Breakaway churches continue Latin Mass as Vatican calls for return
The Vatican considers the unauthorized consecration of bishops one of the faith’s gravest crimes, as it ruptures church unity, the Associated Press reported. The Holy See has instructed Catholics to stop attending the breakaway group’s worship services and activities, and has stated that some sacraments administered by SSPX priests are illicit and invalid.
Despite the Vatican’s declaration, normal life has largely carried on inside the society’s churches, according to the AP. The old Latin Mass is still being celebrated, baptisms are being performed, and camps and pilgrimages are moving forward. Some faithful say they have no intention of leaving.
The consecrations two weeks ago posed a crisis for Pope Leo XIV because of his emphasis on church unity, the AP reported. The American pope has especially reached out to the conservative and traditionalist wing of the church, which in many ways was alienated during the Pope Francis pontificate.