Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who died in a state of excommunication in 1991 for consecrating four bishops without the approval of Pope John Paul II, was a Roman Catholic archbishop who founded the FSSPX in 1970.
For Lefebvre, the FSSPX was a response to what he considered errors infiltrating the Catholic Church after the Second Vatican Council. Members of this movement are commonly called “Lefebvrists.”
Within the context of the talks held between the Vatican and the Lefebvrists, in 2009 Benedict XVI lifted the excommunication of the four bishops ordained by Lefebvre in 1988: Bernard Fellay, Bernard Tissier de Mallerais, Richard Williamson, and Alfonso de Galarreta.
Despite the Holy See’s efforts at dialogue, and given the refusal of the FSSPX to recognize ecclesial documents, especially from the Second Vatican Council, the Lefebvrists do not have a recognized status in the Catholic Church.
In its statement dated May 12, the Archdiocese of Puebla stressed that “the sacraments administered by the ministers of the Fraternity of St. Pius X are illicit” and explained that this is because “they are not celebrated in full ecclesial communion.”
In addition, the archdiocese noted “they are administered by acephalous priests, that is, they are not under ecclesiastical authority. They do not obey the pope. They do not belong to any diocese or congregation and do not have ministerial licenses issued by the Archdiocese of Puebla.”