The following declaration was issued on Monday morning (29th October 2012) by the Pontifical Commission 'Ecclesia Dei'
"The
Pontifical Commission 'Ecclesia Dei' takes this occasion to announce
that, in its most recent official communication (6 September 2012), the
Priestly Fraternity of St Pius X has indicated that additional time for
reflection and study is needed on their part as they prepare their
response to the Holy See's latest initiatives.
"The current stage in the ongoing discussions between the Holy See
and the Priestly Fraternity follows three years of doctrinal and
theological dialogues during which a joint commission met eight times to
study and discuss, among other matters, some disputed issues in the
interpretation of certain documents of Vatican Council II. Once these
doctrinal dialogues were concluded, it became possible to proceed to a
phase of discussion more directly focused on the greatly desired
reconciliation of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X with the See of
Peter.
"Other critical steps in this positive process of gradual
reintegration had already been taken by the Holy See in 2007 with the
extension of the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite to the Universal
Church by the Motu Proprio 'Summorum Pontificum' and in 2009 with the
lifting of the excommunications. Just a few months ago, a culminating
point along this difficult path was reached when, on 13 June 2012, the
Pontifical Commission presented to the Priestly Fraternity of St. Pius X
a doctrinal declaration together with a proposal for the canonical
normalisation of its status within the Catholic Church.
"At the
present time, the Holy See is awaiting the official response of the
superiors of the Priestly Fraternity to these two documents. After
thirty years of separation, it is understandable that time is needed to
absorb the significance of these recent developments. As Our Holy Father
Pope Benedict XVI seeks to foster and preserve the unity of the Church
by realising the long hoped-for reconciliation of the Priestly
Fraternity of St Pius X with the See of Peter - a dramatic manifestation
of the 'munus Petrinum' in action - patience, serenity, perseverance
and trust are needed".