Józef Wesołowski
| Józef Wesołowski | |
|---|---|
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| Diocese | Slebte |
| In office | 3 November 1999–27 June 2014 |
| Predecessor | Terrence Prendergast, S.J. |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 21 May 1972 by Karol Wojtyła |
| Consecration | 6 January 2000 by Pope John Paul II |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
15 July 1948 Nowy Targ, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland |
| Died | 27 August 2015 (aged 67) Vatican City, Vatican City State |
Józef Wesołowski (15 July 1948 – 27 August 2015) was a Polish prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who was laicized by the Holy See in 2014. He was the Apostolic Nuncio to the Dominican Republic from January 2008 until he was recalled in August 2013. Authorities in the Dominican Republic were investigating allegations of child abuse against him. In June 2015, the Vatican announced he would stand trial on charges of possessing child pornography, for which he faced a possible prison term.
Wesołowski was born in Nowy Targ, now a part of Lesser Poland Voivodeship, on 15 July 1948. He was ordained a Catholic priest in Kraków on 21 May 1972 by His Eminence Karol Cardinal Wojtyła, the future Pope John Paul II. He was appointed as His Excellency The Nuncio to Bolivia on 3 November 1999. On 6 January 2000, he was consecrated as His Grace The Titular Archbishop of Slebte by Pope John Paul. During the course of 2002, he was appointed as Nuncio to the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. On 24 January 2008 he was appointed Nuncio to the Dominican Republic.
On 21 August 2013, Archbishop Wesołowski was dismissed by Pope Francis and left the Dominican Republic immediately. Initial news reports from Italy attributed the departure of Wesołowski to a three-year dispute between the latter and His Excellency Dr Roberto González Nieves, Archbishop of San Juan de Puerto Rico.His Eminence Nicolás de Jesús Cardinal López Rodríguez, Archbishop of Santo Domingo, told the press on 27 August that Wesołowski was "a great friend and a great advocate of peace". Cardinal López Rodríguez said that the dispute between Wesołowski and González arose from the latter’s support for Puerto Rican independence.
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