TX archdiocese announces laicization of priest guilty of schism

Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller of San Antonio, Texas, announced Aug. 14 that John Mary Foster, who had been ordained a priest in 2009, has been found guilty of schism and removed from the clerical state. The archbishop also prohibited the faithful from participating in activities or illicit liturgies celebrated at the mission church where Foster is the de facto leader. 

Archbishop García-Siller explained that Foster’s conviction for the schism is “a crime against the faith for his refusal of submission to the Roman Pontiff,” determined by a canonical trial that began in April 2025. The tribunal officials in the case included three judges who are priests with doctorates in canon law and whose regular ministry is independent of the archdiocese. 

The tribunal reviewed statements, homilies, and Foster’s teachings, and received testimonies from witnesses. After more than a year of examination and discernment, the tribunal pronounced the sentence dismissing Foster from the clerical state and declaring his excommunication. The Vatican was notified of the outcome. According to the archbishop, Foster decided not to appeal the outcome to the Vatican. 

The archbishop stated that Foster “has been returned to the lay state” and that “he no longer possesses faculties, or the authority to celebrate the sacraments,” with the exception of the circumstances stated in canons 976 and 986 of the Code of Canon Law. 

“Mr. Foster has chosen to reject the Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church by his words and actions,” Archbishop García-Siller said. “He has publicly referred to Pope Francis and Pope Leo XIV as ‘usurpers.’ ln publishing messages allegedly received from God, Jesus, and the Blessed Mother by a member of the Mission of Divine Mercy, for which John Mary Foster serves as the de facto leader, he has repeatedly and consistently claimed that Pope Leo XIV ‘is also a usurper and not a true pope’.”

The archbishop emphasized that the Church’s Apostolic nature, the bishops’ succession from the apostles, is a key mark of the Church. Being in communion with the Pope, the bishop of Rome and the successor of St. Peter, is essential to being Catholic, he said. 

“Throughout the history of the Church, those who sever ties from this sacred communion often profess to remain in communion with the true Church, even as they deny the successors to Peter and the Apostles, with whom they disagree,” he said. “History has shown that these schisms, often initiated by charismatic leaders and based in politics, heresy, or poorly executed attempts at reform, always result in splintered communities who find themselves no longer in communion with the Catholic Church.”

“Sadly, this is the case with John Mary Foster and any who choose to follow him out of the Catholic Church,” he added. 

Archbishop García-Siller emphasized that the announcement of Foster’s laicization is made with a heavy heart. 

“Despite being offered countless opportunities to repent and to cease his schismatic actions and teachings, Mr. Foster has chosen the path of disobedience. I have prohibited him from publicly celebrating Mass, yet he continues to do so,” the archbishop said. “When he does, he intentionally omits the name of Pope Leo XIV, as he did with Pope Francis, from the Eucharistic Prayer. In doing so, he publicly manifests his separation with the Church and the successor of Saint Peter.”

Noting that Foster is the de facto leader of the Mission of Divine Mercy in Canyon Lake, the archbishop declared that participating in activities and illicit liturgies celebrated by Foster or at the mission “is a formal act of disobedience” and prohibited all Catholics from attending any liturgical activities or events at the mission. 

“To you, the faithful people of God, in my fraternal care for you as your shepherd, I encourage you to guard your heart and mind against those who seek to separate you from the Catholic Church,” Archbishop García-Siller said.

He also urged the faithful to cease all financial support of Foster and the mission, saying that such contributions “would offer him the opportunity to continue to undermine the mission of the Roman Catholic Church entrusted to us by Christ.”

The archbishop concluded by asking the faithful to join him in praying that Foster “will repent and seek reconciliation with the Roman Catholic Church and be able to once again receive the sacraments of the Church.”