IN NOVEMBER 1980, His Excellency Archbishop Lefebvre founded the Third Order of the Society of St. Pius X, for the sanctification of the laity who are faithful to the Tradition of the Catholic Church. For several years, a number of Catholics had suggested this move. Even pressing demands for it were not uncommon. For instance, a sample letter:

The priests of the Society spoke of this among themselves. They too felt the need and urgency for a Third Order. It seemed to them that the faithful who live in the midst of the agitation of the world would find there a means of living the evangelical ideal, of keeping faith, hope and charity in the midst of the unprecedented upheaval in the Church and thus find the protection of an unassailable spiritual strength.

They told the Archbishop of their concerns, their desires, and the pressing appeals from the anguished faithful, abandoned without defense in the ruins of the structures of the Church which formerly secured and maintained their faith.

The idea of the Third Order was his answer. The Third Order of St. Pius X took shape slowly. It had to wait for the hour appointed by God. The urgency became greater after the priests' retreat of September 1980, at Ecône, when most of the priests of the Society were together.

Archbishop Lefebvre asked them for suggestions and proposals for statutes for such an Order.

On November 20, 1980, His Grace proposed to members of the General Council, meeting in Rickenbach, "the Rule of the Third Order of St. Pius X," and asked for it to be reviewed.

His decision to make known the existence of the Third Order and the Rule regulating it was taken on January 29, 1981, on the Archbishop's return from Mexico, after meeting with the General Council, and on the Feast of St. Francis de Sales.

We call your attention especially to the paragraph of the official text giving the spirit of the Third Order and its obligations.

You will be able thus to see that the Third Order of St. Pius X presents itself as being an "order" set up to secure to souls living in the world a school of sanctity.

Sanctification for members and those for whom members of the Third Order are responsible: such is the goal of establishing the Third Order.

The work of sanctification will be entirely centered on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. There one finds the meaning and source of the Christian life, which is nothing else than a life of sacrifice and co-redemption. It is the "spirit of the Church and its living faith," as her infallible Magisterium teaches:

Members of the Third Order will thus learn that holiness becomes possible in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. They will also know that the rebuilding of the Christian social order for which they will work with all their strength, depends on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, as the infallible Magisterium of the Church teaches:

By the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the Church forms the complete person and in this way "works ceaselessly to establish the solid foundation of society," and "builds the powerful armor of the human community" (Pius XII, Allocution, February 20, 1946).

In the past five and one-half years, the Third Order has helped many souls on their way to heaven; many have become closer to Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament through it. In America, the Third Order numbers more than sixty professed members and more than sixty postulants.

Father Daniel Couture, Society of St. Pius X priest, is specifically assigned to take care of their needs by means of a monthly letter and by all personal advice needed. Pastors in several locations have organized spiritual conferences for the members on a regular basis. All Society priests provide personal spiritual directions to anyone who requests it. Father Couture has preached missions to the members of the Third Order at St. Mary's on several occasions.

If you wish a more perfect life, a life more detached from the ways of the world and more attached to Our Lord, following the example of our Blessed Mother, Our Lady of Compassion at the foot of the Cross, this Third Order may be of great help to you!

Please God, the Third Order of St. Pius X will be a noble tool to "Restore
all things in Christ"—personal life, family life, and political life.

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Purpose of the Establishment

Sanctification of the individual and of those for whom members of the Third Order are responsible.

Patron of the Third Order: Pope St. Pius X

Sanctity today must be attained in a world which opposes it by errors and subtle heresies, introduced into all Catholic milieu under the name of Modernism.

Pope St. Pius X was beatified for courageously denouncing Modernist errors and showing an example of sanctity in the solidity of doctrine, the purity of morality, and devotion to the Eucharistic Sacrifice.

This holy Pope is therefore clearly the model for souls who wish to sanctify themselves in our day.

Relationship of the Third Order to the Priestly Society of St. Pius X

The Third Order has been established by the Society and therefore the chaplains of the Third Order are designated by the District Superiors and approved by the Superior General.

Members of the Third Order share in the graces of the Society gained by its priests and the merits of its members.

Members of the Third Order

All Catholics, priests or laity, who accept the spirit and the Rule of the Third Order, are eligible for membership. Children can be enrolled, with permission of their parents, the minimum age being twelve years.

Emblems: the medal of St. Pius X and cross, given at the time of commitment in the Third Order.

The Spirit of the Third Order

The spirit of the Third Order is that which animates the Priestly Society i.e., the spirit of the Church, its living faith, manifested in all of her Tradition, her infallible Magisterium, expressed and explained in the Catechism of the Council of Trent, in the Vulgate Bible, in the teachings of the Angelic Doctor, and in the immemorial liturgy.

The spirit of attachment to the Roman Church, to the Popes, to the Bishops, spirit of obedience to the authorities of the Church according to their fidelity to their office, which is nothing else than to spread the Catholic faith and the Kingdom of Our Lord.

The spirit of vigilance in regard to anything which might corrupt the Faith.

Tender and filial devotion toward the Virgin Mary, according to the spirit of St. Louis-Marie Grignon de Montfort, to St. Joseph and to St. Pius X.

To rediscover the capital importance of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and its mysteries, to find there the meaning and source of Christian life, a life of sacrifice and co-redemption.

Steps in Membership

Obligations

Personal:

1. Recommended reading: the acts of St. Pius X, the Catechism of the Council of Trent, the New Testament, the Imitation of Christ, the lives of the saints. Try to spread good reading material.
   
2. Fasting on Ember Days, on Vigils (of great feasts), on Ash Wednesday, on Holy Saturday. Abstinence on all Fridays.
   
3. To abstain from television, from all unclean reading; to practice sobriety.

1. To observe, in a spirit of submission to Our Lord, the laws of marriage toward the goal of having a large family. To renounce absolutely all positive action toward the goal of not having children.
   
2. To make of the family home a sanctuary consecrated to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary where evening prayers are recited in the family and, if possible, the Rosary. Liturgical life should be paramount on Sundays and feast days. Avoid everything that could harm the soul of a child: television, unclean magazines.
   
3. To choose truly good and traditional schools and to contribute to their establishment and support.
   
4. To be prudent in the choice of leisure activities and vacation sites.

1. To follow the example of the Holy Family and to pursue the duties of justice and charity, whether one be employer or employee.
   
2. To promote and defend the social reign of Our Lord Jesus Christ in society, to combat Liberalism and Modernism, scourges of modern times which are delivering the Church to her enemies.

+  Marcel Lefebvre