Why does the Vatican recognize Orthodox marriages but not those of the SSPX?

(CNS photo/Fredrik Sandberg via EPA) The answer has to do with profoundly different juridical and ecclesial realities. The Holy Seeʼs declaration this month that formally recognizes the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) to be in a state of schism has prompted numerous questions among the faithful. One of the most frequently asked questions is why the Catholic Church recognizes the validity of marriages performed in Orthodox churches while marriages now performed by priests of the Society are considered invalid. Father Davide Cito, professor of canon law at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, emphasized that the answer has to do with profoundly different juridical and ecclesial realities. As he explained to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, although the Orthodox churches are not in full communion with Rome, they are not currently in a state of formal schism comparable to that of the Society of St. Pius X. “These are two different situations. The …