Despite labeling himself a devout Catholic, U.S. President Joe Biden is excommunicated. That is the view of Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, the former apostolic nuncio (Vatican ambassador) to the United States.
“Joe Biden has incurred latæ sententiæ excommunication, and as such must be expelled from the churches and not admitted to Communion,” Viganò wrote in a formal statement issued on March 31, Easter Sunday. The prelate accused the president of causing unprecedented scandal in dedicating that Holy Day to so-called transgenders.Viganò’s decree, which does not formally bind Biden, is nevertheless a scathing rebuke. Latæ sententiæ excommunication refers to self-imposed banishment from membership in the Catholic Church and participation in its sacraments. Crimes such as overt heresy or schism incur this automatic penalty, as does egregiously immoral behavior by an unrepentant Catholic. Latæ sententiæ excommunication requires no formal declaration by ecclesiastical authority.