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Four Bishops Consecrated in Switzerland; Cardinal Declares Excommunication

7/2/2026

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Summary

Story summary

Four bishops were consecrated by Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta in Econe, Switzerland, despite rain.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin declared the consecrations a schismatic act that incurs excommunication.
The Society of Saint Pius X justified the rite as a sacred duty undertaken under a state of necessity.
Participants, such as a 71-year-old Filipino travel agent and a Gabonese researcher, said they were unafraid of excommunication.

History

Historical Context

In June 1988 Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre consecrated four SSPX priests as bishops without papal mandate; the Vatican’s Congregation for Bishops declared automatic excommunication on 1 July and Pope John Paul II labeled the act schismatic in his 2 July letter *Ecclesia Dei*. The Society repeats that pattern in 2026 when Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta ordains new bishops, reviving the same rupture.

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Story summary

Four bishops were consecrated by Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta in Econe, Switzerland, despite rain.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin declared the consecrations a schismatic act that incurs excommunication.
The Society of Saint Pius X justified the rite as a sacred duty undertaken under a state of necessity.
Participants, such as a 71-year-old Filipino travel agent and a Gabonese researcher, said they were unafraid of excommunication.

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