ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Bishop Rafael Zornoza of Cadiz on Saturday. The 76-year-old bishop is under investigation for alleged sexual abuse of a young seminarian in the 1990s. This incident marks the first time a bishop has been dismissed on abuse suspicions since the new pope’s appointment.
A statement from the Vatican confirmed that Zornoza’s resignation, submitted last year when he reached the typical retirement age for bishops, was accepted. The reasons behind his resignation remain unspecified.
Reports from El Pais earlier this month indicated that Zornoza was recently placed under review by an ecclesiastical court. Since 2018, the publication has reported on extensive abuse and cover-ups in the Spanish Catholic Church, including allegations against Zornoza for abusing a young man when he was a priest in charge of the diocesan seminary in Getafe.
The report mentioned a letter from the former seminarian to the Vatican, stating that Zornoza engaged in inappropriate behavior with him from ages 14 to 21. The former seminarian claimed Zornoza also directed him to see a psychiatrist to “cure” his homosexuality.
The Diocese of Cadiz denied Zornoza’s accusations but acknowledged the ongoing investigation by the Ecclesiastical Tribunal in Madrid, known as Rota. In a statement from November 10, the diocese indicated that Zornoza was cooperating with the investigation and had paused his duties to seek treatment for a malignant tumor.
“The accusations, which refer to events that occurred nearly 30 years ago, are both very serious and false,” the statement asserted.
This situation appears to be the first publicly acknowledged case of a bishop resigning while facing an investigation for abuse, highlighting the Spanish church’s recent efforts to confront its past regarding decades of abuse and cover-up.
Currently, Leo has not appointed an interim leader for the diocese.
A 2023 inquiry into abuse in Spain revealed that the number of victims could be in the hundreds of thousands, according to a study by the Spanish Ombudsman’s Office, which investigated 487 cases involving alleged victims.
Despite acknowledging the issue, Spain’s Catholic bishops have termed the ombudsman’s report a “lie,” claiming that most abuse occurred outside church confines. The church later produced its own report, stating that it found 728 sexual abusers within its ranks since 1945. Subsequently, the Spanish government introduced a plan mandating the church to provide financial reparations and launched a victim compensation program.
