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Rabat: an apostolic administrator named during the inquiry into Cardinal López Romero
An apostolic administrator has been named for the Archdiocese of Rabat during the preliminary inquiry into Cardinal López Romero, accused of inappropriate conduct which he denies.
The Holy See has entrusted the Archdiocese of Rabat to an apostolic administrator, provisionally, for the duration of a preliminary inquiry into its archbishop, Cardinal Cristóbal López Romero, accused of inappropriate conduct toward adult women, which he denies.
The Church has always required of her pastors a life beyond reproach. The Apostle wants the bishop “blameless” and “the husband of one wife,” master of himself. The priesthood is ordered to holiness, and the sixth commandment binds still more closely the man who ascends to the altar. When a pastor is called into question, the prudence of the Church withdraws him from governance to protect souls and the honor of his office, without prejudging the fault: tradition judges acts, not rumor, and waits for the inquiry to establish the truth.
Bishop Mario León Dorado, of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, Apostolic Prefect of Western Sahara, has been named apostolic administrator of Rabat. A decree of the Apostolic Nunciature in Morocco, dated August 1, provides for it; the appointment was made public by the Oblate congregation, and not by the ordinary bulletin of the Holy See. Under the form retained, known as “sede plena,” the cardinal keeps the title of Archbishop of Rabat but ceases to exercise its pastoral governance.
At the head of the diocese since 2018, the cardinal had announced on July 8 that he would “step back” and cooperate. A formal complaint was filed in May at the nunciature; five adult women are said to be concerned, for alleged acts said to have occurred between 2009 and 2024, in Morocco and in other countries where he exercised his ministry. The characterization of the facts remains contested: some headlines speak of sexual assault, while the cardinal rejects those terms. He declares: “This event shakes us all. As archbishop, I am fully aware of the difficulties this causes.” And he states: “I have committed no assault, no sexual violence or harassment.”
Sources. Catechism of the Council of Trent (1566), on the sacrament of Holy Orders and the sixth commandment; Epistle of Saint Paul to Timothy (I, iii, 2); Epistle to Titus (i, 7).