HAGATNA, Guam — The new leader of the Catholic Church in Guam will immediately assume all responsibilities in the archdiocese while its suspended archbishop faces a church trial for alegedly sexually abusing altar boys, a church leader said Tuesday.
Pope Francis on Monday named Bishop Michael Jude Byrnes, the auxiliary bishop of Detroit, as the new leader of the Guam archdiocese.
At a news conference Tuesday, Archbishop Savio Hon Tai-Fai, who is temporarily running the church, said Francis gave Byrnes special rights to carry out all the duties as archbishop effective immediately.
Guam had been without a full-time leader since Archbishop Anthony Apuron, 71, was relieved of his duties after several former altar boys accused him of child sexual abuse. He is facing a canonical trial in the Vatican.
Byrnes is expected to arrive at the end of November.
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