This past year was one of triumph and sorrow for the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX). Joy for God’s innumerable blessings was tempered by the reality that we live in a fallen world beset by sin, scandal, and the curse of death.
Dear friends and benefactors,
This past year was one of triumph and sorrow for the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX). Joy for God’s innumerable blessings was tempered by the reality that we live in a fallen world beset by sin, scandal, and the curse of death. The Catholic Church remains tormented by false teachings, including liberalism, ecumenism, and religious indifferentism. Attacks on Catholic Tradition continue to emanate from the highest reaches of the Church. At the same time, the social order deteriorates due to pathological ideologies such as gender theory, libertinism, consumerism, and a loss of the truth that what mankind needs above all else is God.
Yet through this darkness, 2024 provided an opportunity for the SSPX and Catholics the world over to reflect on the prophetic words Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre delivered 50 years ago on November 21, 1974: “We hold fast, with all our heart and with all our soul, to Catholic Rome, Guardian of the Catholic Faith and of the traditions necessary to preserve this faith, to Eternal Rome, Mistress of wisdom and truth.”
This declaration, which has served as a guiding light for the Society’s work over the past five decades, was reaffirmed in a joint statement from our Superior General, Fr. Davide Pagliarani, and his assistants, Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta and Fr. Christian Bouchacourt. Entitled Semper Idem, this document demonstrates that, above all else, the SSPX is a Catholic work dedicated to restoring the vitality of the Church in the modern world:
Above all, we are well aware that safeguarding Tradition, and taking all the necessary steps to preserve it and to transmit it, is a duty of charity that we fulfil for the benefit of all souls, and for the Catholic Church herself as a whole. From this perspective, our combat is profoundly disinterested. The Society is not primarily seeking its own survival. It is primarily seeking the good of the Universal Church and, for this reason, the Society is par excellence a work of the Church, which, with unique freedom and strength, responds adequately to the specific needs of an unprecedentedly tragic era...
It is to the Catholic Church that Tradition belongs. It is in her and for her that we guard it in all its integrity, “until such time as the true light of Tradition dispels the darkness obscuring the sky of Eternal Rome.” We maintain this supernatural and unfaltering certainty that this same Tradition will triumph, and with it the whole Catholic Church—as well as the renewed certainty that the gates of hell will never prevail against her!
These words fortify the SSPX and the Catholic faithful we serve, even in the face of tragedy, for this past year brought that also.
First, on April 3, we lost Bishop Vitus Huonder, bishop emeritus of Chur, Switzerland. Though Bishop Huonder was not a formal member of the Society, he chose to live out the remaining years of his life with the SSPX while actively working to restore Catholic Tradition. His heroic decision to be entombed next to Archbishop Lefebvre in Ecône, Switzerland, rather than his native diocese, is a perpetual sign that truth must triumph over preference during the grave crisis the Church finds herself in.
Second, just six months later, on October 8, the SSPX was dealt a painful blow with the loss of Bishop Bernard Tissier de Mallerais. Bishop Tissier, who was among the first seminarians to enter the Society, filled many vital roles in the SSPX before and after being consecrated a bishop in 1988. He was widely known and beloved throughout the U.S. District for his frequent visits to our chapels to administer the sacrament of confirmation and preach the unadulterated Catholic Faith. He was the living link between the Society’s founding and our own day. His loss is incalculable.
But we do not despair. We will not despair, or fear what the future holds, for we know that God is with us. Proof of this can be found weekly when the Society’s priests travel throughout the country to find souls just like you who are hungry for the truth and desire to worship Our Lord in fullness and truth according to the immemorial liturgy of the Catholic Church. Further evidence is found in the joyous milestones the U.S. District reached in 2024.
The Joys of 2024
In August, St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary—the reservoir of formation and learning from which we draw so many of our priests—celebrated the 50th anniversary of its original founding in Armada, Michigan. Accompanying this golden jubilee is the semicentennial celebration of Michigan’s St. Joseph Church in Ray Township, which has given birth to chapels all over the “Mitten State” that continue to thrive and grow. Indeed, Detroit’s St. Anne’s Church, under the pastoral care of Archbishop Lefebvre, was the SSPX’s first Mass center in the United States. They celebrated their 50th anniversary in December 2023.
Further south in Jacksonville, Florida, restoration of the city’s historic Old Holy Rosary Church— now rechristened under the SSPX as Our Lady of Pompeii—continues apace. This holy edifice, full of Catholic history and culture, might have been lost forever were it not for the Society and the generosity of the faithful. In Texas, 2024 saw the Society celebrate over 50 years in the “Lone Star State”—an apostolate that bears more and more fruit every year. On the West Coast, Our Lady of the Angels Church in Arcadia, California, also celebrated 50 years of sowing the seeds of Catholic Tradition.
And I would be remiss if I did not highlight the consecration of St. Vincent de Paul Church in Kansas City, Missouri. Despite being in existence for over a century, financial burdens coupled with a severe decline in attendance during the 1970s conspired to leave this house of God shuttered and unconsecrated until the SSPX acquired it in 1980. After years of restoration, St. Vincent’s was formally consecrated by Bishop Bernard Fellay in September. It joins St. Isidore (Watkins, Colorado), Our Lady of the Assumption (Walton, Kentucky), Our Lady of Sorrows (Phoenix, Arizona), and the Immaculata (Saint Marys, Kansas) as the only consecrated churches in the U.S. District. God willing, there will be many more to come.
The Work Must Continue
This ongoing restoration is why I am asking for your help. Prayer is the fuel of the SSPX’s perseverance in the face of innumerable obstacles, but we cannot ignore practical necessities or the fact that they continue to grow as more and more faithful seek the Society’s assistance. You can support the SSPX’s mission in several ways going into 2025 and beyond.
First and foremost is the Society’s General Fund which allows over 100 priests located at over 20 priories in the United States to provide the sacraments according to the traditional Roman Rite to thousands of Catholics across America. Donations given to the General Fund also provide us with the resources to meet emergency needs ranging from building repairs to acquiring new infrastructure to facilitate future growth. The General Fund is not merely an “emergency reserve” for the Society, but rather the financial lifeblood that keeps its work alive and thriving for this and future generations of faithful Catholics.
Second is the Partnership with Priests, targeted specifically at meeting our clergy’s needs during their various ministries. Airfare, car rentals, hotels, health insurance, and a myriad of other financial requirements are met through this program. Being an SSPX priest is not a “gig”; it is more than a full-time job. It is a vocation that our priests are ready to fill 24/7, 365 days a year. The Partnership program equips our priests with the means to carry out their apostolic work without the distractions that accompany addressing material needs. It also provides for their personal needs by paying for travel and other costs for their own retreats and training.
A third area needing substantial monetary support is the St. Luke Care Fund for Aged and Sick Priests. As I discussed in a letter sent earlier in 2024, the passing of time takes its toll on us all, including Our Lord’s faithful servants in the SSPX. So that the priests and religious of the Society who have given their lives “to restore all things in Christ” may receive the proper care in their final years, your generosity in supporting this fund and, by extension, the Sursum Corda care home in Phoenix, Arizona, is imperative.
Finally, you can also donate to the Discretionary Fund, which I oversee and administer personally. (You can make the online donation to the General Fund, and simply note that you would like the donation allocated to the Discretionary Fund.) As unique and often unforeseen needs arise within the U.S. District, I can use this fund to address these issues efficiently without shifting additional financial burdens onto our other programs. Moreover, this fund allows me to fund special programs throughout the United States while lending a swift helping hand to the Society’s various apostolates as circumstances warrant.
Thank you for taking the time to consider my request prayerfully. While we do not know what the next year will bring, with your support—spiritual and financial—I am confident that the SSPX can overcome any adversity while building up the Catholic Faith across our vast and beautiful country.
Please pray for me and all my fellow priests and religious who work for your benefit throughout the U.S. District. And be assured that you are in our prayers as well.
Blessings in Christ,
Fr. John Fullerton
United States District Superior