Zambia’s controversial Roman Catholic Church archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, who has been defrocked (dismissed) from the church’s leadership after years of controversial actions, on Friday demanded that the Vatican should pay him his pension for the years he served the church. The controversial church leader was first ex-communicated from the church in 2006 after he shocked the establishment by marrying a Korean woman in a mass ceremony conducted by the Unification Church also known as the Moonies.
Although he later reconciled with the church, he again broke ranks by beginning to ordain married men as priests against the doctrine of the church, leading to his ex-communication.
He has, however, continued to ordain married men, with his most recent action being the ordination ceremony he conducted in Kenya early this month.
The Kenya ordination appears to have been the last straw for the Vatican who announced this week that Milingo had now been defrocked.
This means he would no longer be regarded as a Catholic bishop and has lost the right to ordain priests, say mass or carry out any functions of a priest.
The excommunication previously meant he was merely suspended from the church but wore the vestments of bishops and carry out functions of a priest.
Reacting to his expulsion from the church on Friday, the former bishop accused the Vatican of being vengeful and unforgiving.
He charged that he would insist on being paid a pension for all the years that he had loyally served the church.
Milingo once served as Archbishop for Lusaka but was removed after he began conducting public exorcisms which the church was uncomfortable with.
He then spent 20 years at the Vatican before his marriage to the Korean woman.
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SIC: APA