Concern raised over religious group in Derry Diocese

The Bishop of Derry, Most Rev Dr Dónal McKeown, has expressed his concern about the safeguarding practices and policies of SSPX Resistance Ireland, a new religious group operating in the Derry Diocese.

In a letter printed in every parish bulletin in the diocese at the weekend, Bishop McKeown addressed the fact SSPX Resistance Ireland was holding Masses in the diocese. 

The Derry News understands SSPX Resistance Ireland Masses have taken place in the Galliagh area of the city, but not in Church properties, over the past two years.

Bishop McKeown said, given the group’s presence in the Diocese of Derry, he found it necessary to stress the Catholic Church had “no supervision whatsoever of the priests or ministers of SSPX Resistance Ireland”.

“[They] have no connection with the Diocese of Derry in terms of Safeguarding practices and policies and are not overseen by the Bishop of Derry,” wrote Bishop McKeown.

“The priests associated with SSPX Resistance Ireland are not in full communion with the Catholic Church and they do not accept the full teaching authority of the Church,” his letter continued.

“The priests of SSPX Resistance Ireland administer sacraments, but do so illicitly - that is, without the necessary facilities and approval of the Church. 

“The Catholic Church has no supervision whatsoever of priests or ministers of SSPX Resistance Ireland, who have no connection with the Diocese of Derry in terms of Safeguarding practices and policies and are not overseen by the Bishop of Derry.” 

“Considering this information, I urge all the faithful to remain steadfast in communion with the Church, united with the Holy Father and the bishops who share in full communion with him. 

“Let us continue to pray for the unity of the Church and for those who have distanced themselves from full communion, that they may one day be reconciled.”

SSPX Resistance is a splinter group of the Society of St Pius X (SSPX)  - the canonically irregular organisation founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. 

Ordained in 1929, Archbishop Lefebvre was a Holy Ghost Father. As Superior General of the order, he participated in the drafting and preparation of documents for the Second Vatican Council (1962 to 1965). He was a major leader of the conservative bloc during its proceedings and refused to implement its subsequent reforms. 

In 1968, he resigned his leadership position in the Holy Ghost Fathers and founded SSPX as a small community of seminarians in the village of Écone, Switzerland, in 1970.

SSPX favours the retention of the Tridentine Mass - the Traditional Latin Mass - and pre-Vatican II liturgical books in Latin for other sacraments. 

As well as the Diocese of Derry, SSPX Resistance Ireland has a presence in County Cork - in the rural community of Reenascreena near the town of Rosscarbery. 

In a December 8, 2024 podcast “The SSPX Resistance in West Cork: Pious priests or a danger on our doorstep?” produced by The Southern Star newspaper in West Cork, Fr Tom Hayes, Parish Priest of the local Clonakilty and Darrara Parish, outlined the provenance of SSPX Resistance Ireland.

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“In the 1980s, a significant new step was taken by Archbishop Lefebvre, when he went ahead, without the authority of the Pope, and consecrated a number of people as bishops,” said Fr Hayes.

He added: “That led to all the people involved being automatically excommunicated  - or put outside communion with the Church - so they were barred from participating in any sacraments or from participating in Church life in any fashion.

“One of the bishops he ordained, allegedly as bishop, went on later again to ordain other people and one of those has recently formed the movement that is called the SSPX Resistance. 

“They have fallen out with the original group who broke away from the Church, largely because they don’t believe that the Society of St Pius X was radical enough for them or is in enough opposition to the authority of the Holy Father in Rome or the Catholic Church. 

“The group of people who have set up camp, as it were, in Reenascreena belong to that second group [SSPX Resistance Ireland].”