Bishop for 22 days. This is the curious note of the Monsignor José Maria Baliña whom Francis, his fellow citizen and compatriot, appointed titular of the diocese of Mar del Plata on November 21st. Today the twist: a letter from the elected bishop in which he communicates to the religious and faithful of the diocese that he has resignedsigns as emeritus.
The sudden resignation
Monsignor Baliña addressed himself directly to the Diocese of Mar del Plata, justifying himself by saying that he “hurried to agree immediately, without being aware of the ongoing process”. The afterthought However, lightning does not have just one reason, but several. There is a health problem that the prelate of Buenos Aires admittedly underestimated in his joy at the appointment: “For several months,” he explained in the letter, “I have been struggling with a detachment of.” retinawith two operations and one planned for February.” Faced with this motivation, the solidarity of the faithful of Mar del Plata immediately emerged. However, this is not the only reason for the regression. Baliña himself actually mentioned “other” without elaborating. personal situations and family members” who contributed to leaving the role.
Direct line to the Pope
Monsignor Baliña is part of what is known as “Bergoglio generation“, having had him as archbishop since 1997. And just as the Bergoglian season began in Buenos Aires, Baliña began to take on responsible roles, becoming parish priest of the Resurrección del Señor church in Barrio Chacarita in 1998 and then parish priest in 2009 of the San Isidro Labrador church. With the election of Francis to the papal throne, Porteño's ecclesiastical career took off until he was appointed priest in 2015 Auxiliary Bishopand the home archdiocese. In recent years, the connection with the former archbishop has not been broken and Baliña was also received at the Vatican for the Ad Limina Apostolorum visit of the Argentine bishops in 2019. After the appointment communicated on November 21st in Mar de Plata, the prelate has matured the decision to resign while keeping the channel with Rome open. He himself announced in the letter that “after he had spoken about it better and consulted the Holy SeeI have decided to resign.”
The future
The bishop is now retired 22 days In the letter, he wrote that his future lies in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, where he currently resides and where, he said, he will continue to offer his “priestly ministry.” So no more aid. At the age of 64, the Porteño bishop is retiring. “I'm sorry disappoint Expectations, I trust that this pain will bear fruit,” he apologized in the letter. The Dicastery of Bishops, whose task is to collect all the elements necessary to evaluate the candidates, has to deal with the strong autonomy of judgment of this Pontiff in the selection, but in this case something went wrong discernment of the prelate? In any case, Mar de Plata will not remain without a diocesan bishop, since the appointment of Monsignor Gustavo Manuel Larrazábal was already announced today and the faithful are united in wishing their emeritus Baliña all the best cure.