On Friday, Pope Francis accepted Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl’s resignation after he was accused of aiding in the cover-up of two sexual abuse scandals.
In a letter released by Wuerl’s office, the Pope reluctantly accepted the cardinal’s resignation, noting that he was a longtime ally to the pope and suggesting that Wuerl became a scapegoat amid sexual abuse allegations.
Wuerl’s resignation makes him the most prominent figure in the church to resign amid the Catholic church sex abuse scandal after his predecessor as Washington archbishop, Theodore McCarrick.
McCarrick was forced to resign in 2018 from the College of Cardinals after being accused of sexually assaulting at least two minors and adult seminarians.
The Vatican released a statement Friday to announce Francis’ acceptance of Wuerl’s resignation, but noted that the pope has not named a replacement for the cardinal and as such has asked Wuerl to stay on until a new archbishop can be found.
This decision came after months of Wuerl insisting that he had no knowledge of the sexual abuses by clergy. Nonetheless, many people in the Catholic community lost faith in Wuerl’s leadership and soon the cardinal reached the conclusion that he could no longer lead the archdiocese.
“The Holy Father’s decision to provide new leadership to the Archdiocese can allow all of the faithful, clergy, religious and lay, to focus on…
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