VATICAN CITY, Nov 11 (Reuters) – Pope Francis on Saturday fired Bishop Joseph E. Strickland of Tyler, Texas, one of his fiercest critics among U.S. Roman Catholic conservatives, after he refused to step down following a Vatican investigation.
It is very rare that a bishop is completely relieved of his duties. Typically, bishops who have problems with the Vatican are asked to resign before resigning, which the pope accepts.
Popes take such action, considered drastic, when a bishop refuses a request to resign. Strickland is 65, 10 years shy of the usual retirement age for bishops.
Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston said in a statement that Strickland was asked to resign on Nov. 9 but refused.
Strickland, a prolific social media user who was elected to the diocese by the late Pope Benedict in 2012, tweeted earlier this year that he rejected “Pope Francis’ agenda of undermining the deposit of faith.”
He was particularly critical of the pope’s attempt to make the Church more welcoming to the LGBT community and Francis’ attempts to give the laity more responsibilities in the Church, and opposed a recent synod.
The Vatican’s statement on Saturday announcing the dismissal did not give a reason.
Strickland indicated in an interview with the ultraconservative website LifeSiteNews that one reason was his refusal to implement Vatican directives to limit the use of the old-style Latin Mass favored by some conservatives.
[1/3]Catholic Bishop Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas speaks during a rally to protest the Los Angeles Dodgers in honor of the pro-LGBTQ+ group Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence during LGBTQ+ Pride Night at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California, USA , June 16, 2023 Kirby Lee- USA TODAY Sports via REUTERS License Rights Acquisition
“I stand by all the things that were listed as complaints against me … I would do it all over again. “I feel very at peace in the Lord and the truth that he died for,” Strickland said.
The firing followed a Vatican investigation earlier this year into the administration of the Diocese of Tyler, which Catholic media reports said included a review of his management of financial affairs. DiNardo said the investigation concluded that Strickland’s continued tenure was “not feasible.”
Strickland has become one of the most vocal standard-bearers of the ultraconservative wing of the American church and has a national following far beyond the small Diocese of Tyler in east Texas.
Last August, the pope lamented what he called a “reactionary” Catholic Church in the United States, where he said political ideology had replaced faith in some cases.
Strickland is a strong supporter of former US President Donald Trump and is seen as a hero by conservative American Catholic media who agree with Trump.
Last year, when the Vatican excommunicated ultraconservative anti-abortion American priest Frank Pavone for “blasphemous” social media posts and insubordination to bishops, Strickland was one of the few American bishops to publicly defend him.
“It is blasphemy that this holy priest has been revoked while an evil president promotes denial of the truth and the killing of the unborn at every turn, Vatican officials promote immorality and denial of the deposit of faith, and priests promote life-destroying gender confusion.. . evil,” Strickland wrote on the platform then known as Twitter.
The Vatican said Francis appointed the Bishop of Austin, Texas, Joe Vazquez, as interim administrator of the Diocese of Tyler.
Reporting by Phil Pullella Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Christina Fincher
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