Fears of Catholic schism as defiant sect ordains ultra-conservative bishops

A rebel group of ultra-conservative Catholics has defied Pope Leo by ordaining bishops without his consent, which they declared a “sacred duty” despite it causing their automatic excommunication. In a ritual-filled ceremony on Wednesday, streamed live from the Swiss village of Ecône, the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) went ahead with the consecrations of four bishops, one from Switzerland , one from France and two from the US. Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta leads the procession prior to the schismatic consecration of the four bishops. Photograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta, who himself was consecrated without papal consent in 1988, placed his hands on the head of the four new bishops, a ritual laying of the hands that Catholics believe confers the Holy Spirit from one bishop to another. Under Catholic church law, all five now face automatic excommunication. The SSPX, founded in 1970 in Ecône to oppose liberalising changes in the Catholic church, is a considered a threat to Pope Leo’s leadership since it represents a parallel, ultra-Catholic church. The ordinations in Ecône, Switzerland, were described by the pope as a ‘schismatic act’. Photograph: Cyril Zingaro/EPA The pontiff had made a last-ditch effort to persuade the society to halt the ordinations, calling them a “schismatic act” and a “sin of extreme gravity” . …