SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) — The ordination of four new bishops by the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) without papal approval has prompted a response from the Diocese of San Angelo, with Bishop Michael J Sis urging Catholics to remain in full communion with Pope Leo XIV and the Roman Catholic Church.

According to Bishop Sis, four new bishops were ordained in Switzerland on July 1 by the SSPX without a papal mandate and against the will of Pope Leo XIV, despite what he described as the Holy Father’s plea to avoid schism.

“This has caused a serious rupture to the unity of the Church, and it is an occasion of mourning and sadness even in our diocese in West Texas,” Bishop Sis said.

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Bishop Sis noted there is one SSPX chapel within the Diocese of San Angelo, St. Michael the Archangel Chapel in Midland, where SSPX priests have visited monthly for many years to celebrate traditional Latin Masses.

In response to the ordinations, the Holy See issued a Decree and Explanatory Note on July 2 through the Vatican Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF), addressing what it described as the resulting schism and automatic excommunication.

According to the decree, “clerics and lay faithful are warned not to adhere to the schism of the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X, as they would incur ipso facto the penalty of latae sententiae excommunication.” It further states that lay faithful “who formally adhere to the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X … are to be considered schismatic and excommunicated.”

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The DDF also warned that SSPX ministers now unlawfully administer the sacraments, and that the sacrament of penance administered by them and marriages witnessed by them are invalid. The celebration of Mass and the Eucharist remain valid because they are celebrated by ordained priests, but the Vatican said they are illicit.

“I encourage all Catholics to remain steadfast in communion with Pope Leo XIV, with the bishops in communion with him, and with the whole Church,” Bishop Sis said. “Communion with the successor of Peter is essential to the nature of the Catholic Church and is the foundation of its ecclesial life and mission.”

For Catholics seeking to attend the traditional Latin Mass, Bishop Sis encouraged them to worship at St. Margaret of Scotland Catholic Church, located at 2619 Era Ave. in San Angelo, where the Mass in the Extraordinary Form is celebrated each Sunday with permission from the Holy See, rather than attending Masses celebrated by excommunicated SSPX clergy.

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Bishop Sis also said the Holy See has provided protocols for Catholics who may have worshipped at St. Michael the Archangel Chapel in Midland and who wish to affirm their communion with Pope Leo XIV and the universal Roman Catholic Church.

“The Church, as a caring mother, will welcome with sincere affection and lively concern all those who wish to return to full communion,” the DDF Explanatory Note states.

“I wish to reassure them of my pastoral concern as a shepherd with a desire to assist in this difficult time,” Bishop Sis said.

The Diocese of San Angelo has shared Bishop Michael Sis’ complete message.

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