NZ priest excommunicated, followers called to repent

The announcement came the same day Fr Michael Mary was illicitly ordained as bishop in Scotland by a group of unauthorised bishops who claim the current Pope is not legitimate.

Fr Mary, who was raised in Central Otago, is the leader of the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer, also known as the Transalpine Redemptorists. Fr Mary was found guilty of schism on Saturday (local time), according to a statement by Aberdeen Bishop Hugh Gilbert OSB.

An open letter the group published late last year was described by Bishop Gilbert, the bishop who legitimised the order over a decade ago, as an act of disobedience and division.

In his statement, he said Fr Mary’s words and actions were “instinctively repugnant to the Catholic sense of the faith”.

“He is therefore declared to be excommunicated, dismissed from ecclesiastical office and prohibited from the celebration of Mass or the other sacraments,” Bishop Gilbert said.

“In the event of a sincere change of heart on his part and the making of reparation, these penalties may be lifted.“

The judgement had been handed down in line with the Church’s rules and the Vatican had been kept informed, Bishop Gilbert said.

Fr Mary’s unauthorised ordination over the weekend also resulted in the Sons being stripped of its status as an order. The people who took part in the ceremony could now face further canonical penalties, Bishop Gilbert said, but were encouraged to repent.

The Sons were investigated by the Vatican in 2023 and 2024 following allegations of abuse and unauthorised exorcisms in Canterbury.

The group has denied wrongdoing and the Vatican’s findings are sealed, but Christchurch Bishop Michael Gielen has said he believed what survivors told him and followed the Vatican’s recommendations to order the Sons out of the diocese.

The Sons continue to defy the orders, but Fr Mary was understood to be largely based in the order’s headquarters on Papa Stronsay, part of the Orkney Islands.

Before the illicit episcopal ordination, Bishop Gilbert increased the number of Traditional Latin Masses available in Aberdeen Diocese, The Pillar reported.

FULL STORY

Kiwi priest excommunicated, his followers told to repent (By Sinead Gill/The Press – subscription required)

Bishop expands TLM provision ahead of illicit consecration (The Pillar)