Outspoken pro-life Catholic priest Frank Pavone, who was removed from the priesthood by the Vatican this fall, provided an update on his ouster, arguing that he had known for years that there was pressure to “cancel” him for his outspoken work for the pro-life movement. lifetime.
“We have known for 20 years that there are bishops in the Church who hate our work. They feel uncomfortable when I prioritize abortion so much,” Pavone said in an interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network on Monday.
:A bishop once said to me ‘Father Frank, you are too aggressive about abortion,'” he said. beheaded, so you come and talk to me.'”
Pavone was officially removed from the clergy on November 9 after receiving a letter from Pope Francis’ representative in the United States, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, according to the New York Times. The US bishops were first alerted to the decision on December 13.
“As you may know, Father Pavone was a very public and high-profile figure associated with the Right to Life Movement in the United States,” Archbishop Pierre told the bishops. “His removal of him from the clerical state may therefore be a matter of interest among the faithful. In anticipation of that potential interest, the attached statement on Father Pavone is provided for his information.”
VATICAN EXPELLS PRO-LIFE CLERGY ACTIVIST PRIEST, ALLEGING ‘BLASPHEMOUS COMMUNICATIONS’
Father Frank Pavone, left, celebrates the Catholic Mass for attendees of the 2021 Conservative Political Action Conference at the Hyatt Regency in Orlando, Florida on February 27, 2021.
(SOPA Images/Contributor via Getty Images)
“This action was taken after Father Pavone was found guilty in canonical proceedings of blasphemous communications on social media and persistent disobedience to the legal instructions of his diocesan bishop,” the letter says, without specifying the communications.
Pavone previously said that “blasphemous communications” refers to him writing “Damn” in a Tweet in 2020.
“I used the word GD in response to someone in a tweet and that’s why they want to remove me from the priesthood,” he told the Catholic News Agency earlier this week.
Pavone said he had not received any “official notification” of the expulsion until Monday and learned of the matter through the Catholic News Agency.
Pavone told CBN that his pro-life initiatives, such as serving as the national director of Priests for Life and as president of the National Pro-Life Religious Council, have given Catholic priests the tools to speak out more for life. lifetime. life’s problems, as he “shows compassion” for women who have had abortions.
“Why would some in the Church object? Well, the bishops have said, ‘We don’t like your emphasis on abortion.’ Fine. ‘We don’t like politics. We don’t like them supporting pro-life candidates.’ What do you want me to do to support pro-abortion candidates like some of them do? No, thanks. You know, but everything we’ve taught and done has been in accordance with the teachings of the Church.”
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Pavone had established himself as one of the most outspoken pro-life Catholics in the country, including serving as the national co-chair of ProLife Voices for Trump in 2020.
Pavone said some in the church had tried to “cancel” him in various ways before the November ouster decision, citing concerns in 2011 about Priests’ financial management for Pavone’s life.
“They tried to discredit the organization itself. They asked questions about finances, we brought it down very quickly, we have all kinds of audits that show we have good financial management,” Pavone said.
He also singled out Bishop Patrick James Zurek of Amarillo, Texas, as a “ringleader” in his removal.
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“[Zurek] He’s been trying to get me out of the priesthood. So we’ve had all kinds of communications back and forth, but the process has been a one-sided narrative. They don’t listen. They claim, even in his public statement now, they claim that, ‘Oh, Father Frank has been given plenty of chances to defend himself.’ As if we hadn’t stood up for ourselves, and we hadn’t for 20 years. They are being so fake about this. They don’t listen to our concerns,” he continued.
Pope Francis waves during the Angelus noon prayer from his study window overlooking St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022.
(AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
He added that Pope Francis had been advised “to make a more peaceful solution, to place me under the authority of a more supportive bishop, instead of a bishop who wants to persecute me, like Zurek.”
Pavone said his pro-life defense is not “erased” by the Vatican letter and called on pro-lifers to continue supporting anti-abortion initiatives.
“If the work we’re doing is decent work and worthy of support, then keep supporting it and let’s keep doing it together,” he said in an appeal to pro-lifers listening to the interview. “The value of this work does not come from a letter from the Pope and the value of this work is erased with a letter from the Pope.”
Catholics vote pro-life banner seen at St. Anthony’s Church in Brooksville, Florida.
(Jeffrey Greenberg/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
“I get more support from pro-life atheists than from pro-life bishops. We know we have to save these babies, and we have to have compassion for their moms and dads. And we’re going to continue to serve.” them,” she said, adding that he thinks it’s the Catholic Church’s “problem” if the leaders “feel uncomfortable with it.”
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Fox News Digital reached out to the Diocese of Amarilo and the Vatican regarding the interview and Pavone’s comments, but did not immediately hear back.
Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
