Richard Williamson (bishop)
| Richard Williamson | |
|---|---|
| Bishop | |
Richard Williamson (1991)
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|
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 29 June 1976 by Marcel Lefebvre |
| Consecration | 30 June 1988 by Marcel Lefebvre |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
8 March 1940 Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom |
| Motto |
Latin: "Fidelis Inveniatur" English: "Found Faithful" |
| Coat of arms |  |
| Ordination history of Richard Williamson (bishop) | |
|---|---|
|
Priestly ordination
|
|
| Ordained by | Marcel Lefebvre (SSPX) |
| Date of ordination | 29 June 1976 |
| Place of ordination | The International Seminary of Saint Pius X, Écône, Switzerland |
|
Episcopal consecration
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| Principal consecrator | Marcel Lefebvre (SSPX) |
| Date of consecration | 30 June 1988 |
| Place of consecration | The International Seminary of Saint Pius X, Écône, Switzerland |
Latin: "Fidelis Inveniatur"
Richard Nelson Williamson (born 8 March 1940) is an English traditionalist Catholic bishop who opposes the changes in the Catholic Church brought about by the Second Vatican Council. He was originally a member of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), but was expelled from the SSPX in 2012.
In 1988, Williamson was one of four SSPX priests who were illicitly ordained as bishops by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, for which they incurred ipso facto automatic excommunication. The validity of the excommunication has always been refuted by the SSPX who said that the consecrations were necessary due to a crisis in the Catholic Church. The excommunications, including that of Williamson, were lifted on 21 January 2009, but the suspension of the bishops from the exercise of ministry within the Catholic Church remained in force.
Immediately afterwards, Swedish television broadcast an interview recorded earlier at the SSPX's seminary in Zaitzkofen, Bavaria. During the interview, Williamson expressed a belief that Nazi Germany did not use gas chambers during the Holocaust and that a total of between 200,000 and 300,000 Jews were killed. Based upon these statements, the Bishop was immediately charged with and convicted of Holocaust denial by a German court. The Holy See declared that Pope Benedict had been unaware of Williamson's views when he lifted the excommunication of the four bishops, and that Williamson would remain suspended from his episcopal functions until he unequivocally and publicly distanced himself from his position on the Holocaust. In 2010 he was convicted of incitement in a German court in relation to those views; the conviction was later vacated on appeal but then reinstated on retrial in early 2013. He appealed again, but his appeal was rejected.
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