The Heart of the SSPX: the Catholic Priesthood and the Integrity of the Faith

The Society of Saint Pius X is an international priestly society of almost 700 priests. Its main purpose is the formation and support of priests. Society priests live in a community and serve faithful in over 70 countries around the world.

As Archbishop Lefebvre wrote in the Statutes:

The Society’s purpose is the priesthood and all that pertains to it and nothing but what concerns it; i.e., the priesthood as Our Lord Jesus Christ willed it when He said, ‘Do this for a commemoration of me.’ The Society must therefore orient the priest towards—and have him concretize in his daily life what is essentially his raison d’etre: the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, with all that it means. All that flows from it, and all that complements it. 

This work is primarily accomplished at our seminaries, where we follow a traditional Catholic formation. The priests of the SSPX also assist their brother priests around the world learn the traditional Latin Mass, advise them when needed, and help them recover the patrimony of the Catholic Church.

Once the seminarians have finished their formation, they go out into priories working for the apostolate of the faithful. After half a century of existence this means that most of our priests work in chapels, administering the sacraments, guiding souls, and assisting with Catholic schools. In this way, we take seriously the motto

“To restore all things in Christ.”