Controversy over Cardinal Mahony’s role in papal burial
April 25, 2025
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CWN Editor's Note: Cardinal Roger Mahony, the retired Archbishop of Los Angeles, will play a ceremonial role in the burial of Pope Francis—a role that has sparked some controversy, since Cardinal Mahony was once relieved of his public ministry because of his failure to respond to sex-abuse complaints.
Cardinal Mahony retired in 2011, upon reaching the age of 75. As details of his handling of abuse complaints became public, in 2013 his successor, Archbishop José Gomez, announced that the cardinal would no longer play a public role in the work of the archdiocese. That ban was later quietly lifted, apparently after an intervention by the Vatican.
Cardinal Mahony will be one of several prelates chosen to assist at the closing of the coffin of Pope Francis. A Vatican spokesman said that he was chosen because he among the cardinals classified as “cardinal-priests,” he is the senior member available.
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