Italy military chaplain hits back at vaccine-mandate critic

By NICOLE WINFIELD
Associated Press

ROME (AP) — Italy’s Catholic military chaplain has pushed back strongly against calls by a former Vatican ambassador for the armed forces to resist COVID-19 vaccine mandates .Archbishop Santo Marcianò penned a letter on Monday to Italian law enforcement personnel in response to the latest missive from Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano. Vigano is the Vatican’s onetime U.S. ambassador who went rogue in 2018 after calling for Pope Francis to resign over the clergy sexual abuse scandal. Vigano’s anti-Francis missives have become increasingly unhinged especially during the coronavirus pandemic. He nevertheless has some supporters and recently appeared via video at a protest in Rome where he called for acts of civil disobedience to resist vaccine mandates.