A breakaway Catholic group dedicated to preserving the traditional Latin Mass has ordained four new bishops in Switzerland, despite a direct appeal from Pope Leo XIV to halt the ceremony.
Top Vatican Cardinal Pietro Parolin said the forbidden ceremony, expected to cause the excommunication of the priests involved, had "deeply wounded" the unity of the 1.4-billion-member Church.
"This is in itself a schismatic act," Parolin told journalists in Rome, using a term to indicate a severe rupture in the Catholic community.
Thousands of supporters gathered in the Alpine village of Écône on Wednesday to witness the consecrations carried out by the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), an ultra-traditionalist movement that has remained at odds with the Vatican for decades.
The ordinations went ahead just two days after Pope Leo wrote a personal letter to the society's Superior General, Davide Pagliarani, urging the group to reconsider.
"I plead with you and ask you with all my heart: please turn back!" the Pope wrote, describing the planned ceremony as a "schismatic act".
Under Catholic Church law, only the Pope can authorise the consecration of bishops, a safeguard intended to preserve the Church's apostolic succession, which traces bishops back to Jesus's twelve apostles.
The Vatican warned that proceeding without papal approval would result in automatic excommunication for both the bishops being ordained and the bishop performing the consecrations. The ceremony was broadcast live on social media.
Founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the Society of St. Pius X rejects key reforms introduced by the Second Vatican Council, including changes to the liturgy and aspects of the Church's engagement with the modern world. The society says it has 733 priests serving worldwide.
Relations between the Vatican and the SSPX have long been strained. Archbishop Lefebvre was excommunicated in 1988 after ordaining four bishops without the approval of Pope John Paul II. His successor, Pope Benedict XVI, later lifted the remaining excommunications in an effort to encourage reconciliation.
The society announced earlier this year that it intended to appoint new bishops, arguing that additional leadership was needed to oversee its growing global membership.
Israeli forces have maintained a tight closure on Hebron in the occupied West Bank for a second day, with Palestinian media reporting home raids, m...
German police have detained a suspect after a major fire broke out at the historic Kehlsteinhaus, known as the “Eagle’s Nest&rdqu...
Typhoon Champi swept past Taiwan on Saturday, leaving one person dead and more than 500 injured as strong winds and torrential rain brought down tr...
Israeli military bulldozers have begun demolishing buildings in the West Bank city of Hebron on Friday, 23 October, following armed clashes with Palestinians that left two Israeli soldiers dead, according to the Israeli military.
Saudi Aramco has ordered staff to evacuate its headquarters amid escalating Houthi attacks on the kingdom. Two people were killed in an attack on Dammam airport, while Iran's IRGC Navy claimed strikes on seven vessels and warned the U.S. of a wider response.
Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight killed at least two people and injured 15 others, including two children, Ukrainian authorities said. Meanwhile, Russia said it had intercepted the vast majority of 630 Ukrainian drones launched towards Moscow.
Super typhoon Champi is set to batter Japan’s Okinawa Prefecture from Friday (23 October), bringing violent winds, torrential rain and waves up to 11 metres high, as airlines cancel flights and organisers scrap a major festival.
A powerful magnitude 7 earthquake has struck Tibet in southwestern China, killing 16 people and injuring 65, while forcing more than 12,000 residents to relocate as rescue teams respond to widespread aftershocks.
German police have detained a suspect after a major fire broke out at the historic Kehlsteinhaus, known as the “Eagle’s Nest”, a mountain retreat once used by senior Nazi officials, including Adolf Hitler.
Typhoon Champi swept past Taiwan on Saturday, leaving one person dead and more than 500 injured as strong winds and torrential rain brought down trees, cut power and disrupted transport across the island.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Friday dismissed accusations that Canada planned to interfere in next month’s U.S. midterm elections, saying he was disappointed by comments from the American ambassador.
Kenya has recorded a second death from Ebola, the health ministry said late on Friday, as the outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of Congo continues to spread across Africa.
Gunmen opened fire on mourners at a church funeral in southern Jordan on Friday, killing at least seven people in a rare attack on the country’s Christian minority that has raised fresh questions about security in the country.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment