LA CROSSE, WI (WSAU) – Pope Francis is pursuing a second Catholic cardinal who has publicly criticized the Vatican and is a devoted religious conservative.
Former Diocese of La Crosse priest, bishop, and now Cardinal Raymond Burke was stripped of his right to a subsidized Vatican apartment and salary by Pope Francis due to his criticisms of the Pope’s recent policy reforms, which include allowing same-sex couples to receive blessings and the Vatican’s outreach to divorced and civilly remarried Catholics.
According to the Catholic News Agency, Pope Francis spoke about punishing Cardinal Burke at a Vatican meeting saying, “Burke was a source of ‘disunity’ in the Church and that he was using the privileges afforded to retired cardinals against the Church.”
The AP reports that Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni directed all questions on the news to Burke rather than refuting the claims of Francis’ decision. Bruni told reporters, “I don’t have anything specific to say about that.”
According to a source close to Burke, the cardinal was not previously aware of the pope’s decision, which was initially revealed by La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana, an Italian news source.
Burke, who is from Richland Center, Wisconsin, was ordained a priest by Pope Paul VI back in 1975 and was named the first American Defender of the Bond of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura back in 1989 by Pope John Paul II, which is the highest ecclesiastical court in the Catholic Church.
His most recent promotion, which was given by Pope Benedict XVI, made him Prefect back in 2008, making him the second-highest-ranking American prelate at the Vatican behind only Cardinal Willam Levada.
Burke has been a known critic of the controversial Pope Francis for nearly a decade. He first openly criticized him, saying, “There is a strong sense that the church is like a ship without a rudder.” Not long after, on November 8, 2014, Burke was removed as Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura by Francis.
Cardinal Burke made headlines in the past as well when he stated back in 2004 that he would refuse to give Holy Communion to John Kerry or other Catholic politicians who publicly support legalized abortion. He stated that Catholics could not vote for politicians who support abortion due to it directly going against the faith’s religious beliefs.
Francis also relieved prominent Bishop Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas, of his duties earlier this month. Strickland is another traditionalist like Burke who has turned into a fierce opponent of Francis. The official reason given for Strickland’s removal was reportedly due to a Vatican inquiry into the management of his diocese.
