Traditionalist Catholic society approved for Vatican pilgrimage despite canonical irregularity

The Priestly Society of St. Pius X, a traditionalist Catholic society that has experienced a troubled relationship with the church hierarchy since the 1970s, has been approved for a pilgrimage to the Vatican later this month.

The society’s pilgrimage has been added to the Vatican’s calendar in the ongoing jubilee year, a time of celebration and forgiveness of sins held in the Catholic Church every 25 years. SSPX’s inclusion is notable due to the society’s irregular canonical status, a designation that signifies a lack of full communion with the Catholic Church.