Bishop in Paraguay ousted by Pope Francis dies at 69
Bishop in Paraguay ousted by Pope Francis dies at 69
By PEDRO SERVIN
Aug. 14, 2015 12:43 PM EDT
Bishop Rogelio Livieres
ASUNCION, Paraguay (AP) — Rogelio Livieres Plano, a former bishop in Paraguay who was revered by some for building a successful seminary but who was ousted by Pope Francis amid several controversies, has died. He was 69.
Livieres Plano died on Friday in a hospital in Buenos Aires, Argentina, from complications related to diabetes, Asuncion Archbishop Edmundo Valenzuela told The Associated Press. Valenzuela said a group of Paraguayan clergy recently visited Livieres Plano in Buenos Aires. "Happily we were able to say goodbye to our brother Rogelio" before he died, said Valenzuela.
Livieres Plano was a member of the conservative Opus Dei movement and spent 10 years overseeing the diocese of Ciudad del Este, a sprawling city in eastern Paraguay that borders Brazil. He was ousted in September by Francis, and the Holy See has never specified why. The bishop asserted he had been "persecuted" for his conservative orthodoxy by liberal parishioners and fellow bishops.
An Associated Press review in June found that the bishop made several questionable spending decisions during his tenure. Those included failing to use a $350,000 donation for its intended purpose of helping poor families, selling diocese properties without Vatican approval and using diocese funds to pay his brother for unspecified services.
More:
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/aa9195b8d72e47b09cbb3ecb38b6e3a3/bishop-paraguay-ousted-pope-francis-dies-69
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