Negotiations only reach successful results when both sides cede some ground.
The more vulnerable side also must recognize the imbalance of power: when the dominant party is generous, this should not be misinterpreted as weakness.
After the 1988 consecrations of four bishops, 12 long years were spent by the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) mostly ignored by the Holy See. There were contacts, but subdued.
Circumstances changed in the year 2000, when, as part of the great Jubilee, Pope John Paul II opened up the churches of Rome to all Traditional groups. Cardinal Hoyos, Prefect for Clergy (1996-2006) and President of Ecclesia Dei (2000-2005), took the opportunity to open conversations with the SSPX. Rumors from the time assured that a worldwide Apostolic Administration was already then offered to the Society. Negotiations broke down.
However, one group allied with the SSPX, the Society of Saint John Vianney, in Campos, Brazil, decided to proceed themselves, and they were granted still the only particular church exclusively dedicated to the Traditional Roman Rite, the Personal Apostolic Administration Saint John Mary Vianney, established by John Paul II in 2002. The general formula of reconciliation signed and accepted by those priests was not much different than the ones proposed yesterday by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.
The SSPX never forgave the Campos priests, and even established a whole priory in the same area, which is obviously filled with Traditional Mass locations, instead of creating new chapels in the vast nation of Brazil that were in much greater need of assistance.
Anyway, with the election of Pope Benedict XVI, who, as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith had spent so much time and effort trying to end the irregularity in 1988, the SSPX had the most sympathetic person they could ever hope for on the throne of Peter.
Negotiations started almost immediately, and the two demands of the SSPX were met in close succession: the freedom of the Traditional Mass for all priests in the Latin Church (Summorum Pontificum, in 2007); and the lifting of the excommunications of the four bishops consecrated in 1988 (January 2009).
What followed were years of agonizing "doctrinal discussions," and, though Pope Benedict XVI offered a variety of different structures for the regularization of the SSPX, they still rejected it. The sense one got at the time (during which this blog already existed, so there is plenty in our archives) was that the then-Superior General, Bishop Fellay, tried to convince his members, but was in the minority.
Many claim that the failure of negotiations with the SSPX, which Benedict tried to conclude successfully to the very end of his pontificate, was one of the major causes of the heartbreak that led him to resign.
Under Francis, who had a particular and unexpected affection for the SSPX, even greater concessions were granted by the Holy See: jurisdiction for confessions, granted temporarily for the Jubilee of Mercy, and then extended indefinitely in the Apostolic Letter "Misericordia et misera" (2016); and jurisdiction for marriages (Ecclesia Dei commission, 2017).
In the 25 years following the 2000 Jubilee, therefore, under 3 different popes of diverse thinking and temperament, the Bishop of Rome, the Supreme Authority of the Church, gave in, again and again. Generous concessions were granted, one after the other. An objective observer, even one who has great love for the reality and work of the Society, and unending gratitude for the work the Society has accomplished through the decades, cannot but be struck by the fact that there were no true concessions by the Society at all.
So much was granted by the stronger party, the Supreme Authority of the Catholic Church. What did the other side cede? One concession even? Just one? Maybe accepting a temporary regularization inside a structure created by the Holy See, protecting their property for a number of experimental years, while more doctrinal discussions ensued. Maybe perhaps, at the very least, officially and publicly stating, through clear words, that the faithful attached to them could freely attend Traditional Masses celebrated by the various groups in regular situation.
These same groups, who gave everything out of fidelity to Rome, were instead struck by Francis with the cruelty of Traditionis custodes (2021), which, on the other hand, gave the SSPX both greater prestige and presence (since they remained untouched by it) and an additional excuse not to cede any ground at all.
As we have said here, the affection Francis had for the SSPX was so deep it is quite possible that a consecration under him would have been received in a very different manner.
The new pope was elected in May 2025, and he is his own man. When the consecrations were announced months ago, it was as if an ultimatum had been placed on him, without even giving him enough time to fully assess the situation -- while he was still receiving pleas from regularized Traditional Catholics regarding a reevaluation of Traditionis custodes. An ultimatum is not the best way to test the spine of a new leader. New leaders do not like to be bossed around.
So we reached the inevitable. The drifting apart will continue probably indefinitely. It is a sad situation all around, but it could have been much different if the 25 years of concessions from the Supreme Authority had been reciprocated even in a minor way by the other party.
