Excommunicated for schism: Vatican declares Écône bishops schismatics

Vatican City - Just over twenty-four hours after the episcopal consecrations at Écône, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith today, 2 July 2026, published an Explanatory Note and a Decree formally declaring the schismatic status of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X and the latae sententiae excommunication of those responsible for yesterday’s act on the grounds of the seminary in Valais. The two documents, signed by the Prefect, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, Mgr Armando Matteo, Secretary of the Doctrinal Section, and Archbishop John J. Kennedy, Secretary of the Disciplinary Section, bring to a close a process which the Dicastery says has been marked by unsuccessful efforts at reconciliation, “from the time of Saint Paul VI” through to the most recent talks. This refers to the meetings held in recent months between the Fraternity’s Superior General, Fr Davide Pagliarani, and Cardinal Fernández himself, culminating in the personal appeal addressed by Pope Leo XIV to Pagliarani …