Archbishop Jan Pawel Lenga, a former bishop in Kazakhstan known for surviving communism and his previous outspoken criticism of Pope Francis and the direction of the Catholic hierarchy, sharply criticized the Vatican’s excommunication of the priests and laity of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) after its July 1 consecration of four new bishops without a papal mandate while praising the order.
In a statement, Archbishop Lenga, 76, slammed the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s (DDF) under Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández decree that excommunicated the Society’s newly consecrated bishops, all clergy, and in some cases, its laity, claiming this is proof that the Vatican has departed from Christ and the authentic faith. The archbishop noted that the SSPX had tried for years to make contact with the Vatican, which he noted has been occupied “by people who have been completely corrupted by the world and who have been placed there in order to destroy the Catholic Church down to its very roots,” about consecrating new bishops but was unsuccessful.
Lenga highlighted the pious, peaceful, and joyful atmosphere of the SSPX’s consecrations, and the great life of prayer and devotion to Christ, especially among young people, present within the Society. He compared this atmosphere with the “complete chaos” of the Vatican hierarchy, whom he decried as “wolves” who ultimately have no concern for the salvation of souls but instead lead them astray. Indeed, he wrote that many of these cardinals and bishops are themselves in “schism.”