SPAIN
El Pais
JUAN G. BEDOYA Madrid 13 ABR 2015
They say that it is best to retire with a golden parachute, but the way that Cardinal Antonio María Rouco has withdrawn from public life has raised many questions among Catholics, and has prompted public outrage.
Rouco, 78, was replaced last August as Madrid archbishop by the Vatican, but since then he has reportedly been living a life of luxury, while deciding on his own terms when and how he will retire.
Recent press reports state that Rouco lives in a €1.7-million apartment in front of Madrid’s Virgen of Almudena Cathedral. His six-room living quarters measure 370 square meters and include four bathrooms and a large balcony. The refurbishment of the apartment cost €370,000.
Pope Francis is reported to have been angered by Rouco’s refusal to step down, as per the Vatican’s mandatory retirement age of 75. In February, reports emerged that the ultra-conservative cardinal had gone to live in the palatial apartment, but only after he failed in his attempts to stay put at the archdiocese official residence – even after Carlos Osoro had been appointed by the Holy See to take over.
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