Alfonso de Galarreta

Who is Alfonso de Galarreta?

Alfonso Ruiz de Galarreta, SSPX, is a bishop of the Society of Saint Pius X. He was declared excommunicated latae sententiae by Pope John Paul II because of his unauthorized consecration by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988, deemed by the Holy See to be "unlawful" and "a schismatic act". Galarreta and his supporters denied the validity of the excommunication, saying that the consecrations were necessary due to a moral and theological crisis in the Catholic Church. The controversial automatic excommunication was remitted by the Holy See on 21 January 2009.