The Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) is an international society of Traditionalist Catholic priests. Its official Latin name is Fraternitas Sacerdotalis Sancti Pii X (FSSPX), meaning "Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X". It was founded in November 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, the French churchman who took the lead in opposing the changes in the Catholic Church associated with the Second Vatican Council of 1962-1965. The Society was initially established under Catholic canon law in the provisional form of a pia unio, but this status was officially withdrawn in 1975, since which time the Society has been in a state of dispute with the Holy See.

In 1988, Archbishop Lefebvre consecrated four SSPX priests as bishops in violation of the orders of Pope John Paul II. Since then, Lefebvre and the four bishops have been regarded by the Church authorities as excommunicated. The consecration is officially viewed as a schismatic act which created a schism, but the SSPX is not regarded as a schismatic church in its own right in the same way as, for example, the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Holy See also holds that lay supporters of the Society are in danger of "imbiba schismatic mentality" from attendance at Masses celebrated by its priests and thereby formally adhering to the schism.[http://www.ewtn.com/library/CURIA/CEDSSPX.HTM Status of the Society of St. Pius X Masses, Msgr. Camille Perl, Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, N.117/95Status of the Society of St. Pius X, Msgr Camille Perl, Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, N.343/98 For their part, the priests and lay supporters of the SSPX strongly affirm that they are neither schismatic nor excommunicated, and many books, pamphlets and websites exist arguing that their canonical status is entirely legitimate.

Foundation and early history

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The SSPX (which is sometimes referred to simply as "SSPX", without the definite article) was born out of conservative opposition to the changes in Catholic teaching and practice that followed the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). It was founded in November 1970 by the French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, with the provisional canonical approval of Mgr. François Charrière, the Bishop of Fribourg, Switzerland. Lefebvre had spent much of his career as a missionary bishop in Africa, and had served as Superior General of the Holy Ghost Fathers from 1962 to 1968. He retired as head of that order in 1968 when its members began revising its constitutions: Lefebvre considered the revisions to be un-Catholic and Modernist. Shortly after his retirement, Lefebvre was approached by seminarians from the French Seminary in Rome. They told him that they were being persecuted for their adherence to traditional doctrines, and they sought his advice on a conservative seminary to complete their studies. He directed them to the University of Fribourg, Switzerland.

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Vatican in talks with rebel Society of Saint Pius X http://bit.ly/42NfJ
trapsreport (Michael Trapido) Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:34:33 -0000
Vatican in talks with rebel Society of Saint Pius X http://bit.ly/42NfJ

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