The Vatican says Pope Francis has accepted U.S. prelate Theodore McCarricks’s offer to resign from the College of Cardinals.
A Saturday statement said Francis received the letter of resignation a day earlier by the former Washington, D.C. archbishop. Besides agreeing to McCarrick’s stepping down as a cardinal, Francis ordered him to conduct "a life of prayer and penance" until sex abuse accusations against him are examined in a Catholic church trial.
McCarrick has been removed from public ministry since June 20, pending a full investigation into allegations he fondled a teenager over 40 years ago in New York City. A man, who was 11 at the time of the first alleged instance of abuse, says a sexually abusive relationship continued for two more decades. McCarrick has denied the initial allegation.
(Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
