(LifeSiteNews) — Bishop Joseph Strickland has told me that the apostolic nuncio to the United States, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, explicitly asked him not to attend the U.S. bishops’ meeting in Baltimore this week.
There has been much controversy around the shocking removal of Bishop Strickland from his position as the shepherd and bishop of Tyler, Texas.
Many wondered whether Bishop Strickland would attend the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) meeting in Baltimore this week.
According to the USCCB website, only active bishops are allowed to vote in plenary assemblies, but “Emeritus bishops are welcome to attend the Assemblies and participate in discussion and other activities.”
So, according to these rules, Bishop Strickland is allowed to attend the USCCB meeting. However, it appears Apostolic Nuncio Cardinal Christophe Pierre told him not to attend the Baltimore meeting.
READ: Bishop Strickland leads hundreds of Catholics in rosary rally outside US bishops’ conference
As LifeSiteNews reported, Bishop Strickland did not participate in the USCCB gathering. Instead, he led a Rosary with hundreds of Catholics at the waterfront side of the Marriott Waterfront Hotel Inner Harbor East, where the bishops were gathered for their meetings.
In an exclusive interview shortly after his removal by Pope Francis, Bishop Strickland told me that he believes he was let go because he “threatened some of the powers that be with the truth of the gospel.”
He said that “if you want it [the truth of the gospel] to change, then I’m a problem.”
READ: Terry Barber reveals US nuncio Cardinal Pierre told Bishop Strickland ‘there is no deposit of faith’
Bishop Strickland stressed that “we have to acknowledge there are tremendous and powerful forces at work in the world. Saint Paul reminds us that we’re not fighting against human beings, flesh and blood; we’re fighting the powers and principalities of evil.”
Are the same powers in the Vatican that wanted Bishop Strickland gone from his position as bishop of Tyler also preventing him from attending the USCCB meeting? It looks like these forces want to completely silence America’s bishop because he courageously preaches the truth.
LifeSiteNews has reached out to Cardinal Christophe Pierre for comment and will update this report if he responds.