Vatican's excommunication "unjust" says Athlone Latin Mass priest

A representative of the Corpus Christi Church on the west side of Athlone has commented publicly for the first time on the news that the society which operates it was excommunicated from the Catholic Church after defying an order from Pope Leo XIV.

Fr Ailbe Michael O'Reilly, who is responsible for the Corpus Christi Church in Connaught Gardens, said it was “calmly continuing” with its three weekly Masses in the aftermath of what he and other members of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) regard as an “unjust and even invalid sentence”.

SSPX is a conservative Catholic group which celebrates the Tridentine Mass in Latin.

At the beginning of July, it emerged that the Vatican had excommunicated clergy and active followers of SSPX after it consecrated four new bishops in Switzerland despite being instructed not to do so by Pope Leo.

Fr O'Reilly, in response to questions from the Westmeath Independent, said that Catholic doctrine had been watered-down in the six decades since the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II).

“The great question that hovers over this entire situation is extremely simple: has Catholic doctrine been diluted over the last 60 years? Our answer is that it has,” Fr O'Reilly stated. “Our response is to continue preaching the fulness of our Catholic faith.”

On the society's rift with the Vatican, Fr O'Reilly stated that SSPX “was not excommunicated” but, rather, had been told by the Vatican that the bishops involved in the consecrations had excommunicated themselves.

“The Decree of the Holy See stated that six bishops had automatically excommunicated themselves: two by consecrating and four by accepting the episcopal consecration.

“In other words, Cardinal Fernandez declared that all of our six bishops had fallen into automatic excommunication," Fr O'Reilly said.

“We are deeply convinced that this was an inadequate and even a false application of Canon Law. A close reading of Canon 1323 of the Code of Pope John Paul II shows that, in these concrete circumstances, the automatic excommunication does not apply.

“In fact, all six acted out of grave fear and out of necessity. The consecration of the bishops sprung from a deep abiding fear that the SSPX would not be able to give necessary spiritual nourishment to souls unless it went ahead."

The Corpus Christi Church holds three Masses each week, at 6.30pm on Fridays, and at 10am on Saturdays and Sundays.

Fr O'Reilly said attendances at these services were not impacted by recent events. On the weekend after the excommunication reports emerged, a “normal” attendance was reported at the Masses.

“Both Friday and Saturday Masses attract about 15 to 20 people. First Fridays might climb to 30. Over the last five years, the numbers assisting at Sunday Mass has risen to about 120,” he said.

“It is a slow and steady rise. We expect numbers at the Tridentine Mass to continue growing.”

While Corpus Christi Church is not part of a parish community, Fr O'Reilly said there is “a real parish spirit” among the congregants.

“A spirit of charity, joy, and even banter pervades the faithful as they meet in the hall after Sunday Mass,” he stated.

He estimated that roughly one-third of attendees at the weekly Sunday Mass are from the wider Athlone area, with the remainder travelling from other parts of the country.

“As we all know, Athlone is the centre of Ireland and for this reason it is very accessible. Of the 26 dioceses in Ireland, I think there are Sundays when about 9 or 10 of these are represented at Corpus Christi. People travel from far distances.

“At a rough guess: about 40 are from local dioceses and the rest from further afield,” he stated.

And he said attendees have been “calmly continuing” with their religious devotion in recent weeks.

“We have been prepared for what we really consider an 'unjust and even invalid sentence'. Our faithful will continue praying for our diocesan bishops, for the Holy Father and for the Church.

“I would sum everything up very simply: our faithful want to give their best to God. It is for this reason that they are attracted to the Tridentine Mass.”

When asked if he thinks there's any prospect of a reconciliation between SSPX and the Vatican's leadership, he replied: “When and how the SSPX will be recognised by the Church is not known to us.

“Only God knows. We believe that God is all powerful and for this reason it is of course possible that it will happen soon, even during the reign of Pope Leo XIV.”