Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Buenos Aires archbishop Cardinal Mario Aurelio Poli Friday. The Pope also appointed Río Gallegos bishop Jorge Ignacio García Cuerva as Poli's successor.
In accordance with church laws, Catholic bishops are required to tender their resignation letter to the pope on their 75th birthday.
Poli, who turned 75 last November, succeeded the pope as Archbishop of Buenos Aires after then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected pope in 2013.
"Bishop of the peripheries"
García graduated with a civil law degree and a licentiate in canon law. He was ordained a priest in 1997 and consecrated auxiliary bishop of Lomas de Zamora in 2017
He was then appointed bishop of Río Gallegos in southern Argentina in 2019.
As a priest, he served as a prison chaplain and championed the welfare of Argentinian prisoners due to the overcrowding of the country's prison system.
García's ministry to prisoners was something he shared with the pope. Upon his election, Francis took with him to the Vatican his personal ministry to prisoners and detainees, such as celebrating Maundy Thursday Mass at detention facilities.
It was said that García took inspiration from the legacy of Argentine "slum priest" Fr. Carlos Mugica, who was part of the Movement of Priests for the Third World.
Mugica was assassinated by the Argentine Anticommunist Alliance in 1974.
Francis longs for home
Prior to the announcement, Pope Francis expressed his intention to visit Argentina by "next year" at a students' forum in Rome.
"My idea is to go next year," the pope said. "We'll see if it's possible."
The pontiff has distanced himself from the affairs of his homeland ever since his election as Bishop of Rome. But a recent shift in Argentina's political life after the election of its new president last October made him reconsider his plans.
Should the visit materialize, the responsibility of accommodating the wheelchair-bound pope falls upon García.
Pope skips meetings due to fever
The Vatican announced Friday that the 86-year-old pope skipped his scheduled meetings because he was running a fever.
According to Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the pontiff was exhausted from a meet-and-greet event at the Patristic Institute Augustinianum the day before.
The pope also attended multiple meetings last week, including one with the Italian bishops' conference and another with his school foundation, Scholas Occurrentes.
Francis was scheduled to preside over Pentecost Mass on Sunday and conduct an official audience with Italian President Sergio Mattarella on Monday.
The pope was previously hospitalized in March after suffering from acute bronchitis. He stayed at the Gemelli hospital for three days. As a young man, the pope had a part of one of his lungs removed due to a respiratory infection.
Pope Francis also had 13 inches of his colon removed in 2021, which gradually resulted in mobility issues.
