Canonical Situation
The canonical situation of the SSPX has been subject of much controversy since the 1988 Écône consecrations. In his letter of 10 March 2009 concerning his remission of the excommunication of the four bishops of the Society of St Pius X, Pope Benedict XVI declared: "Until the doctrinal questions are clarified, the Society has no canonical status in the Church, and its ministers - even though they have been freed of the ecclesiastical penalty - do not legitimately exercise any ministry in the Church." The Society claims to possess "extraordinary" jurisdiction.
For Catholics, assistance at Mass celebrated by priests of the Society is not in itself a sin. However, assistance at Mass celebrated by a priest not in good standing with the Church "deprives participation at Mass of that fullness of communion with Christ and his Church which the Mass, by its very nature and in all its forms, is called to express".
Read more about this topic: Society Of St. Pius X
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