Pope Francis accepted the resignation of the Bishop of Santa Rosa de Copán (Honduras), Mons. Darwin Andino Ramírez, 65, who indicates in a letter that his resignation is due to the fact that his health does not allow him to carry out the responsibilities of this service. pastoral.
The Press Office of Vatican reported the acceptance of the resignation, 10 years before the retirement age for bishops, without giving further details about it.
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In a letter published this December 16 by Suyapa Mediaan informative organ of the Catholic Church in Honduras, the prelate explains that he made the decision to leave office “after a period of prayer and reflection” and “in accordance with canon 401 paragraph 2 of the Code of Canon Law.”
“The diocesan Bishop is strongly requested to present his resignation from his office if, due to illness or other serious cause, his ability to perform it is diminished,” indicates the canon cited by the Honduran prelate.
“My health conditions do not allow me to carry out the responsibilities of this delicate and demanding pastoral service,” the bishop states in his letter.
Bishop Andino especially thanked “Holy Father Francis, for his closeness that he has shown me in such a delicate situation for me and for accepting ‘simply‘ (simply) the resignation.”
After remembering that he spent 13 years in the diocese of Santa Rosa de Copán, the bishop also thanked the local faithful, his collaborators, and the other bishops of Honduras; and asked for prayers for him.
“I have been called to the episcopal ministry and I will continue to be a bishop, with a strong desire to continue serving where the Lord directs me,” he concluded.
Who is Bishop Darwin Rudy Andino Ramírez?
Bishop Darwin Rudy Andino Ramírez is now Bishop Emeritus of Santa Rosa de Copán. He was born in Tegucigalpa on August 6, 1959. He studied philosophy at the Manuel Enrique Piñol Institute in Guatemala, and theology at the Pontifical Ateneo San Anselmo in Rome (Italy).
He was ordained a priest on December 8, 1990, in the congregation of the Somascan Fathers.
He has been parochial vicar of El Calvario in San Salvador (El Salvador), Rector of the Emilianos Institute in Tegucigalpa (Honduras); missionary in the diocese of León (Nicaragua); and assistant to the Archbishop of Tegucigalpa in the National Anti-Corruption Council of Honduras.
On April 1, 2006, he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Tegucigalpa, receiving episcopal ordination on June 24 of the same year.
He was appointed Bishop of Santa Rosa de Copán in November 2011.