Catholic Church faces flare-up this week between traditionalists and the pope

By Sian Wilkerson

An ongoing dispute within the Catholic Church between a group of traditionalists and the Holy See is making headlines again this week after four bishops were consecrated in defiance of Pope Leo XIV, who days earlier described the move as a “sin of extreme gravity.”

Despite the pope’s request that the plans be canceled, the Society of St. Pius X held a service at its seminary in Switzerland with an estimated crowd of 16,500 reportedly in attendance.

While SSPX is best known for its adherence to the traditional Latin Mass, “the real disagreement runs much deeper,” said Virginia Commonwealth University professor R. Andrew Chesnut, Ph.D., the Bishop Walter Sullivan Chair in Catholic Studies.

VCU News caught up with Chesnut to learn more about the break in the Catholic Church and what it might mean going forward.

First, what exactly is the Society of St. Pius X?

The Society of St. Pius X is a traditionalist Catholic fraternity founded in 1970 by French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in response to the reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). The society believes that several key teachings of Vatican II, especially on religious liberty, ecumenism and relations with other faiths, represent a break with centuries of Catholic tradition.

From the Vatican’s perspective, the issue is not simply theological disagreement but the SSPX’s willingness to defy papal authority, most recently by consecrating bishops without the pope’s approval.

Would this be considered a schism?

Schism is fundamentally about authority rather than doctrine. In Catholicism, it refers to breaking communion with the pope and the bishops united with him, even if those involved continue to profess the same core beliefs and celebrate the same sacraments. That’s why the unauthorized consecration of bishops is such a serious matter: It creates a parallel hierarchy operating outside the papal authority.

The Vatican has often tried to avoid declaring the entire SSPX formally schismatic, but it has consistently viewed these episcopal consecrations as schismatic acts because they directly challenge the pope’s unique role as the guarantor of the church’s unity.

How much American influence is there in the SSPX?

While the Society of St. Pius X is not an American movement, the United States has become one of its most important strongholds, with an extensive network of chapels, schools, seminaries and a significant donor base. American supporters have helped expand the society’s influence well beyond U.S. borders through financial and institutional support.

While some American conservative Catholic circles share concerns similar to those of the SSPX, the society’s central disputes with Rome over authority and Vatican II originated in Europe, not the United States. Today, the SSPX is best understood as an international traditionalist Catholic movement with European roots and a particularly influential American presence.

And what does all of this mean for the church, and for Pope Leo XIV?

This is one of the most significant internal challenges facing the Catholic Church because it raises a fundamental question: Who ultimately has the authority to define authentic Catholic tradition? Every pope since Paul VI has sought some form of reconciliation with the SSPX, but none has been willing to compromise on the principle that the pope’s governing authority cannot simply be accepted selectively.

At the same time, the Vatican recognizes that many Catholics who attend SSPX chapels are motivated by genuine devotion rather than open rebellion, making the pastoral response far more complicated than a simple disciplinary matter. The controversy also illustrates a broader struggle within global Catholicism over how the church should balance continuity with tradition and adaptation to the modern world.

In the recent excommunication of the bishops and priests of SSPX, Pope Leo XIV seems to be choosing a different strategy than previous popes. But why now?

Pope Leo's decision marks a clear break from the pastoral strategy of his predecessors, who sought to keep the door to reconciliation with the SSPX open through dialogue and limited canonical concessions. That approach depended on the hope that the society would eventually return to full communion with Rome without provoking another major rupture.

The unauthorized consecration of new bishops changed the situation because it directly challenged the pope's authority to govern the Church and perpetuated an independent episcopal hierarchy.

For Pope Leo, failing to take swift and decisive action would have risked signaling that such brazen defiance carried no real ecclesiastical consequences. By imposing excommunications on those responsible, he reaffirmed a principle every modern pope has defended: Disagreement over Vatican II may be debated, but no group may place itself above the pope by consecrating bishops without his mandate.

In that sense, Pope Leo's action was less a reversal of his predecessors' strategy than the conclusion that the SSPX's latest actions had crossed a line that dialogue alone could no longer address.