Pope Leo accepted the resignation of Cádiz Bishop Rafael Zornoza amid allegations that have prompted an investigation, and the diocese disputes the claims while the bishop reportedly cooperates as the Vatican has issued only a brief statement.

Pope Leo just accepted the resignation of Cadiz Bishop Rafael Zornoza, a move that arrived as allegations of abuse against the Spanish prelate surfaced publicly. The charges have prompted an inquiry and drawn attention to how the church in Spain handles historical abuse claims. Officials say an investigation is underway to determine the facts, and the process is ongoing.

News outlets have reported on the accusation and the paper trail that followed, noting that the story emerged from reporting that has probed decades of abuse and cover-up in the Spanish church. Per those reports, a former seminarian wrote to the Vatican describing a pattern of alleged conduct, and that letter is part of what spurred official attention. Authorities are treating the matter as a serious allegation while the legal and ecclesiastical review continues.

The daily, which since 2018 has exposed decades of abuse and cover-up in the Spanish Catholic Church, said Zornoza was accused of abusing a young former seminarian while he was a young priest and directed the diocesan seminary in Getafe. The report, quoting a letter the former seminarian wrote the Vatican over the summer, said Zornoza fondled him and regularly slept with him from when he was 14-21 years old. The former seminarian’s letter said Zornoza heard his confession and persuaded him to see a psychiatrist to “cure” his homosexuality.

The allegation described in that letter, which spans the complainant’s teenage years into early adulthood, remains a subject of investigation and has not been adjudicated in any public forum. Zornoza is said to be cooperating with the inquiry as investigators seek documents, testimony, and any corroborating evidence. Church officials and civil investigators, where applicable, will weigh the claim against available records and witness accounts.

At the same time, the diocese of Cádiz has publicly rejected the accusations and framed them as untrue, stressing that the events in question date back decades. In a diocesan statement, officials said, “The accusations made, referring to events that took place almost 30 years ago, are very serious and also false.” The statement added that Zornoza is taking time “to clarify the facts and to undergo treatment for an aggressive form of cancer.”

The Vatican’s response has been succinct rather than detailed, issuing a short public notice that confirmed acceptance of the bishop’s resignation without laying out the reasons. Zornoza, who turned 75 last year and submitted the standard retirement offer many bishops submit at that age, had his resignation accepted by Pope Leo. The Vatican statement was terse and offered no detailed explanation of the timing or whether the resignation was directly tied to the ongoing inquiry.

A one-line statement from the Vatican said Leo had accepted the resignation of Cádiz 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.

The mix of a formal resignation, an active investigation, and a defensive diocesan statement has raised questions among observers about how these cases are being processed in Spain. Some commentators point out that this is among the first widely reported instances in recent years where a bishop has been publicly retired and simultaneously placed under investigation for alleged abuse. That context feeds into broader scrutiny of the church’s handling of allegations that span decades and involve clergy at different levels.

It is believed to be the first publicly known case of a bishop being retired, and being placed under investigation for alleged abuse abuse, since the Spanish church began reckoning in recent years with a decades-long legacy of abuse and cover-up that have rocked the once-staunchly Catholic Spain.

For now, key questions remain: how evidence will be assessed, whether additional witnesses or documents will surface, and what canonical or civil steps might follow. Pope Leo will also need to appoint a successor to the Cádiz seat once the appropriate procedures are completed and the Vatican decides on the next moves. At the time of this writing, no replacement has been announced and the investigation continues.