Group wedding archbishop 'to be excommunicated'

A Roman Catholic archbishop who was married to a physician in a group wedding conducted by the Rev Sun Myung Moon has put himself ‘‘outside the church’’ and can no longer be considered a bishop, the Vatican said today.

It said further sanctions will soon be announced, indicating the Vatican was considering excommunicating Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo.

The 71-year-old archbishop was wed in a group marriage ceremony on Sunday at the New York Hilton.

The bride, chosen for him over the past few days by Moon, is Marie Sung, 43, a physician from South Korea, said the Rev Phillip Schanker, a spokesman for the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, the central group in Moon’s movement.

He said the newlyweds plan to move to Africa.

Milingo has long been at odds with the Catholic hierarchy. He said in a prepared statement that he had kept his priestly vow of celibacy since 1958 but has decided it’s time for Catholicism to change.

Asked at a news conference whether the church would now excommunicate him, Milingo said: ‘‘It doesn’t affect me.’’

He said he still considers himself a Catholic and that Moon’s religious teachings are in line with the Bible.

The statement by Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the Holy See expressed ‘‘deep regret’’ over Milingo’s gesture.

It said the marriage put him ‘‘outside the Catholic church and inflicted a serious wound on the communion’’ that bishops must show with the church.

Milingo was archbishop of Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, when he ran foul of the Vatican over his ministry of faith healings and exorcisms.

He resigned under pressure in 1983, a very rare occurrence with an archbishop below normal retirement age and in good health.

Milingo then was brought to Rome as a functionary in the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, but continued public meetings of healing and exorcism. Last year, he retired from the post.