Vatican Dismisses Liberal French Bishop
PARIS — He defended homosexuals, recommended using condoms and said priests should be free to marry. By Friday, the Vatican had heard enough and took an extraordinary step--it fired French Bishop Jacques Gaillot.
Although the Vatican publicly warns priests to obey theological guidelines and avoid partisan politics, the Pope in recent times has almost never taken the ultimate step of dismissing a bishop.
Gaillot, 59, announced the firing himself, a day after he was summoned to the Vatican and defied a request to resign as bishop of Evreux, in Normandy.
Gaillot retains his Roman Catholic rank but will no longer oversee parishioners or churches in the city of 50,000.
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