Aged 83 and former ambassador of the Holy See to the United States, Mgr Carlo Maria Viganò, is accused of schism, of having “denied the legitimacy of Pope Francis” and “rejected the Second Vatican Council”, according to a message that he published on X. He announced Thursday that he was summoned before the Vatican justice system to respond to these accusations.
According to an official document from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican department responsible for questions of dogma, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò will be officially informed of these accusations within the framework of an extrajudicial criminal trial, an accelerated procedure that simplifies administrative formalities.
Dismissal of all charges
Faced with these accusations, he stepped up to the plate in a press release. “I repudiate, reject and condemn the scandals, errors and heresies of Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Pope Francis, Editor’s note), whose management of power is absolutely tyrannical,” he denounced. “I consider the accusations against me to be an honor,” he added again on X.
In several Italian media, the Vatican Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, number two in the Holy See, declared that Mgr Carlo Maria Viganò had “adopted certain attitudes for which he must answer” and that the Vatican “gave him the opportunity to defend oneself.” ” I am very sorry. I always appreciated him as a great worker, very faithful to the Holy See. What happened, I don’t know,” added Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
Fierce opponent of Pope Francis
Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, who served as apostolic nuncio in Washington from 2011 to 2016 before retiring, is a fierce opponent of the pope. He was noted for his virulent stances against papal authority. He emerged from anonymity in August 2018 by calling for the resignation of the pope, publishing a list of harsh accusations over his handling of sexual abuse in the Church.
He was also Secretary General of the Vatican Governorate, a position in which he discovered and exposed corruption within the administration. But in 2018, he was also ordered by an Italian court to pay 1.8 million euros to his disabled brother in a family dispossession case.