Pope Francis Accepts Resignation of Chilean Cardinal Ezzati

Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Chilean Cardinal, Ricardo Ezzati, archbishop of Santiago, one of the many to be implicated in the Catholic Church’s sexual abuse scandal, a statement from the Vatican said Saturday..

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Ezzati, 77, faces multiple charges of cover up, including some relating to the case of Oscar Munoz, a former top aide to the Santiago Archbishopric, who is facing trial on charges he abused and raped at least five children. He denies wrongdoing.

“I leave with my head held high,” Ezzati told reporters in Santiago. “Every accusation has been responded to, and we will have to wait for what justice says: it is not enough for one to be accused of a cover-up; it has to be proven.”

Together with 34 other high-ranking religious clergymen, Chile’s representative to the Catholic Church submitted his resignation last May one by one, alleged victims of sexual abuse began to share their stories.

Chilean prosecutors in late July named Ezzati as a suspect in an investigation into claims and summoned him to testify. However, in October, Ezzati exercised his right to remain silent after being summoned for questioning by a state prosecutor over the allegations.

The crisis has rattled Chile's Catholic Church since 2011, when Chilean priest Fernando Karadima was found guilty by the Vatican of abusing children in the 1970s and 1980s.

Accusations of sex abuse against various members of the Catholic Church led Pope Francis to open an international investigation in the South American country that has led the church to oust bishops and other priests from around the world accused of carrying out or covering up abuses against minors.

Jaime Concha, one of the victims of hundreds of pedophile cases, commented on the Pope’s decision saying, “It's a late decision, this should have happened a year ago.”

Despite his resignation as archbishop of the Chilean capital, Ezzati will keep his title of cardinal. Until he turns 80, he also will be eligible to enter a conclave to elect a new pope after Francis’ death or resignation.

The Vatican said the pope had named Bishop Celestino Aos Braco of the Chilean city of Copiapo, as “apostolic administrator” to run the Santiago archdiocese until a new archbishop is named.