Pope accepts resignation of Spanish bishop accused of abuse

Rome, Nov 22: Pope Leo XIV on Saturday accepted the resignation of an ailing Spanish bishop who is under church investigation for allegedly sexually abusing a young seminarian in the 1990s, the first known time the new pontiff removed a bishop accused of abuse. A one-line statement from the Vatican said Leo had accepted the resignation of Cadiz Bishop Rafael Zornoza, 76. It didn’t say why, but Zornoza submitted his resignation to the pope last year when he turned 75, the normal retirement age for bishops. It hadn’t been accepted, though, until the El País newspaper reported earlier this month that Zornoza had been recently placed under inves…