Bishop Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas, who was fired in November by Pope Francis, is now slamming the Pope following his comments regarding same-sex marriages.
The Pope’s blessing
Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernandez discussed the “possibility of blessing couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples without officially validating their status or changing in any way the Church’s perennial teaching on marriage” in a document released earlier in December. The cardinal confirmed that Pope Francis approved the document. Previously, the Pope told his clergy not to “lose pastoral charity, which should permeate all our decisions and attitudes” and not to be “judges who only deny, reject, and exclude.”
Strickland slams progressive Pope
Speaking to LifeSiteNews, Strickland, who is aligned with the ultra-conservative wing of the U.S. Catholic Church and refused to resign, which led to the firing by Pope Francis, said: “We simply need to be a united voice saying ‘no, we will not respond to this, we will not incorporate this into the life of the church,’ because we simply must say no.” Bishop rejected the Church leaders’ “program undermining the Deposit of Faith” on X in November and openly opposed the Pope’s efforts to help the LGBTQ community and abortion.
Divisive stance
The Bishop, appointed by the late Pope Benedict, continued, “I ask my brother bishops that we all join with a voice of strength and joy in these last days of advent and say no to this latest document and ask for a clarification of the true teachings of our Catholic faith.” Strickland received significant support. However, over 20k people signed the petition for his removal, and thanked the Pope for “a positive step forward.”
Previous activities
Strickland previously defended anti-abortion priest Frank Pavone, whose social media posts shook the Vatican. The Bishop wrote on X, “The blasphemy is that this holy priest is canceled while an evil president promotes the denial of truth and the murder of the unborn at every turn, Vatican officials promote immorality and denial of the deposit of faith and priests promote gender confusion devastating lives…evil.” Strickland also wrote in a letter during summer 2023 that an “evil and false message” had “invaded” the Catholic church.
Pope Francis reacted
The Pope, who is dubbed to be the most progressive ever, slammed the “backwardness” among certain conservatives in the U.S., autoloading the divisions in the U.S. Catholic Church. Pope Francis said there was “a very strong, organized, reactionary attitude” in the U.S. church, adding, “I want to remind these people that backwardness is useless, and they must understand that there’s a correct evolution in the understanding of questions of faith and morals.”
The Pope vs. religion in U.S. politics
While the Conservative Catholics in the U.S. criticized the Pope over his statements regarding not just LGBTQ rights but also his care for the environment, the Pope warned that religious officials have replaced faith with political ideology. When it comes to personal attacks on him, the Pope said in 2021, “I might merit attacks and insults because I’m a sinner, but the church doesn’t deserve this; it’s the work of the devil.”
