Roman Catholic Bishop Joseph Strickland has been ousted from his position as the Bishop of Tyler, Texas, by Pope Francis. Bishop Strickland has criticised the Supreme Pontiff for various statements and actions as progressives push forward with an agenda to “reform” the Catholic Church.
The Vatican announced on Saturday, November 11th, that Bishop Strickland would be leaving his post with a very brief statement that reads “The Holy Father has relieved H.E. Msgr. Joseph E. Strickland from the pastoral governance of the Diocese of Tyler (U.S.A.) and appointed H.E. Msgr. Joe Vásquez, Bishop of Austin, as Apostolic Administrator of the vacated diocese.”
The lack of detail has fueled speculation as to why Bishop Strickland, who is popular among traditional and conservative Catholics in the United States, was removed from his position by Pope Francis.
In an interview following the Vatican announcement, Bishop Strickland told LifeSiteNews, “I really can’t look to any reason except I’ve threatened some of the powers that be with the truth of the Gospel.”
When asked what he thought was the reason behind the move, Bishop Strickland stated, “The only answer I have to that is because forces in the Church right now don’t want the truth of the Gospel,” adding, “They want it changed. They want it ignored.”
While Strickland acknowledged that Pope Francis had the power and authority to remove him from his post, he did not go into any detail as to why he was removed or what, if any, reasons were presented to him by the Vatican.
Strickland had previously been asked to resign just days earlier, on November 9th, with Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston stating the issue was related to a papal visit to Strickland earlier in the year in June regarding Bishop Strickland’s leadership in the diocese.
Bishop Strickland has been a vocal conservative voice among the American Catholic bishops and has made some statements deemed controversial by some in the past, such as a statement made earlier this year in which he criticised Pope Francis.
Strickland was responding to a statement by Patrick Coffin, a Catholic commentator who has previously claimed Pope Francis is an ‘antipope,’ meaning the Chair of Saint Peter is vacant, a belief known as ‘sedevacantism.’
“Please allow me to clarify regarding, ‘Patrick Coffin has challenged the authenticity of Pope Francis.’ If this is accurate I disagree, I believe Pope Francis is the Pope but it is time for me to say that I reject his program of undermining the Deposit of Faith. Follow Jesus,” Bishop Strickland said in May of this year on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The comments outraged some Catholic commentators and members of the clergy, who called on Strickland to resign and accused him of not being loyal to the pope and trying to undermine papal authority.
Strickland became a nationally known figure in June this year when he led a prayer rally of thousands in Los Angeles against the L.A. Dodgers baseball team which was honouring an LGBT group known as the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.”
The drag group has been labelled anti-Catholic as they not only dress up in religious clothing, such as nuns’ habits, but also mock the crucifixion of Christ.
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles criticised the L.A. Dodgers for celebrating the group, saying the “decision to honor a group that clearly mocks the Catholic faith and makes light of the sincere and holy vocations of our women religious who are an integral part of our Church,” but the diocese did not endorse Bishop Strickland’s protest.
The ousting of Bishop Strickland comes as tensions between conservative clergy in America and the Vatican are at a high, with Strickland himself admitting he did not implement the Tradiones Custodes Motu Proprio that restricts the Traditional Latin Mass.
The gulf between a more progressive Vatican and a conservative American clergy may widen in the coming years as a survey released last week revealed that young priests graduating from seminary are overwhelmingly traditional and conservative with few describing themselves as progressives.
Pope Francis has previously labelled American conservatives in the church, particularly those who attend the Traditional Latin Mass, as “backwards-looking” and stated, “Instead of living by doctrine, by the true doctrine that always develops and bears fruit, they live by ideologies.”
