Pope Francis Fires Conservative Texas Bishop Joseph Strickland, Who Criticized Pontiff’s Progressive Policies

Pope Francis fired Texas Bishop Joseph Strickland of the pastoral governance of Tyler, Texas, who has been a vocal critic of the Pope on social media.

In a one-line statement from the Vatican, it was announced that Francis “relieved” Strickland and appointed the bishop of Austin as the temporary administrator.

Earlier this year, Strickland accused the Pope of “undermining the deposit of faith” on X, formerly Twitter.

He has also been critical of Francis’ recent discussions about the future of the Catholic Church, in which the Pope brought up ways to make LGBTQ Catholics feel more welcome.

Strickland was investigated by the Vatican in early 2023 after priests and residents in Tyler had accused the bishop of making false statements. Though the findings were never released, Strickland declared that he would not resign voluntarily, saying he would not abdicate his mandate to serve as bishop.

Francis’ decision to fire Strickland has sparked controversy among conservative Catholics who disagree with the Pope’s progressive outlook.

Michael Matt, editor of the traditionalist newspaper The Remnant, accused the Pope of “actively trying to bury fidelity to the Church of Jesus Christ.”

“This is total war,” Matt wrote on X. “Francis is a clear and present danger not only to Catholics the world over but also the whole world itself.”

In May, the pontiff made headlines when he met with director Martin Scorsese about a movie on Jesus’ life.