Dear Faithful,Here is a possible explanation of why there are no new SSPX bishops.God bless,Fr. MacDonaldExcommunications Lifted, in Hindsight
Bishop Williamson teaches that in an SSPX Rome agreement the crucial question is: who appoints
henceforth the SSPX bishops?1
His Excellency continues: “The history of the Catholic Church is
littered with examples of the struggle between the friends and enemies of God – normally Church
and State respectively – for control of the appointment of Catholic bishops. For as any intelligent
friend or enemy of the Church well knows, the bishops are the key to its future. As Archbishop
Lefebvre used to say, in defiance of all today’s democratic nonsense, it is the bishops who form the
Catholic people and not the people who form the bishops.”
Archbishop Lefebvre and Cardinal Ratzinger both understood this well. The wily Cardinal nearly
wrested control of the appointment of SSPX bishops from the Archbishop, but by the grace of God
the Archbishop realized that he could not trust the Cardinal and assisted by Bishop de Castro Meyer
consecrated four of his priests bishops in Operation Survival, rejecting the idea that he would be
excommunicated. “We are convinced that all these accusations of which we are the object, all
penalties of which we are the object, are null, absolutely null and void, and of which we will take no
account.”2
The SSPX explained this claim of the Archbishop in a brochure: Neither Schismatic nor
Excommunicated.
Twenty years later Bishop Fellay decided that the null and void excommunications had become
valid. He was excommunicated3
and outside of the Visible Church.4
Cardinal Ratzinger never
admitted that Archbishop Lefebvre had bested him, and now as Pope Benedict he was still
determined to control the appointment of SSPX bishops. One pre-condition set for admitting the
SSPX into the Visible Church was that Pope Benedict would lift the excommunications on the four
SSPX bishops.
The SSPX prayed that this would happen and rejoiced when Pope Benedict did lift the
excommunications. The SSPX expressed gratitude to the Pope for his good will and generosity.
Almost fifteen years later the SSPX has now multiplied ties with the “Visible Church”. Its bishops
are older and the health of some of them has deteriorated. The faithful wonder why no new bishops
are forthcoming? The SSPX have painted themselves into a corner. By asking for the lifting of these
null excommunications there is certainly an agreement, at least implicit, that they will not again
consecrate bishops without the approval of Rome. Doing so would be a great ingratitude to Pope
Benedict and they would be re-excommunicated.
Archbishop Lefebvre won the battles with Rome during his lifetime but his successors were not the
warriors that he was and did not see the deceits of wily Benedict / Ratzinger who wrested control of
the SSPX from them and won the war. Now Pope Francis or his successor will choose the next
SSPX bishop. This bishop will form the priests and faithful, and finally integrate them into the
Conciliar Church. Probably there will be only a whimper of protest as the faithful are being more
and more acclimatized to Conciliarism.
Fr. Edward F. MacDonald 16 March 2023
Oxley, Australia
St. Pius X, pray for us.
Sts. Cosmas and Damien, pray for us.
1 Eleison Comments #116, September 26, 2009
2
https://sspx.org/en/1988-episcopal-consecrations-sermon3 It is curious that he did not stop saying Mass.
4 From the catechism we know that VISIBLE is not a Mark of the Church, nor is it an Attribute of the Church. It is
essential to be where the four marks are, viz., One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic. Visible is good, but not essential.
And if what appears to be the Visible Church does not have the four marks, it is anathema. We must