Vatican City - The Vatican said Wednesday is would consider "illegitimate" any attempts to ordain new priests by an ultra-traditionalist Catholic group involved in a recent row over Holocaust denial. In a statement, the Vatican quoted a letter by Pope Benedict XVI addressed in March to Catholic bishops, in which he stated that members of the renegade Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) would be barred from official roles within the Church unless they agreed to fully abide with its teachings.
Such teachings included the so-called Second Vatican reforms of the 1960s, when local languages replaced Latin in the mass liturgy - something which the SSPX opposes.
The Vatican said that while it remained "hopeful" of a "clarification of issues of doctrine," with the SSPX, these as well as "disciplinarian issues" remain unresolved.
"As such the ordinations are to be considered illegitimate," it said.
The Vatican said it was issuing the statement in response to questions it has received over plans by SSPX to ordain later this month more than 20 priests from seminaries the society runs in Germany, the United States and Switzerland.
Several bishops in Germany have voiced concern that the absence of a firm stance by Rome would be interpreted by the SPPX as a go-ahead for its plans.
The Vatican has made several concessions to the SSPX, the biggest being the lifting in January of the 1988 excommunications of four if its bishops, including British-born Richard Williamson whose comments denying the scale of the Nazi mass murder of Jews were broadcast at around the time.
A row ensued with many Jews, but also Catholics and government officials, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, demanding an explanation.
Benedict subsequently reiterated the Catholic Church's condemnation of Holocaust denial and admitted the Vatican had made mistakes in handling the Williamson case and more broadly, negotiations with the SSPX.