THESIS: To preserve sacramental integrity, safeguard the common good, and secure peace of conscience for all, the only possible course is a systematic programme of (at least) conditional ordination/consecration of clerics whose orders depend on the validity of the Novus Ordo rites.
This is a contents page for everything we have published pertaining to this matter.
There will be some crossover between the categories, as some articles—or the extensive commentaries—deal with the different topics.
This contents page will continue to be updated over time, as we publish more material on the subject. Hit subscribe to make sure you never miss anything we publish.
Fr William Jenkins has said of our work on this topic:
I would direct whoever is asking such questions to a site called The WM Review. […]
For those who are concerned enough, interested enough, to do some research, going to The WM Review would be a good place to start, and read what they have to say there. I must say, I find it thoughtful and compelling.1
Contents
The Sacraments in General
The Necessity of the Sacraments
The importance of the sacraments, and our need to receive them (S.D. Wright)
Is desiring the sacraments individualistic and emotional? Lefebvre and others answer (S.D. Wright)
Why your baby should be baptized ASAP (Fr Michael Müller, commentary by S.D. Wright)
‘Ludicrous and impious’—The denial of infant baptism (Cardinal James Gibbons, commentary by S.D. Wright)
When EXACTLY should we baptize our baby? (Various authoritative texts, commentary by S.D. Wright)
What is required for sacramental validity
How to understand sacramental intention (Abbé Hervé Belmont)
Is it valid? The proximate matter of Baptism (S.D. Wright)
Defective ministerial intention CAN invalidate ordinations (Cardinal Pietro Gasparri, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Was Archbishop Lefebvre himself validly ordained? (S.D. Wright)
The Novus Ordo Sacramental Rites
The Question of their Validity
Is the Church infallible in her discipline and rites? (Abbé Hervé Belmont and a wealth of authorities)
Are Novus Ordo sacraments valid—and how would we know? (Abbé Hervé Belmont, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Is Paul VI’s New Rite of Episcopal Consecration valid? (Fr Álvaro Calderón, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Can we use, approach or rely upon the new rites?
Can we receive doubtfully valid sacraments? (S.D. Wright)
Fr Faber on doubtful ordinations—frightening parallels with Novus Ordo ordinations (Fr Frederick William Faber, commetary by S.D. Wright)
Analogical Situations from History
Cardinal Newman and the validity of Holy Orders—What would he think today? (Cardinal John Henry Newman, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Cardinal Newman on Anglican orders—applied to Novus Ordo orders (Cardinal John Henry Newman, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Fr Faber on doubtful ordinations—frightening parallels with Novus Ordo ordinations (Fr Frederick William Faber, commetary by S.D. Wright)
Defective ministerial intention CAN invalidate ordinations (Cardinal Pietro Gasparri, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Can liturgical changes affect validity? Cardinal Vaughan says yes
Traditionalist Responses
Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre
Archbishop Lefebvre & Conditional Confirmations—His pastoral practice explained (S.D. Wright)
Archbishop Lefebvre & Conciliar Sacraments—Do they 'come from the Church?' (S.D. Wright)
Archbishop Lefebvre & Conciliar Ordinations—Practical Doubt (S.D. Wright)
‘I do not hesitate to administer conditional confirmation when asked’—Archbishop Lefebvre
Classic study radically overstates Lefebvre’s position on holy orders (S.D. Wright)
The Society of St Pius X
Is Paul VI’s New Rite of Episcopal Consecration valid? (Fr Álvaro Calderón, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Other Traditionalist Responses
Are Novus Ordo sacraments valid—and how would we know? (Abbé Hervé Belmont, commentary by S.D. Wright)
‘Are men ordained since 1968 priests?’ (Abbé Henri Mouraux)
‘How long will we still have valid bishops?’ (Abbé Henri Mouraux, commentary by S.D. Wright)
‘Paul VI's rite of ordination is invalid, copies Anglican rites’ (Abbé Henri Mouraux, commentary by S.D. Wright)
‘Paul VI's rite of episcopal consecration is invalid’ (Abbé Henri Mouraux, commentary by S.D. Wright)
'Painful uncertainty'—new rite of holy orders critiqued in 1978 by Athanasius Kröger
Classic study admits invalid rites would NOT destroy hierarchy (S.D. Wright)
Classic study calls conditional ordination a 'measure of prudence' (S.D. Wright)
Former Jesuit and pro-life stalwart Fr James Marshall conditionally ordained to the priesthood (S.D. Wright)
Fr Zuhlsdorf, Michael Davies and Leo XIII—a reply on doubtful sacraments (S.D. Wright)
Implications of these points
The Necessity of Conditional Repetition of the Sacraments
Are Novus Ordo sacraments valid—and how would we know? (Abbé Hervé Belmont, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Can we receive doubtfully valid sacraments? (S.D. Wright)
Doubtful Baptisms—the need for conditional sacraments (M.J. McCusker)
Defective ministerial intention CAN invalidate ordinations (Cardinal Pietro Gasparri, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Is Paul VI’s New Rite of Episcopal Consecration valid? (Fr Álvaro Calderón, commentary by S.D. Wright)
Archbishop Lefebvre & Conditional Confirmations—His pastoral practice explained (S.D. Wright)
Archbishop Lefebvre & Conciliar Ordinations—Practical Doubt (S.D. Wright)
Classic study calls conditional ordination a 'measure of prudence' (S.D. Wright)
Conditional repetition does not imply invalidity or a denial of grace received
What are the implications of conditionally repeated sacraments? (Mgr Robert Hugh Benson)
Classic study calls conditional ordination a 'measure of prudence' (S.D. Wright)
The implications for the Holy See
Is the Church infallible in her discipline and rites? (Abbé Hervé Belmont and a wealth of authorities)
Are Novus Ordo sacraments valid—and how would we know? (Abbé Hervé Belmont, commentary by S.D. Wright)
How to understand sacramental intention (Abbé Hervé Belmont)
Classic study admits invalid rites would NOT destroy hierarchy (S.D. Wright)
Some External Links
Unholy Orders: 50 Years of Invalid Ordinations in the Novus Ordo Church (an excellent contents page compiled by Novus Ordo Watch)
Rore Sanctifica (an another excellent resource of some of the foundational material on the subject)
Questioning the Validity of the Masses using the New, All-English Canon (Patrick Henry Omlor)
Absolutely Null and Utterly Void: The 1968 Rite of Episcopal Consecration (Fr Anthony Cekada)
Still Null and Still Void: Replies to Objections (Fr Anthony Cekada)
New Bishops, Empty Tabernacle (Fr Anthony Cekada)
Saved by Context? The ’68 Rite of Episcopal Consecration (Fr Anthony Cekada)
They Are Really Not Bishops—Part 1: Response to Rev. John Hunwicke on Novus Ordo Episcopal Consecrations (Novus Ordo Watch)
They Are Really Not Bishops—Part 2 (Novus Ordo Watch)
They Are Really Not Bishops—Part 3 (Novus Ordo Watch)
Recommended Works/Books
Apostolicae Curae (Pope Leo XIII)
Sacramentum Ordinis (Pope Pius XII)
Vindication of the Bull Apostolicae Curae (The English Catholic Bishops)
The Question of Anglican Ordinations Discussed (Estacourt)
The Problems with the Other Sacraments Apart from the New Mass (Coomaraswamy)
The Robber Church (Omlor)
Visual Contents
The Sacraments in General
The Necessity of the Sacraments
What is required for sacramental validity
The Novus Ordo Sacramental Rites
The Question of their Validity
Can we use, approach or rely upon the new rites?
Analogical Situations from History
Traditionalist Responses
Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre
The Society of St Pius X
Other Traditionalist Responses
The Necessity of Conditional Repetition of the Sacraments
Conditional repetition does not imply invalidity or a denial of grace received
The implications for the Holy See
All this material demonstrates what we have already said: that to preserve sacramental integrity, safeguard the common good, and secure peace of conscience for all, the only possible course is a systematic programme of (at least) conditional ordination/consecration of clerics whose orders depend on the validity of the Novus Ordo rites.
HELP KEEP THE WM REVIEW ONLINE!
As we expand The WM Review we would like to keep providing free articles for everyone.
Our work takes a lot of time and effort to produce. If you have benefitted from it please do consider supporting us financially.
A subscription from you helps ensure that we can keep writing and sharing free material for all. Plus, you will get access to our exclusive members-only material.
(We make our members-only material freely available to clergy, priests and seminarians upon request. Please subscribe and reply to the email if this applies to you.)
Subscribe now to make sure you always receive our material. Thank you!
Follow on Twitter, YouTube and Telegram:
Image by The WM Review. Newman (Wiki Commons Public Domain), Lefebvre (Wiki Commons CC), Leo XIII (Wiki Commons Public Domain), Paul VI (Wiki Commons Public Domain) Bugnini (Wiki Commons Public Domain), against a backdrop of Vatican II (Wiki Commons CC).
From What Catholics Believe - 1/3/2025, timestamps 10.30, 17.05.
I’m not an expert in this field, just another pewsitter, but I need to ask. Especially as I believe and have reason to believe that the NO sacraments are valid.
What evidence would falsify your position?
Eucharistic miracles? Some future council and pope ruling that the ordinations were valid? Something else?
If you don’t have a falsifying condition, the argument is tautological. “If we assume the ordinations are invalid, then the ordinations are invalid.”
Not accusing, asking.