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Menzingen, Switzerland, Oct 24, 2012 / 12:10 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Society of St. Pius X has expelled Bishop Richard Williamson, saying he has distanced himself from the traditionalist Catholic group’s leadership and he has refused “to show due respect and obedience to his lawful superiors.� The Switzerland-based society said Oct. 24 that the “painful� decision was necessary because of “concern for the common good� and for the good government of the society. The society’s Superior General Bishop Bernard Fellay and his council declared the bishop to be excluded on Oct. 4. Bishop Williamson, in response to a final deadline...

(RNS) A breakaway traditionalist Catholic group on Monday (June 25) slammed as “clearly unacceptable” a Vatican doctrinal document that was supposed to lay the foundation for the group's reconciliation with Rome. The move comes after three years of complex negotiations between the Vatican and the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), and was revealed just as Pope Benedict XVI appointed a high-profile American archbishop to a key post to oversee relations with traditionalists. A letter by the Rev. Christian Thouvenot, secretary general of the SSPX, to SSPX bishops and regional leaders was leaked on the Internet on Tuesday (June 26)....

The SSPX traditionalist Catholic group on Monday slammed as "clearly unacceptable" a Vatican doctrinal document that was supposed to lay the foundation for the group's reconciliation with Rome, reports NCR Online.The move comes after three years of complex negotiations between the Vatican and the Society of St Pius X and was revealed just as Pope Benedict XVI appointed a high-profile American archbishop to a key post to oversee relations with traditionalists.A letter by Fr Christian Thouvenot, secretary general of the SSPX, to SSPX bishops and regional leaders was leaked on the Internet on Tuesday. Thouvenot later confirmed its authenticity.The letter says...

A breakaway group of traditionalist Catholics may be on the verge of returning into full communion with Rome, bringing a 24-year rift to an end and fulfilling a key goal of Benedict XVI’s pontificate. Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi told journalists April 18 that the Society of St. Pius X had taken an encouraging “step forward” by clarifying its response to a “doctrinal preamble,” a Vatican document that has become the basis of any reconciliation. The society insisted “a step and not a conclusion” had been reached and stressed its clarifications, submitted by the society’s superior general, Bishop Bernard Fellay,...

Just mentioned by Andrea Tornielli for La Stampa: Lefebvrists: the positive response has arrived 17.09.2012 (1900 GMT - 2100 Rome) The Superior of the Society of Saint Pius X has signed the doctrinal preamble proposed by the Holy See, even if with some slight modifications ANDREA TORNIELLI CITTÀ DEL VATICANO The response of the Society of Saint Pius X has arrived in the Vatican and it is positive: according to the informal information gathered by Vatican Insider, Bishop Bernard Fellay would have signed the doctrinal preamble that the Holy See had proposed last September as a condition to reach full...

For the record - Latest Tornielli: "Fellay's response has arrived; it is positive"

Bernard Fellay The first text reached the Vatican in December, but it was considered inadequate: the Holy See called for a new document, which has just arrived and is now being examined Andrea TornielliVatican City   The true response of the superior of the Fraternity of Saint Pius X, Bernard Fellay, formulated according to the requests of the Holy See, arrived at the Vatican just last week. The first reply, received by the Vatican on 21 December, was not considered adequate by Vatican authorities, who urged the head of the Lefebvrians to redraft it, considering the first delivery as more of...

St. Pius X Society superior general Bishop Bernard Fellay Rome, Italy, Nov 29, 2011 / 01:16 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X says he will inform the Vatican “in the next few days” that they cannot give the doctrinal reassurances required of them to advance reconciliation with the Catholic Church.“It is true that this Doctrinal Preamble cannot receive our endorsement,” said Bishop Bernard Fellay on the society’s website, Nov. 28. However, Bishop Fellay said his understanding is that the document is “not a definite text” and that it “can be clarified and...

VATICAN CITY, 14 SEP 2011 (VIS) - At midday today the Holy See Press Office released the following communique concerning the postion of the Society of St. Pius X: "On 14 September at the offices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal William Joseph Levada, prefect of the congregation and president of the Pontifical Commission 'Ecclesia Dei'; Archbishop Luis Francisco Ladaria Ferrer S.J., secretary of the congregation, and Msgr. Guido Pozzo, secretary of the pontifical commission, met with Bishop Bernard Fellay, superior general of the Society of St. Pius X, who was accompanied by Fr. Niklaus Pfluger...

The Vatican is close to an agreement with the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) that would regularize the status of the breakaway traditionalist group, according to a report in Le Figaro. Jean-Marie Guenois, the veteran religion correspondent for the French daily, predicts that a September 14 meeting between the SSPX leader, Bishop Bernard Fellay, and key Vatican officials will lead quickly to a resolution of the split that began in 1998 when the late Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre ordained 4 traditionalist bishops without permission from Rome, resulting in the excommunication of the SSPX leaders. Pope Benedict XVI lifted the excommunications...

Fellay Before a key meeting in Rome, the leader of the traditionalists stressed that he was not prepared to make any compromises and also revealed some interesting behind the scenes happenings… “If their aim is still to force us to accept the second Vatican Council, the discussions have been clear enough in showing that we have no intention of  doing any such thing.”  These were the decisive but prudent words of Bernard Fellay, who was adamant he would not agree to any compromise with the Vatican. On the 15 August, Fellay spoke openly about the talks between the Lefebvrians...

[b]Pius Believers are Unfortunately Not Anglicans[/b] [b]The Superior General of the Society of Pius X made the point: If Saint Bonifatius had followed the spirit of the Second Vatican Council, there wouldn't be any Catholics in Germany.[/b] [kreuz.net, Fulda] On the past Sunday 1500 Traditionalists made a Pilgrimage to the grave of St. Bonifatius (+754) in Fulda. It is the seventh national pilgrimage of the German District of the Society has undertaken to the tomb of the Saint. The Pontifical Office was celebrated on Sunday by the General Superior of the Society of Pius X, Bishop Bernard Fellay.

—EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW— Bishop Bernard Fellay on the Rosary Crusade and Doctrinal Talks Nearly 20,000,000 Rosaries offered to Holy Father from Traditional Catholics Worldwide! By Brian Mershon REMNANT COLUMNIST, South Carolina (Posted 05/11/10 www.RemnantNewspaper.com) Bishop Bernard Fellay, SSPX, greets the Holy Father Houston, Texas—Superior General Bishop Bernard Fellay of the Society of St. Pius X recently spoke to The Remnant in an exclusive interview following the completion of their third Rosary crusade for the Holy Father on March 25, 2010. Despite Cardinal Kasper’s most recent obvious attempt to “poison the well” and upend the ongoing discussions with the Society’s theologians and...

Santiago, Chile, Oct 22, 2009 / 01:03 pm (CNA).- In an interview with the Chilean daily, “El Mercurio,” the Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X, Bernard Fellay, acknowledged that the Vatican is considering the possibility of converting the Lefebvrist group into a personal prelature as part of the discussions aimed at bringing about reconciliation. Fellay, who visited members of the SSPX movement in Chile, is one of four bishops whose excommunication was lifted by Pope Benedict XVI last January. Asked about the speculation that the Society of Pius X could be made into a personal prelature similar...

Fr. Federico Lombardi Vatican City, Oct 15, 2009 / 12:40 pm (CNA).- Several months after Pope Benedict lifted the excommunications of four Society of St. Pius X bishops, the Director of the Holy See's press office, Father Federico Lombardi, announced today that the first meeting with representatives of the society will take place in Rome on Monday, October 26. The meeting will be attended by a number of individuals, including Archbishop Guido Pozzo, secretary of the Ecclesia Dei Pontifical Commission; Archbishop Luis Ladaria Ferrer, secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF); Dominican Father Charles Morerod, secretary...

ZE09061510 - 2009-06-15Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-26184?l=englishPius X Society: Restructuring of Ecclesia Dei Imminent Faces Threat of New Excommunications in Germany By Kris Dmytrenko TORONTO, Canada, JUNE 15, 2009 (Zenit.org).- An announcement that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith will now oversee discussions with the Society of St. Pius X is imminent, says the society's general superior. Bishop Bernard Fellay revealed to ZENIT that the congregation told him to expect the publication of a statement issued "motu proprio" (on his own initiative) by Benedict XVI on the new structure of Ecclesia Dei before June 20. The bishop confirmed that he met...

MENZINGEN, Switzerland, MARCH 13, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is the communiqué released Thursday by the superior-general of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X, Bishop Bernard Fellay, which responds to the March 10 letter sent by the Pope on the situation regarding the society. * * * Pope Benedict XVI addressed a letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church, dated March 10, 2009, in which he made them aware of the intentions which guided him in this important step which is the Decree of Jan. 21, 2009. After "an avalanche of protests was unleashed" recently, we greatly thank the Holy...

Here, now, is the full text of the Pope's letter regarding the lifting of the SSPX excommunications itself, which has already been published in the most prestigious and reliable German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, in an NLM translation: Dear brethren in the Episcopal ministry! The lifting of the excommunication of the four bishops ordained by Archbishop Lefebvre in 1988 without a mandate of the Holy See has led, both within and outside the Catholic Church, for a variety of reasons, to a discussion of such vehemence as we had not experienced for a long time. Many bishops felt at...

From the Italian news agency ANSA, this news (ht: National Catholic Register):The Society of Saint Pius X whose ultratraditionalist bishops were recently rehabilitated by Pope Benedict XVI will not accept the reforms introduced by the Second Vatican Council, the head of the order has told a Swiss paper. Monsignor Bernard Fellay told the daily Le Courier on Thursday that the Council has caused the Catholic Church ''only damages''. ''The aftermath of the Council has been to empty seminaries, nunneries and churches. Thousands of priests have left their orders and millions of faithful have stopped being practicing Catholics and have joined...

An Interview with Bishop Fellay -SSPX Superior General Expects Clarifying Theological Discussions -Says Even Some Cardinals See "Devil at Work" in Recent Media Firestorm Brian Mershon REMNANT COLUMNIST, South Carolina -Exclusive to The Remnant- (Posted 2/18/09 www.RemnantNewspaper.com) In this exclusive interview for The Remnant since the lifting of the excommunications of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), General Superior Bishop Bernard Fellay emphasizes that the path forward would be determined by what he expects to be extensive but, hopefully fruitful, theological discussions on the documents of the Second Vatican Council. In addition to the SSPX’s desire to have more...

PARIS (Reuters) - An ultra-traditionalist bishop seeking rehabilitation from the Vatican said in an interview on Wednesday that his breakaway movement could not fully accept landmark 20th century church reforms, as his critics demand. Bishop Fellay, whose excommunication was lifted last month along with those of three other bishops, said his Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) did not agree with a key document of the Second Vatican Council on respecting other religions. He also told the French weekly Famille Chretienne he did not reject the 1962-1965 Council completely but only "a dangerous spirit that runs through the whole Council"...

Communiqué of the Superior General of the Society of St. Pius X,Bishop Bernard Fellay  It has come to our attention that Bishop Richard Williamson, a member of our Society, granted an interview to a Swedish network. In this interview, he also commented on historical issues, especially on the genocide of Jews by the National-Socialist regime. It is obvious that a bishop speaks with religious authority solely on matters of faith and morals. Our Society claims no authority over historical or other secular matters.  The mission of the Society is the offering and restoration of authentic Catholic teaching, as handed down...

The schismatic traditionalist Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) has reacted to a Vatican ultimatum by challenging the conditions Rome set for its return to the Catholic fold. By sending this in a letter, SSPX leader Bishop Bernard Fellay partly fulfilled one condition of the ultimatum, i.e. answering by the end of this month. But he did not fulfill the more important other half of that requirement, i.e. that he respond positively. In fact, he told the Vatican that other conditions — to accept papal authority and not criticise the pope — were too vague to be accepted, according to...

Folks, this as reported by Phil Lawler for Catholic World News: Vatican, Jun. 27, 2008 (CWNews.com) - Leaders of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) report that they will not respond directly to what some observers have called an "ultimatum" from the Vatican. But the SSPX has not ignored the Vatican's message, either. The talks continue. A spokesman for Bishop Bernard Fellay, the superior of the SSPX, has confirmed to the French newspaper La Croix that the traditionalist bishop has written to Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos (bio - news), the president of the Ecclesia Dei commission, responding to...

PARIS (Reuters) - The leader of a breakaway traditionalist Catholic group has rejected a Vatican offer to rejoin Rome, accusing Pope Benedict of trying to silence dissenting voices. Bishop Bernard Fellay, head of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) that broke with Rome 20 years ago, said conditions set by the Vatican amounted to muzzling the traditionalists who claim to be the only true Catholics since Church reforms in the 1960s.

Are "The Five Conditions" necessary and reasonable? By Brian Kopp There is much debate going on inside and outside SSPX circles over "The Five Conditions." One may ask whether these conditions are "insulting" to the SSPX leadership, as some SSPX supporters insist that the SSPX already adheres to "The Five Conditions." By and large, this seems to be true of Bishop Fellay, though he recently slipped a bit in this regard: Bishop Fellay: Pope Benedict is a "perfectly liberal Pope"Given his record of otherwise prudent and measured statements regarding Pope Benedict XVI, this gaff of Bishop Fellay could easily be...

Conditions which result from the meeting of June 4, 2008, between Cardinal Darío Castrillón Hoyos and Bishop Bernard Fellay 1. The commitment to a response proportionate to the generosity of the Pope. 2. The commitment to avoid every public intervention which does not respect the person of the Holy Father and which may be negative to ecclesial charity. 3. The commitment to avoid the claim to a Magisterium superior to the Holy Father and to not propose the Fraternity in contraposition to the Church. 4. The commitment to display the will to act honestly in full ecclesial charity and in...

Secret theological discussions with the SSPX in Rome? The Superior-General of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X (FSSPX/SSPX), Bishop Bernard Fellay, granted today an interview to registered readers of the French website Donec Ponam. When asked about the possible removal of the excommunications of the four bishops of the FSSPX by the Holy See, Fellay answered: In my opinion, the Roman authorities have no grave reason to keep the excommunications. It is therefore a matter of political balance between the FSSPX, on one side, and, on the other, the Progressives with whom these authorities believe they must deal. Meanwhile,...

In its October 16 edition, Le Figaro published an article by Sophie de Ravinel entitled: “The Lefebvrites: Rome about to lift the sanctions”. This article, which claims that Bishop Fellay is sending a letter to the pope asking that the excommunications be lifted, contains two errors which lead to an untrue statement: Sophie de Ravinel mistook the two preconditions formulated by Bishop Fellay at the beginning of 2001 (freedom for the Traditional Mass and withdrawal of the decree of excommunication) and the spiritual bouquet of one million rosaries which he will offer to the pope at the end of the...

The Rev. Yves le Roux, rector of St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in Winona, is clear about the role of the Society of St. Pius X, of which he is a member. “We are Roman Catholic,� he said. “We are recognized by Pope Benedict XVI. He is our father, but we are obliged to tell you we do not accept the teachings of Vatican II because it’s not an echo of the traditional church. The Church does not have the ability to teach something new.� St. Thomas Aquinas is one of six seminaries around the world run by the Society of...

VATICAN CITY, APRIL 9, 2006 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI has appointed three new members to the commission that is working for a return to full communion for members of the Society of St. Pius X. The three appointed to the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei" are Cardinals William Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith; Jean-Pierre Ricard, archbishop of Bordeaux and president of the French episcopal conference; and Antonio Cañizares Llovera, archbishop of Toledo and primate of Spain. The commission's president is Cardinal Darío Castrillón Hoyos, prefect of the Congregation for Clergy. The Commission "Ecclesia Dei" was instituted...

Vatican City, Apr. 10, 2006 (CNA) - A source at the Vatican has told CNA that during Holy Week Pope Benedict XVI may grant universal permission to use the Missal of St. Pius V, the liturgical rite used in the Church before Vatican II. According to the source, the announcement could come “between Holy Thursday and Easter Sunday,” but the exact day has not yet been set.  Nevertheless, the source said the decision has already been made by the Holy Father and that it’s “only a matter of time” before it is publicly announced. “A minor official gesture by the...

Continuing the series begun last night, here's some more interesting transcription from remarks given by Bishop Bernard Fellay, Superior-General of the Society of St. Pius X, at a Conference in Denver in mid-February. The Society's four bishops, ordained by the late Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988 in obstinate defiance of the Holy See and the explicit pleas of the late Pope John Paul II, were excommunicated for manifesting schism in ignoring the authority of Rome. Before running this bit, in which Fellay speaks of the interregnum and his audience with Benedict XVI last 29 August, I must say that I'm...

Talks aimed at reconciling the Roman Catholic Church and an ultra-traditionalist splinter group are progressing, with the Vatican pushing to move faster than the rebels, the head of the breakaway group said on Friday.Bishop Bernard Fellay, head of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), told journalists he was sure that Pope Benedict wanted to end the 17-year split and bring the group back into the mainstream of the Catholic Church.But the SSPX, which has maintained the old Latin Mass and rejects much of the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), still has some profound differences with Rome...

So the Saint Pius X Fraternity announced the audience given on 29 August by Benedict XVI to the Superior Monsignor Fellay. 30Days had a telephone conversation with the successor of Monsignor Marcel Lefebvre in the headquarters of the Fraternity, in Menzingen, Switzerland. ... What reasons pushed you to ask for an audience?    FELLAY: First of all love for the Church. And then the fact that there is a new Pontiff, and it was natural for us to ask for an audience to reverence and pay homage to the new Successor of Peter, our Pope. That was the first reason. Then in...

Note from Papabile This is an extremely long post. I was told this interview with Fellay was carried on DICI, but I cannot find it. I post it here to simply air that which is public. It is not an endorsement or support for the SSPX's position. * * * * * D.I.C.I.: Your Excellency, you requested the audience with Pope Benedict XVI that took place last August 29. What was the purpose of your request? Bishop Fellay: We wanted to meet the Holy Father because we are Catholic and, as every Catholic, we are attached to Rome. We wanted...

The Vatican has, in the past few weeks, been involved in two different exercises of fence-mending. One front was that opened with traditionalist Catholics after Vatican II. The other front was the very recent breach with Israel. The latter seems to be the easier one. It was nothing more than "a storm in a teacup", said the Apostolic Nuncio to Israel, Archbishop Pietro Sambi, when describing Israel's recent diplomatic incident with the Holy See. These comments refer to July's conflict that arose when representatives of Israel's government publicly accused Pope John Paul II and Benedict XVI for not having condemned...

Pope Benedict XVI met with the head of the ultraconservative movement founded by the excommunicated Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre on Monday amid a renewed push to bring the "schismatic" group back into Rome's fold.Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the meeting between the pope and Monsignor Bernard Fellay, secretary general of the Society of St. Pius X, was held "in a climate of love for the church and a desire to arrive at perfect communion.""While knowing the difficulties, the desire to proceed by degrees and in reasonable time was shown," Navarro-Valls said in a statement.Lefebvre founded the Switzerland-based society in 1969, which...

CASTELGANDOLFO, Italy: Pope Benedict XVI, who has made reconciliation among Christians a priority of his pontificate, will on Monday meet the leader of a schismatic group of ultra-traditionalists, according to a statement by the group. The Vatican has neither confirmed nor denied that the meeting will take place, but if it does it could be the first step to bringing the defiant traditionalists back into the Catholic fold, observers said. Bernard Fellay, the superior general of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X, based in Econe, Switzerland, will meet the Pope at his country residence here, the Fraternity said in...

Three months after the election of Benedict XVI, Bishop Bernard Fellay, Superior General of the Society of Saint Pius X, granted an exclusive interview to DICI.DICI: At the time of the election of Benedict XVI, you published a communiqué in which you spoke of a "glimmer of hope". What did you mean by those words?Bp Fellay: Our hope is based first of all on the promises of Our Lord Jesus Christ. It is true that all is not well in the Church: it is a tragedy. But in the face of this dramatic situation, we have the promise of Our...

In the name of the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X, His Excellency Bishop Fellay, Superior General, welcomes the accession of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger to the Sovereign Pontificate. He sees there a gleam of hope that we may find a way out of the profound crisis which is shaking the Catholic Church, of which some aspects have been spoken of by the former Head for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and quite recently so in his preaching on the occasion of the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. His Excellency Bishop Fellay implores Our Lord Jesus...

What is the priest? In order to come close to this verity, my dear brethren, we need nothing less than that same faith with which we approach the sacred Host. The priest is priest for the Mass. In the words of consecration, the words “mysterium fidei” are used, the mystery of faith, since what we see, the Eucharistic species, is certainly the reality, but which before the reality of the Host, is no more than an appearance. Thus it is with the priest. He is a man chosen by God from amongst men, a human being with all his human...

His Excellency, the Most Reverend Bernard Fellay of the Priestly Fraternity of the Society of Saint Pius X, told parishioners at Saint Ignatius Retreat House in Ridgefield, Connecticut, on Sunday, November 7,2004, that no deal with Rome on the status of the Society of Saint Pius X is in sight. Bishop Fellay commented at length, both in his sermon during Holy Mass and in a two and one-half hour conference that followed a reception in his honor, that although there are some high ranking curial cardinals in Rome who are sympathetic to the cause of giving the Traditional Latin Mass...