VATICAN CITY (AP) – Pope Francis on Saturday replaced an Australian bishop who left office amid a Vatican investigation into what Australian media have described as allegations of sexual misconduct.
The Vatican said Francis accepted the resignation of Bishop Christopher Alan Saunders as head of the Broome diocese in the state of Western Australia. Francis appointed another prelate, Bishop Michael Henry Morrissey, of the Diocese of Geraldton, to temporarily administer the expanding Catholic diocese to Broome.
The Vatican, in keeping with its custom of announcing the bishop’s resignations, did not cite a reason to replace Saunders. At 71, he is four years younger than the age at which the Vatican demands bishops to offer their resignations to the pontiff.
Australian media have quoted Saunders as firmly denying any wrongdoing and voluntarily offering to set aside. The Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported earlier this year that police and prosecutors decided not to file criminal charges.
Diocesan parishioners were informed in May that the Vatican’s investigation was ongoing, according to Australian media reports.
Details of the case were not immediately available. Saunders has reportedly been on sabbatical.
After decades of sexual abuse scandals in many nations, Pope Francis vowed to root out the predatory clergy. The cases related to the bishops that systematically covered these priests also led Francis to try to rebuild the collapsed trust of many faithful by committing themselves to accountability to the church hierarchy.