The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X has made public a letter addressed to Pope Leo XIV in response to the recent decree of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith that once again declares it to be in a state of schism. Signed by its Superior General, Don Davide Pagliarani, the missive combines a tone of filial respect with a severe critique of the Holy See’s decision, reaffirms the Fraternity’s fidelity to the Church’s tradition, and states that it will continue its work “for the salvation of souls” despite the new canonical sanctions.
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3 July 2026
The Superior General
To His Holiness Pope Leo XIV
Écône, 3 July 2026
“Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Lk 11:11-13)
Most Holy Father:
The notification of the decision taken by the Holy See regarding the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X, signed by His Eminence Cardinal Fernández, has been communicated to us and is now public knowledge.
We believe this decision once again highlights the profoundly tragic context in which the universal Church finds itself. What the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X has done and will continue to do is nothing other than an extraordinary initiative for the salvation of souls amid the doctrinal and moral confusion in which the Church is immersed. At no time do we seek to replace the Church, nor do we have any other ambition than to remain faithful to her.
In conscience, we did not believe we could evade the moral duty we have toward souls, as we have already explained both privately and publicly to Your Holiness.
We had asked for bread—that is, a sign of understanding toward a sincere case of conscience; an act of fatherhood directed not so much toward the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X as toward souls, promising to form them as true children of the Roman Church. Unfortunately, we received a stone.
We had asked for a fish—that is, the possibility of temporarily obtaining the means necessary to continue forming good priests, so that they might carry on their mission of making Our Lord known to souls. Unfortunately, we received a serpent.
We had asked for an egg, promising to return it as soon as possible. Indeed, the holy Tradition we preserve in souls belongs to the Church, our Mother, and not to the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X, and we are confident that one day a Pope will wish to make use of it for the good of the universal Church. Unfortunately, we received a scorpion.
We had asked to be instructed and confirmed in the perennial faith; instead, we have been declared schismatic for a second time.
Despite the sanctions imposed upon us, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X sincerely renews the promise it had already expressed to Your Holiness. In this regard, allow me to reiterate freely what I previously stated:
“The Fraternity promises […] to devote all its energies to preserving Tradition and placing it at the service of the Church. In doing so, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X does not merely maintain ancient customs; it fosters and preserves priestly vocations, religious vocations, and deeply Christian large families; in a word, everything that manifests the vitality of the Church, of grace, and of the Catholic faith. Our intention is not to offer the Church a museum of antiquities, but the entirety of Tradition: fruitful, a source of spiritual life, embodied and lived in souls.
[…] I am convinced that one day Your Holiness, or one of your successors, will be able and willing to make use of this service, whose offering, within the Church and for the Church, constitutes our sole reason for being.”
(Personal letter addressed to His Holiness on 21 November 2025).
Above all, however, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X promises you today that it will not receive these new sanctions—objectively unjust and invalid—with bitterness or a spirit of rebellion.
These recent condemnations, like those of the past, strike at what we love most: our bond with our Mother, the Roman Church. Yet even in this trial, all things must work together for the good of souls and of the Church herself. Therefore, these condemnations compel us to love the Holy Church even more and to attend to her needs with all our strength, now more than ever. Precisely for this reason, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X willingly offers the suffering caused by these new sanctions for the good of the universal Church and of Your Holiness.
We are confident that one day Your Holiness, or one of your successors, will wish to make his own the program of Saint Pius X: Instaurare omnia in Christo, “To restore all things in Christ.” On that day, the Holy Father will discover in the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X not a nest of serpents and scorpions, but a small army of loyal sons, ready to make any sacrifice to support him in the restoration of all things in Our Lord and to uphold before all humanity the imprescriptible rights of Christ the King over all souls and all nations.
On that day, the Holy Father will discover, with great joy and deep consolation, authentically Catholic souls whose bond with the Church was never founded on the shifting sands of an ambiguous dialogue, but on the rock of Peter’s faith.
We ask the Blessed Virgin Mary to hasten the arrival of that day and pray, above all, that Your Holiness may soon experience that joy and consolation.
In the meantime, if it is possible for you, despite your recent decision, bless us as your children. For us, nothing has changed and nothing will ever change.
Trusting in Divine Providence, to which nothing remains hidden and which searches the depths of every human heart,
I remain, Most Holy Father, your most faithful son in the Lord.
Don Davide Pagliarani