Posted on 02/03/2026 7:09:21 PM PST by ebb tide
However, as we can see from the passages from Fr. Pagliarani’s sermon that follow, one thing should become abundantly clear to those who honestly want to understand the SSPX’s position: the decision was motivated by a prayerful decision to act for the good of souls and the Church.
In describing the SSPX’s efforts to obtain Rome’s approval for the episcopal consecrations, Fr. Pagliarani emphasized that the Catholic Church “does not exist in the clouds”:
“We wrote to the Holy Father: Your Holiness, we have but one intention, which is to make all the souls who turn to us, true sons of the Roman Catholic Church. We will never have any other intention, and we will always keep this intention. Furthermore, the good of souls corresponds to the good of the Church. The Catholic Church does not exist in the clouds. The Catholic Church exists in souls. It is souls that constitute the Church and if we love the Church, we love souls. We want their salvation and we want to do everything possible to offer them the means to attain their salvation. Therefore, we have begged the Holy Father to understand the very unique situation in which the Society finds itself, and to allow it to take the means to continue this work in such an exceptional situation. We all know that the work of the Society, once again, has no other purpose than to preserve Catholic Tradition for the good of souls.”
We cannot look to some abstract vision of the Church that might exist “in the clouds,” detached from the real lives of Catholics. No, the entire question of the need to consecrate bishops without Rome’s approval must be evaluated in terms of souls who live in concrete reality. What is the concrete reality today for many souls who earnestly seek to devoutly practice the Catholic Faith?
So much of Rome’s work today is directed toward creating an atmosphere in which almost all are welcome. But one group of people is generally unwelcome: those who sincerely want to practice the Catholic Faith as it existed prior to Vatican II.
One aspect of that reality becomes apparent when we realize how much Rome appears to do today for secular interests (as opposed to the good of souls). We see, for example, extravagant promotion of the LGTBQ agenda, support for illegal immigration, tireless advocacy for non-Catholic religions, and a call for the Synodal Church to accept sinners as they are, without the need for real repentance. So much of Rome’s work today is directed toward creating an atmosphere in which almost all are welcome.
But one group of people is generally unwelcome: those who sincerely want to practice the Catholic Faith as it existed prior to Vatican II. This is a complete inversion of order that ought to strike all rational observers as fundamentally unjust and nonsensical. As a result, it is difficult to disagree with Fr. Pagliarani without implicitly approving of a state of reality that is itself immeasurably more problematic than the SSPX’s reaction to that reality. We cannot evaluate the SSPX’s decision “in the clouds,” as though there were no crisis in the Church that has been causing mass apostasy for many decades.
Faced with this alarming situation, Fr. Pagliarani and the SSPX must consider the “supreme law” of the Church:
“Furthermore, in the Catholic Church, we must never forget that the law of laws, the supreme law that takes precedence over all others, is the salvation of souls. It is not the prattle of small-talk, it is not the synod, it is not ecumenism, it is not liturgical experiments, nor new ideas and a new evangelisation, it is the salvation of souls. This is the law of laws, and we all have a duty, each in our own place, to observe this law and to devote ourselves totally to defending it. Why must we do this? It is because Our Blessed Lady and Our Lord Jesus Christ taught us during their life here on this earth that they had no other intention and no other goal than the salvation of souls. Therefore, in one way or another, and according to our talents and our circumstances, each one of us must do everything we can, making our contribution to save our own souls and the souls of others.”
As with Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre’s 1988 consecrations of four bishops, the SSPX now points to the supreme law of the Church: the salvation of souls. This supreme law takes precedence over all other laws to the extent that they would stand in the way of the salvation of souls. Thus, because Rome’s apparent refusal to grant permission for the SSPX to consecrate bishops in a reasonable manner imperils souls, the SSPX must obey the supreme law of the Church rather than Rome in this matter.
Fr. Pagliarani enumerated some of the unholy endeavors that Rome tends to place above the salvation of souls today: the synod, ecumenism, liturgical experiments, new ideas, and a new evangelization.
Fr. Pagliarani subtly reinforced this conclusion by enumerating some of the unholy endeavors that Rome tends to place above the salvation of souls today: the synod, ecumenism, liturgical experiments, new ideas, and a new evangelization. These are the works of men who are, at best, grossly incompetent to care for the salvation of souls. As such, the SSPX would be culpably negligent if it were to assume that the architects of the Synod on Synodality, Fiducia Supplicans, and Traditionis Custodes were to be obeyed when it comes to the crucial decision of whether or not to consecrate bishops.
Leo XIV was elected on May 8, 2025. Many of us have fervently prayed that he would have already started to address some of the most obvious evils afflicting the Catholic Church. At this point, though, it is imprudent to imagine that he is on the cusp of taking positive steps to at least slow the progress of the grave crisis in the Church. If, then, the SSPX seeks to serve the Church and souls, it must recognize that the state of necessity persists and is growing more dire:
“Well, unfortunately, these reasons do not seem to be of interest to Rome, and are not convincing. If you like, unfortunately, these reasons have not found a favourable ear with the Holy See, for the moment. We profoundly regret this situation. Therefore, what are we going to do? Are we going to abandon souls? Are we going to tell them that there is ultimately no case of necessity for the Society to continue its work? That ultimately everything is more or less fine. In other words, that there is no longer a state of necessity in the Church that would justify our apostolate and our existence so as to help the Catholic Church. It is not a question of challenging the Church – far from it! We are here to serve the Church, and we serve the Church by preaching the faith and proclaiming the truth to souls – and not by telling fables to souls. Can we therefore tell them that, despite everything, everything is fine? Certainly not! That would be a betrayal of souls, and betraying souls would mean betraying the Church. We simply cannot do that.”
If, as the SSPX clearly believes, the state of necessity existed in 1988, it most certainly exists to a far greater extent today. The fact that Rome will not (yet) grant the SSPX’s requests to continue its indispensable work in serving the Church — at a time at which Rome is often willing to grant the requests of anti-Catholic groups to oppose the Church’s mission — powerfully confirms this fact. Accordingly, the SSPX would be jeopardizing its God-given mission by neglecting to consecrate the bishops it needs to continue its work.
If, as the SSPX clearly believes, the state of necessity existed in 1988, it most certainly exists to a far greater extent today. However, one does not necessarily need to agree with Fr. Pagliarani’s decision to understand that he and the SSPX are thoroughly motivated to act for the good of souls and the Catholic Church.
If the SSPX were to abandon its mission, it would be depriving souls of the fruits of Our Lord’s redemptive sacrifice. Fittingly, then, Fr. Pagliarani announced that the SSPX has chosen the Feast of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord as the date on which it intends to take the necessary step to continue its work of serving souls:
“This is why we think that 1st July 2026 could be a good date – an ideal date – as it is the Feast of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ. It is the feast of Redemption. Nothing else is of interests to us. What we hold most dear is the Precious Blood of Our Lord, flowing down from his feet onto the wood of the cross. Our Lady, at the foot of the cross, was the first to adore this Precious Blood, and which we continue to adore at the foot of the altar. This is the only thing that interests us, and it is the only thing that we want to give to souls – souls have a right to this, it is not a privilege, it is their right! We cannot abandon them.”
There is no hint of guile in these words — truly, Fr. Pagliarani and the SSPX want to serve God by bringing the Precious Blood of Our Lord to souls, as the Church has done for two thousand years. In the weeks and months between now and the consecration of bishops, some will try to oppose the SSPX’s efforts. Perhaps this opposition will be sincerely motivated; but those opposing Fr. Pagliarani’s decision will, as a practical matter, find themselves aligned with those in Rome who today show complete contempt for the Precious Blood of Our Lord. If nothing else, this reality should encourage those of good will to prayerfully reconsider their opposition to the SSPX’s decision.
However, one does not necessarily need to agree with Fr. Pagliarani’s decision to understand that he and the SSPX are thoroughly motivated to act for the good of souls and the Catholic Church. Therefore, rather than fighting the SSPX, it seems that those who lament Fr. Pagliarani’s announcement would better serve souls and the Church by combatting the grave evils that have so clearly caused the state of necessity. There are surely Catholics destined for high places in heaven who find themselves divided on these questions, but men of good will should all agree that the real enemies are not those who are making tremendous sacrifices to serve souls as the Church has always done. Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!
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Ping
Per the subtitle, I find you to be neither having good will nor having a basic knowledge about Catholicism.
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