EPISTLES

We all know what happened with our first parents. In the Garden of Eden, they were tempted. Temptation was necessary. The serpent had to persuade Eve to distrust God’s command. There was hesitation, struggle, and rationalization before the fall. The devil’s strategy depended on weakening obedience to divine authority. The result: they were exiled from the garden and deprived of the overflowing grace God had given them.

This is what makes the SSPX consecrations of 1988 and the proposed 2026 consecrations particularly alarming to many Catholics. Unlike Eve, the SSPX bishops did not act in ignorance or confusion. They had centuries of Catholic teaching on obedience to the Roman Pontiff, repeated canonical warnings, and direct appeals from Pope John Paul II and Pope Leo XIV not to proceed, even after clear disapproval and warnings of schism. Yet they moved forward anyway.

Eve at least needed a serpent to convince her. In the SSPX case, Satan almost seems unnecessary. Their attitude deliberately echoes the temptation in Genesis 3:4: “We will be fine. For God knows that when we disobey Him, our eyes will be opened, and we will be like God, deciding everything for ourselves.” The issue was never whether having new bishops is good or whether Tradition matters. The issue was knowingly crossing a boundary established by the authority Christ instituted in His Church.

The satirical image above captures that idea vividly: SSPX priests are enthusiastically running toward the forbidden fruit while the serpent lags behind, almost fearful of being unnecessary to the process. My point in generating the caricature is theological rather than personal. I want to emphasize the perception that SSPX disobedience is so eager and deliberate that even the tempter appears shocked by the speed of the rush toward what had been explicitly forbidden.

Scripture repeatedly teaches that obedience is tested precisely when circumstances become difficult. Saul lost his kingdom for offering unauthorized sacrifice despite believing it necessary. Uzzah was struck for touching the Ark despite good intentions. The lesson throughout salvation history is consistent: good intentions do not erase disobedience to God’s established order.

Supporters of the SSPX’s disobedience often argue that there is a grave crisis in the Church. But nearly every schism in Church history justified itself by appealing to extraordinary circumstances. The danger begins when personal conviction replaces submission to lawful authority.

Eve fell after deception and temptation. The SSPX consecrations occurred after explicit warnings and full awareness of the consequences. That is why many Catholics see the act not merely as disobedience, but as a deliberate rejection of the authority structure Christ Himself established.

If our first parents were punished for crossing a single boundary established by God, how much more serious is it to knowingly defy the authority Christ established in His Church after repeated warnings not to proceed?

Sadly, in their view, the belief that Rome is ruled by scandalous prelates becomes sufficient justification for disobedience. They elevate their own private judgment as the ultimate authority, much like anti-Catholic Protestants who reject the authority of Christ exercised through a visible and imperfect human office: the Papacy.