Leo XIV appointed today two auxiliary bishops in the Archdiocese of Caracas, Venezuela.
Monsignor José Manuel León (born 1966 in Barquisimeto) is a Passionist Father, was ordained to the priesthood on 19 March 1994 and is currently a parish priest.
Pictured Monsignor José Dionisio Gómez Gouveia (born 1966 in La Guaira) is a diocesan priest of Caracas. He has served in multiple parishes, as a prison chaplain, and in seminary formation.
"Beyond Traditions and Rites"
Monsignor León's current parish Preciosísima Sangre is in eastern Caracas, near Petare and a slum area.
His homilies are published on ParroquiaPreciosisimaSangre.wordpress.com. He uses a Francis-style pastoral tone with the buzzwords mercy, welcome, and fraternity.
In a reflection from 8 July 2023, he wrote that Jesus moved beyond a religion sustained “only in traditions,” criticizes a faith reduced to rites, and says it is easy to “wash hands” while failing to extend them “for fraternal embrace.” He also attacks attachment to “traditions and privileges” and ties conversion to social renewal.
He described God as someone who is “understanding, tolerant, welcoming, accepting every human being as he or she is.”
Monsignor León is the Passionist superior for Venezuela, secretary general of the Latin American Passionist conference, and general coordinator of the Latin American Passionist theological team. In this ecosystem of his order, he co-signed documents on the Synod of Synodality considered as a “response to Pope Francis’s call to renew.”
Francis' Style: "Mercy" for Criminals
Mons Gómez Gouveia studied informatics in Macuto, worked for three years in industrial safety before entering the seminary. He was ordained a priest on November 24, 2001. He also served as prison chaplain at La Planta and parish priest in multiple settings, and is now rector of the priestly seminary.
The most troubling fact is that he posted on Instagram.com and Facebook.com just this week, on March 15 and March 17, each day a mosaic made by the accused sexual abuser Marko Rupnik.
His posts and captions are chained in the Francis-style pastoral world using language like mercy toward “all human misery,” asks why one sees a human being as a criminal rather than a brother, and contrasts “law” and “freedom”. He also circulates Pope Francis lines.
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