The Vatican said on Friday it had convicted Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, the former ambassador to the United States, of schism for refusing to recognize the authority of Pope Francis and the liberal reforms enacted after the Second Vatican Council. Excommunicated.
Archbishop Vigano has become one of Francis’ most unscrupulous conservative critics, calling him a “false prophet” and a “servant of Satan” in public statements while espousing right-wing conspiracy theories and praising former President Donald Trump ·J.Trump.
In 2018, he wrote a 7,000-word letter calling for the pope’s resignation, accusing him of covering up sexual abuse by American cardinals. Earlier in 2015, he invited a gay rights critic to meet the pope in Washington to challenge Francis’ message of inclusion.
He has since adopted an anti-vaccination stance, blaming Western “deep state” forces for triggering the war in Ukraine and demonizing Russia.
Despite being excommunicated, Archbishop Vigano will be able to retain his title, but he will not be allowed to celebrate Mass, receive or administer sacraments and hold an official position in the church hierarchy.
Archbishop Vigano did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Robert Moynihan, editor of Vatican Magazine, which often conveys Archbishop Vigano’s views, said the archbishop had been summoned to the Vatican’s department responsible for religious discipline on June 28, but he had not come to Rome to do so.
Instead, the archbishop issued a statement saying he did not recognize the authority of “the tribunal that purports to try me, nor its prefects, nor those who appointed him.”
He also once again attacked the church’s liberal reforms, accusing the pope of committing “crimes against humanity” by promoting vaccines. He also denounced the pope’s “persistence in climate fraud” and Francis’s vision of a church that is “immigrationist, eco-sustainable and gay-friendly”.
Francis has also punished other outspoken right-wing clergy. Frank Pavone, an American priest who led the Priests for Life, was reportedly defrocked in 2022; Cardinal Raymond Burke is a leading figure among Catholic traditionalists , who believed Francis was watering down teachings, was evicted from a subsidized apartment in the Vatican last year.
