EPISTLES

In these days of ecclesial confusion and division, Catholics should be aware of the planned episcopal consecration of Very Rev. Fr. Michael Mary, Superior General of the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer (Transalpine Redemptorists, F.SS.R.), scheduled for July 25, 2026, at their monastery on the remote island of Papa Stronsay, Scotland. The announcement was made public through a letter from Monseigneur Pierre Roy dated June 18, 2026.

The Key Figures Involved

1. Bishop Pierre Roy

A former priest of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) who later left the Society. He now holds a sedevacantist position and will serve as the principal consecrator.

2. Bishop Rodrigo Ribeiro da Silva

A Brazilian bishop formerly associated with the SSPX Resistance in the line of Bishop Richard Williamson. He also holds a sedevacantist position and will serve as a co-consecrator.

3. Bishop Fernando Altamira

Another former SSPX cleric who will serve as a co-consecrator.

4. Fr. Michael Mary, F.SS.R.

The priest who is to be consecrated bishop. Following an unresolved and highly public dispute with ecclesiastical authorities in New Zealand, he and his community recently adopted a sedevacantist position, rejecting the legitimacy of the current Roman authorities.

5. Other non-Catholic Bishops

From these facts alone, it is evident that the ceremony being planned is not a Catholic episcopal consecration in communion with the Church, but rather a Sedevacantist consecration carried out outside the authority of the Roman Pontiff.

Background on the F.SS.R.

Fr. Michael Mary is the founder and long-time superior of the F.SS.R., a traditionalist monastic community inspired by St. Alphonsus Liguori. Established in 1988 with roots in the SSPX, the community acquired Papa Stronsay as its motherhouse in 1999.

In 2008, under Pope Benedict XVI, the community reconciled with Rome and was canonically erected within the Diocese of Aberdeen. However, in late 2025 and again in May 2026, following internal study and what they described as experiences of persecution, the community publicly renounced that reconciliation and embraced sedevacantism, asserting that the Apostolic See is vacant due to what they regard as post-conciliar apostasy.

The Principal Consecrator

Bishop Pierre Roy was ordained a priest for the SSPX on June 17, 2011. He initially served in Québec, ministering in Sherbrooke and Montréal. After five years in the Society, he left on June 3, 2016, claiming that SSPX authorities intended to place themselves under what he considered the influence of the “Novus Ordo hierarchy.”

His trajectory illustrates a recurring pattern within radical traditionalist circles: movements that once separated from Rome often experience further fragmentation, producing new groups that judge even the SSPX to be insufficiently resistant to modern Rome.

The Response of the Catholic Church

This development has drawn a firm rebuke from the Catholic hierarchy in Scotland.

The Catholic Bishop of Aberdeen, within whose diocese Papa Stronsay is located. He has publicly warned the faithful against attending the planned consecration.

On June 18, 2026, Bishop Hugh Gilbert, O.S.B., of Aberdeen stated:

“Today news has reached the Diocese of Aberdeen that the Superior General of the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer, V. Rev. Fr Michael Mary, F.Ss.R., intends to be consecrated as a bishop on 25th July on the island of Papa Stronsay in Orkney. This ordination would be celebrated without a papal mandate, by a group of bishops who deny that Our Holy Father Pope Leo XIV is actually the pope.

Since this consecration is due to take place within the geographical boundaries of the Diocese of Aberdeen, I am obliged to make clear to the faithful of the Diocese that any such episcopal ordination would be unlawful and a grave act of disobedience, separating those taking part from communion with the Catholic Church.

No member of the faithful should attend. This action is not ‘for the good of the Catholic Church’ as is falsely claimed.

This development is greatly to be regretted, and we can only pray that those concerned have a change of heart.”

Why This Matters

In these turbulent times, the decision of a former SSPX priest turned independent bishop to consecrate a self-professed sedevacantist superior raises profound questions regarding authority, fidelity, and the unity of the Church.

To those involved, even the SSPX has become another “modernist” organization because it continues to recognize the authority of Rome. This illustrates the centrifugal force inherent in the sedevacantist position: once the principle of submission to the Roman Pontiff is abandoned, there is no universally recognized authority capable of resolving disputes or preserving unity.

While the desire to preserve Tradition and ensure sacramental ministry during a perceived crisis may be understandable, actions taken without a papal mandate and in explicit rejection of the reigning Roman Pontiff deepen the wounds of division within the Mystical Body of Christ.

History shows that irregular episcopal consecrations, however sincerely motivated, often multiply fragmentation rather than resolve it. They tend to produce further splinter groups, conflicting jurisdictions, and an increasingly weakened public witness of both clergy and faithful.