Denver archbishop urges faithful to avoid SSPX chapels following Vatican’s declaration of schism, excommunication
Archbishop James Golka instructed Catholics to avoid Society of St. Pius X activities after the group's illicit episcopal consecrations resulted in automatic excommunication and a Vatican declaration of schism.
Archbishop James Golka has instructed Catholics in the Archdiocese of Denver to refrain from participating in activities of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), following the group's July 1 illicit episcopal consecrations that resulted in the Vatican declaring schism and excommunication for those involved in the ordinations, all SSPX clergy, and some lay faithful.
In a July 7 pastoral letter, Archbishop Golka described the ordinations as “a grave wound to the unity of the Church” and “a sorrowful moment for us all,” emphasizing that the issue is not the celebration of the traditional Latin Mass but communion with the successor of St. Peter.
“While many faithful Catholics have a deep love for the Church's liturgical traditions, this situation is not about the form of the Mass,” Archbishop Golka wrote. “At its heart is full communion with the Church and fidelity and obedience to the Holy Father.”
The archbishop directed Catholics not to participate in SSPX activities “in any location,” including St. Isidore in Watkins and Annunciation Chapel in Fort Collins.
Acknowledging that the news would be painful for some Catholics attached to the society, Archbishop Golka encouraged the faithful to remain active in parish life and the sacramental life of the Church. He also urged Catholics to accompany those involved with the SSPX “with charity, patience, and prayer,” noting that those who wish to worship according to the Traditional Latin Mass — in full communion with the Church — are welcome at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Littleton, which is served by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter.
The letter follows the Vatican's declaration that the four men consecrated as bishops by the SSPX, along with the bishops who performed the ordinations, incurred automatic excommunication because the Holy See explicitly warned them not to carry out the consecrations.
As Zeale News previously reported, the Vatican said the illicit ordinations deepened the society's separation from Rome and reaffirmed that clergy and lay faithful who formally adhere to the SSPX are in schism.
In the days leading up to the consecrations, Zeale News also reported on an open letter from leaders of Franciscan University of Steubenville and other theologians urging the SSPX to cancel the ordinations and renew dialogue with the Holy See. The appeal warned that proceeding with the consecrations would further entrench the society's separation from the Catholic Church.
Other theologians, such as Eamonn Clark, and Cardinals Robert Sarah, Joseph Zen, and Gerhard Müller also spoke out against proceeding with the consecrations.
Pope Leo himself released a pastoral letter the day before the consecrations took place, asking the SSPX leadership to abandon their plans.
In it, the Pontiff wrote: “I urge you to consider carefully the spiritual good of the faithful, because the schismatic act you are about to undertake would deprive them of the licit and, in some cases, even valid reception of the Sacraments, which they love and seek for their sanctification.”
Archbishop Golka’s letter comes amid similar directives from bishops across the U.S.
The SSPX was founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and has remained in an irregular canonical situation since the archbishop consecrated four bishops without papal approval in 1988. Although recent popes granted limited faculties for certain sacraments, the society's canonical status remained unresolved, as Zeale News previously reported.
Concluding his letter, Archbishop Golka asked the faithful to pray for the clergy, religious, and lay faithful associated with SSPX, Pope Leo XIV, and the unity of the Church.
