 Lefebvre and his supporters argued that the circumstances under which the consecrations took place were such that none of the clergy involved were truly excommunicated.One of their arguments was that a 'state of necessity' existed in which the ordinary provisions of canon law could be set aside.The Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts rejected this argument, stating in a 1996 Explanatory Note that "there is never a necessity to ordain Bishops contrary to the will of the Roman Pontiff".