(LifeSiteNews) — Father Frank Pavone is certain that his dismissal from the clerical state is not the last punishment in store for him.
On Tuesday while speaking with Dr. Taylor Marshall on the latter’s YouTube show to tell his side of laicization story, the national director of Priests for Life said that he was convinced an excommunication was coming.
Pavone disclosed that he still hadn’t received any guidance from the Church hierarchy about his penalty and said: “I wouldn’t be surprised, Taylor, if I never hear from them again except when they send me the decree of excommunication — because I’m sure that’s what they want.”
Regarding the penalty he has already received, Pavone said that he was “telling people ten years ago” that he was going to hear “through the media that they’ve dismissed me from the priesthood.”
“I said those exact words,” he added.
Pavone said that what has happened to him regarding his dismissal from the priestly state is “an extension of what’s happened over the past 21 years.”
He said that in 2001 some “bishops started to get pretty uncomfortable” with the pro-life organization due to the growing “size and influence.”
After the bishops became “nervous that they weren’t controlling the Priests for Life finances…[and] they started making moves to restrict” his ministry.
At a certain point Pavone’s former bishop tried to have him removed as leader of the organization, but a solution was reached wherein he was placed at a parish where he wasn’t needed and could continue his work.
“About a decade ago” an audit was done of the organization. The Vatican looked at all the finances “and said they were all good.”
READ: Fr. Pavone’s message to Pope Francis: ‘I want to continue serving as a faithful priest’
Marshall asked Pavone about the fact that the communication from Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the papal nuncio to the United States, regarding his dismissal said there was no possibility of appeal.
The priest clarified that, in his opinion, this means that only the Pope, and not a court or dicastery, can alter the decision. He said he was “confident that we can resolve” the canonical situation and that he had it on good authority that “some of the Pope’s advisors are telling him, ‘You know, this was a bad mistake.’”
Part of what led to the laicization decision is Pavone’s alleged “persistent disobedience of lawful instructions of his diocesan bishop.” The priest gave Marshall the context for how those charges came about.
READ: Here is the letter to the US bishops outlining why Father Pavone was laicized
At one point, Pavone had been suspended by his bishop but appealed successfully, and was even told he could continue broadcasting on EWTN. Suddenly, however, Bishop Zurek forbade him from exercising any priestly ministry until a visitation from Rome was accomplished.
Pavone believed that he was able to continue operating as the head of Priests for Life while this suspension was under appeal.
He explained to Marshall that he went to Rome and asked the head of the Congregation for Clergy directly if Bishop Zurek had been authorized to suspend him. To the contrary, he was told that Zurek had been instructed to “be generous” in what he allowed Pavone to do.
“I acknowledge the need to be obedient to one’s bishop, but I also object to the abuse of authority,” the priest said.
Pavone added that either his bishop had lied to him about what the Congregation for Clergy had told him, or he was not able to understand clear directives from Rome.
As a result, Pavone found another bishop who would allow him to operate in his diocese, but Zurek wouldn’t permit him to transfer.
The priest told Marshall that all the relevant information for how he was mistreated by the hierarchy could be found at his website in a comprehensive document that will be continually updated.
Following the interview, LifeSiteNews reached out to Marshall for comment, asking him what he saw as the primary takeaways from his conversation with the now-cancelled priest.
“Two points stood out to me during and before the interview,” Marshall told LifeSiteNews. “First, that the decision cannot be appealed because Father Pavone said the decree was signed by Pope Francis himself. Secondly, the detail that Father Pavone flew to Rome and confirmed that what Bishop Zurek claimed was not accurate.”
“Both items reveal how complicated this situation is and how difficult this has become for the case of Father Frank Pavone,” continued the Catholic author. “We should ask Christ to miraculously intervene for all parties involved.”
WATCH: Here is what the ‘blasphemy’ charge against Fr. Pavone is all about