Statement by Archbishop Viganò on Cardinal Sarah's retraction
https://leblogdejeannesmits.blogspot.com/2020/05/communique-de-mgr-vigano-sur-la.htmlAfter the two tweets in which Cardinal Sarah distanced himself late last night from the Appeal for the Church and for the World, Bishop Carlo Maria Viganò explained the facts. Here they are.
RELEASE
8 May 2020
Subject: Withdrawal of the adhesion of H.E. Robert, Cardinal Sarah to the "Appeal for the Church and the World" launched yesterday, 7 May.
At this time of very serious crisis that the Church and the world are going through, I wish to maintain an attitude of profound charity towards my brother in Christ, Cardinal Robert Sarah, to whom I immediately forgave the grave wrong he inflicted on the truth and on my person. True charity, however, cannot ignore the truth, for it is in truth that it has its foundation. It is therefore my duty, including fraternal correction, to bring to light the sequence of events as they occurred, with regard to Cardinal Sarah's signing of the Appeal.
Monday, 4 May, 4 p.m.
I had a telephone conversation with His Eminence, Cardinal Sarah. The call was recorded and lasted 6 minutes and 25 seconds.
Regarding the text of the call, the Cardinal said: "It seems to me that this is a very serious matter. I think that this Appeal can do a lot of good, because it will make people think and take a position: I agree that it should be published as soon as possible."
I then asked His Eminence if he intended to put his signature. The Cardinal replied: "Yes, I agree to put my name, because it is a struggle that we must wage together, not only for the Catholic Church but for all humanity."
Thursday, May 7th
At 8:43 a.m., I telephoned His Eminence to ask him if he had the telephone number of Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Mueller, which he then kindly communicated to me by SMS. During this phone call, which lasted 4 minutes, Cardinal Sarah made no mention of his wish to withdraw his signature.
At 3 p.m. I started to send the Appeal to news agencies, blogs and various newspapers: the text of the Appeal with the list of signatories, including Cardinal Sarah's signature.
At 5:48 p.m. I received a text message from the Cardinal, which I read only an hour and a half later. At the time this message was sent, I was totally absorbed in the operations of spreading the Appeal, I did not notice the arrival of the message from His Eminence, and therefore could not immediately take note of its contents.
At 7:37 p.m., the Cardinal phoned me to ask me if I had seen his message. I answered that I had not.
Here is the text of the message sent to me by the Cardinal:
"Dear Excellency, as I'm still on duty at the Roman Curia, a friend of mine advised me not to sign the call. Perhaps it would be better to withdraw my name this time. I am very sorry for this. You know of my friendship and closeness to you. Thank you for your understanding. Robert Card. Sarah."
The Cardinal informed me during his telephone call that he intended to remove his name from the list of signatories. Confused and sorry, I pointed out to His Eminence that the Appeal and the signatures had already been "universally" distributed for more than four hours. The conversation ended without His Eminence asking or suggesting a solution.
We could, for example, have agreed on a "common communiqué" in which the Cardinal's decision to withdraw his membership would be made public. None of that was done. We left in a cordial manner, expressing feelings of esteem and mutual support. Faced with this situation, to which neither he nor I were able to find a solution, I took the liberty of encouraging His Eminence, pointing out to him how much his adherence to the Appeal would be a comfort and encouragement for a very large number of the faithful.
With surprise and deep disappointment, I then learned that His Eminence had used his Twitter account, without warning me, with statements seriously prejudicial to the truth and to my person. I am deeply sorry that this affair, attributable to human weakness, and for which I bear no resentment towards the person who provoked it, has diverted our attention from what must be of grave concern to us at this dramatic moment.
I confirm that the name of His Eminence Cardinal Robert Sarah was quickly removed from the official site of the Appeal, as can be seen at veritasliberabitvos.info.
+ Carlo Maria Viganò, Archbishop, Apostolic Nuncio