The Vatican will have to ratify this decision in a couple of days, but it is already a fait accompli. There will be no appeals, but an excommunication is never definitive; for the Church, there is always the possibility of repentance and reconciliation. Proof of this is that two of those excommunicated, Monsignor Alfonso de Galarreta and Monsignor Bernard Felley – respectively the consecrating bishop and co-consecrating bishop at the ceremony in Écône – had already been excommunicated in 1988 by John Paul II because they were two of the four bishops consecrated at that time by Monsignor Marcel Lefebvre. Their excommunication was subsequently lifted in January 2009 by Benedict XVI.

But in fact, all those who take part in this schismatic act – that is, who choose to separate themselves from the Catholic Church, disregarding the will and words of the Pope – will also be excommunicated. Everyone, from priests to laypeople. Therefore, the risk for those who continue to follow the Fraternity of St Pius X will be that of not having a full Christian life, starting with the sacraments – from Holy Communion to Baptism, from marriage to Confession.

Pope Leo XIV himself had pointed this out in his final appeal to the Lefebvrians: ‘I urge you to give careful consideration to the spiritual welfare of the faithful, for the schismatic act you would be committing would deprive them of the lawful—and in some cases even valid—receipt of the sacraments which they love and seek for their own sanctification’, were the words of the Pontiff, who hoped to avoid the rift that ultimately came to pass on the lawn at Écône, exactly as had happened thirty-eight years earlier.