Pope Sparks Outrage After Firing Anti-LGBTQ Texas Bishop: 'Dictator'
vocal critic of Francis' efforts to make the church more welcoming for the LBGTQ+ community.Strickland has publicly scrutinized Francis for the Pope's attempt to change the Church's position on social issues, such as transgender rights and same-sex marriage.In August, Strickland wrote an open letter to the "sons and daughters in Christ," where he reiterated the "basic truths" of the Church, including how God sees marriage as "between one man and one woman" and how a "disordered attempt to reject" someone's "undeniable biological and God-given identity" should not be supported.Most recently, Strickland called Francis' three-week long closed-door meeting on controversial issues facing the Church a "travesty." Francis hosted the meeting in October, discussing issues like women in governance roles and welcoming LGBTQ+ members into the Church.Strickland's governance of the diocese was investigated earlier this year by the Vatican.
Following their investigation, a recommendation was given to Francis that "the continuation in office of Bishop Strickland was not feasible," said Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, the head of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston in Texas, on Saturday.
The investigation's findings were never released.The Vatican asked Strickland to resign on Thursday. When Strickland refused to resign, Francis removed him from office on Saturday, according to DiNardo's statement.
