Originally published at The Crux
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The Vatican’s doctrine dicastery has published guidelines for the re-instatement of clerics and lay persons who formerly adhered to the schismatic Priestly Society of Saint Pius X.
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issued the guidelines on Thursday, the same day the DDF formally declared the bishops and clergy of the breakaway traditionalist order to be in schism and excommunicated.
RELATED: SSPX declared schismatic, clerics excommunicated
DDF sent the guidelines to the bishops of the world through the apostolic nuncios. In the guidelines, an Italian-language copy of which has been obtained by Crux Now, the DDF outlines a five-step procedure for the reinstatement of clerics.
A priest who has decided to leave the SSPX and would return to full communion as a member of the clergy, must first be willing to accept the teachings of the Vatican Council II and recognize the legitimacy of the postconciliar Mass.
Both the Council and the liturgy as it was reformed in the wake of the 1962-1965 ecumenical council have been major sticking points for the Society of St. Pius X since it was founded by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre as a priestly fraternity in 1970.
The five steps for clergy
Priests
