CáDIZ (SPAIN)
The Olive Press [San Luis de Sabinillas, Spain]
November 11, 2025
By Ben Pawlowski
Rafael Zornoza, the Bishop of Cadiz and Ceuta, is accused of sexually abusing a minor between the ages of 14 to 21 in Getafe, near Madrid, in the late 1990s when he was a 45-year-old priest of the Diocese of Getafe and rector of the seminary.
Now aged 76, Zornoza’s case marks the first time a sitting Catholic bishop responsible for overseeing a given region in Spain has been investigated for alleged child sexual abuse.
In a statement, the Diocese of Cadiz and Ceuta said Zornoza had decided to temporarily suspend his public duties to ‘clarify events’ and focus on treatment for cancer.
“The accusations made, referring to events that took place almost thirty years ago, are very serious and also false,” the statement said.
In a letter obtained by Spanish newspaper El País, the alleged victim says Zornoza abused him for years, often entering his room at night to touch and kiss him.
He says the alleged abuse started when he was aged 14 and continued into adulthood.
“It was at night when he came to the room and I suffered the abuse. He got into my bed, caressed me and kissed me,” the letter reads.
[IMAGE: The Bishop of Cadiz (centre right) with former prime minister Mariano Rajoy (far right) in 2011. Credit: Cordon Press]
“In the mornings I also woke up the same way. At that time, I never said anything to him – paralysis controlled me.”
Ten years after leaving the seminary, the alleged victim says he sent Zonora an email in which he accused him of abuse and manipulation.
However, the bishop failed to respond.
A complaint was then formally launched earlier this summer – but safeguarding concerns have been raised after it emerged that the bishop was allowed to remain in his position until this week, a role that includes contact with minors, despite a credible allegation of child abuse.
According to El País, the Cadiz diocese is among the least cooperative in Spain when providing information on clerical abuse.
More than 1,500 clergy members in Spain have been accused of sexual abuse, according to the newspaper.
Meanwhile, a 2023 investigation by Spain’s ombudsman found that 0.6% of the country’s adult population had suffered sexual abuse from a clergy member as a child – amounting to more than 200,000 victims.
Zornoza was named as Bishop of Cadiz and Ceuta by Pope Benedict XVI in 2011 following the resignation of Antonio Ceballos Atienza.