Leo XIV has decreed the dismissal from the clerical state of Francisco José Vegara Cerezo, who served as a priest of the Spanish Diocese of Orihuela-Alicante, following a canonical process that was initiated due to his repeated public rejection of the authority of Pope Francis and, subsequently, of Leo XIV himself.
The case dates back to 2023, when a dialogue with Vegara Cerezo began following the publication of a 20-page manifesto (original Spanish version or translated English version) (in which he labeled Pope Francis a “heretic” and questioned the validity of his election.
The now laicized priest also criticized texts such as the apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia, by the late Argentine pontiff, and the declaration Fiducia Supplicans, from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.
In 2024, Vegara Cerezo’s obstinacy led his bishop, José Ignacio Munilla, to remove him from any office or position within the diocese.
Munilla admonished Vegara Cerezo in February 2024 and April 2025, urging him to alter the “stance expressed publicly and notoriously through various media outlets,” according to a statement issued by the Diocese of Orihuela-Alicante on June 25, 2026.
In September 2025, Bishop Munilla issued a new decree prohibiting Vegara Cerezo from making public statements in the media — a measure Vegara decided to appeal to the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Clergy.
Following this, and after another article by Vegara Cerezo, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith asked him to retract from his offense of schism. Upon his failure to provide a satisfactory response, on April 30 Leo decreed that he be dismissed from the clerical state — a decision that was communicated to him on June 20.
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