Father Frank Pavone, a fiery pro-life campaigner who sparked debate about the subject inside the church, was excommunicated this past October.
According to the New York Times, Pavone was formally expelled from the clergy on November 9 after receiving a letter from the American representative of Pope Francis. According to the letter, Pavone would be fired without the option of an appeal.
The letter reportedly states, without elaborating, “This step was taken after Father Pavone was found guilty in canonical procedures of blasphemous messages on social media, and of chronic disobedience of the legitimate commands of his diocesan bishop.”
In a Saturday interview with the Catholic News Agency, Pavone asserted that he had not heard from the Vatican. But he didn’t seem surprised.
“I’ve endured years and years of persecution within the church. For me, this is nothing new,” he told CNA. They simply dislike the work I perform for these infants, I said.
He continued by describing the events surrounding his “blasphemous communication,” noting that it had occurred in a Tweet in the year 2020.
They want to expel me from the priesthood because “I used the phrase G-D in a response to someone in a tweet,” he claimed.
According to the Times, the decision was informed to American bishops on December 13 by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the pope’s delegate in the US.
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Archbishop Pierre informed the bishops, “As you are aware, Father Pavone was a highly public and high profile individual affiliated with the Right to Life Movement in the United States. Therefore, it is possible that the faithful will be interested in hearing about his departure from the clerical state. The following Father Pavone statement is offered for your knowledge in anticipation of such prospective interest.
The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey gave the pro-life movement in the United States a historic win a few months before to Pavone’s defrocking.
According to many analysts, the decision aided Democrats by bringing abortion into the spotlight for the 2022 midterm elections.
