The Archbishop of Santo Domingo, Msgr. Francisco Ozoria Acosta, has made public a letter in which he denounces that he has been “stripped” of his governance responsibilities in the archdiocese by order of the Holy See, which has transferred these faculties to the recently appointed coadjutor archbishop, Msgr. Carlos Tomás Morel Diplán. Although he will retain the title of metropolitan archbishop, Ozoria claims that he has been removed from administrative, economic, financial, and clergy management authority, a decision he attributes to a decree for “mismanagement”.
The information was initially confirmed by Dominican media and expanded in a dispatch from the EFE agency, which states that Morel Diplán assumed the practical functions of the Archdiocese on Monday. Ozoria himself, 73 years old, explained that he had requested the appointment of a coadjutor to ensure pastoral continuity, but he assured that he did not expect the Holy See to limit his faculties so drastically before turning 75 and submitting his formal resignation.
An unusual decision that recalls previous interventions during the pontificate
The portal Secretum Meum Mihi noted that the case had raised suspicions from the very beginning, as Morel Diplán was transferred to Santo Domingo just one year after being appointed bishop of La Vega. For the outlet, the situation recalls similar interventions that have occurred during the current pontificate, such as the case of the diocese of Fréjus-Toulon in France, where the titular bishop was also reduced to a merely honorary role while his coadjutor assumed effective governance.
In his letter, Ozoria admits that the situation caught him by surprise: “My surprise is that the appointed Coadjutor Archbishop has special exclusive faculties,” which implies his own suspension from governance in the aforementioned areas from the new coadjutor’s taking of possession. According to him, the Holy See has suspended him “for mismanagement,” although he assures that “I was never admonished or warned.”
“The enemies have prevailed”: previous accusations and absence of formal warnings
In the text, the archbishop reveals that during a previous visit, Cardinal Marc Ouellet—then prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops—spoke to him about “some accusations” against him and warned him: “You have many enemies. The enemies have prevailed.” Ozoria maintains that he never received an official warning or a canonical process that justified the suspension of his attributions.
The archbishop, who took office in 2016 after the retirement of Cardinal Nicolás de Jesús López Rodríguez, assures that he maintains the “satisfaction of duty fulfilled” after 47 years as a priest and 28 as a bishop. He declares himself obedient to the Church, although he makes clear his disagreement with the way the process has been managed: “They have left me only the title… What I liked least, the titles”.
An early exit that opens a new scenario in the Dominican Church
The intervention in the Archdiocese of Santo Domingo represents an advanced and unusual turnover in Church administration, especially in the case of an archbishop with two years to go before the canonical retirement age. Ozoria’s letter confirms that the process was not voluntary and that the transfer of powers responds to reasons that have not been publicly explained by the Vatican beyond the mention of “mismanagement”.
The archbishop concludes his message by thanking the faithful and reaffirming his obedience: “I owe myself to the Church, I love the Church, and I obey the Church”. In the absence of additional official explanations, the case is generating significant impact in the country and in the ecclesial environment of Latin America, where Ozoria’s figure had considerable weight as Primate of America.