Pope Francis Drops Cardinal Pell From Key Advisory Group

The Vatican announced Wednesday that Pope Francis no longer requires the service of three cardinals who previously sat on his exclusive council of nine advisers, including one on trial for historical child-sex charges in Australia. Francis wrote to the cardinals he asked to resign, known in Vatican circles as the C-9, in October of this year to thank them for their service. Gone are Australian George Pell, who has been on a leave of absence from the Vatican to fight charges in his home country, and Chilean Francisco Errázuriz Ossa, who stands credibly accused of covering up for predator priests in Chile. Francis also accepted the resignation of Laurent Monsengwo, who recently retired as the archbishop of Kinshasa due to poor health.