A general view of the Saint Peter basilique in Vatican. (Credit: AFP)
Lebanese priest George Badr, of Mar Takla parish in Hazmieh, denied Wednesday that he had been informed of any decision by the Vatican to strip him of his ecclesiastical status.
"I have not been informed of any decision by any authority and I will continue to follow my ecclesiastical vocation," George Badr said in a statement.
The decision — which also applied to Maronite priest Mansour Labaky, who was convicted by a French court for the rape and sexual assault of minors — was made by Pope Francis and the Congregation for the Doctrine.
An internal communiqué of the Assembly of Catholic Patriarchs and Bishops in Lebanon mentioned the decision to strip both priests of ecclesiastical status. The communiqué was written at the request of the Archbishop of Beirut, Mgr Boulos Abdel Sater, and was intended for distribution to parish priests and ecclesiastical institutions.