Cardinal Pietro Parolin said the episcopal ordinations carried out without papal mandate by the Society of St. Pius X “deeply wound” Church unity.

ROME — Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, said Wednesday that the episcopal ordinations carried out earlier in the day without papal mandate by the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) constitute a schismatic act.

“I don’t think there is much to say about this episode,” Parolin said at an event July 1. “First of all, I want to express great sorrow. I want to express great sorrow because, speaking of the unity of the Church, an act like this deeply wounds the unity of the Church.”

The cardinal was commenting on the episcopal ordination of four new bishops at the SSPX headquarters in Switzerland.

“Evidently this is in itself a schismatic act, because we know that episcopal ordinations without pontifical mandate break the unity of the Church and are also subject to very precise sanctions, which are fundamentally excommunication,” Parolin said.

The cardinal said he did not know “the timing and the manner” in which the excommunication would be formally addressed.

“My hope is that, despite what happened today, dialogue can resume and that a solution can truly be found here as well,” he said. “The fundamental point is the council — that is, whether or not to accept the Second Vatican Council.”

“One certainly cannot think that the history of the Church stops at a certain point,” Parolin continued. “The history of the Church continues, and therefore the Second Vatican Council is a milestone in the history of the Church that must be accepted and implemented in the right way.”

Parolin added that “despite this serious wound that has been produced,” he hopes dialogue with the SSPX can resume and “paths can be found that make it possible to resolve this problem.”

This story was first published by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.