Brazilian bishop resigns at 72 following visitation

June 02, 2026

Pope Leo XIV accepted Bishop José Moreira da Silva‘s resignation from the pastoral care of the Diocese of Porto Nacional, Brazil. The prelate was 72, three years before the age when bishops are required to present their resignations to the Pontiff.

“The official reason [for the resignation] is reserved for the Holy See,” Laíse Carmo, regional press officer of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil, told ACI Digital. “It was a lengthy evaluation process; the Holy See even sent a visitor to assess the situation; and it was determined that Bishop José’s resignation would be the best decision for the diocese and for the bishop himself”

Pope Leo appointed the local metropolitan archbishop, Archbishop Pedro Brito Guimarães of Palmas, as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Porto Nacional until a new bishop is named.

Upon his transfer to Porto Nacional in late 2022, at the age of 69, Bishop da Silva said that he told the apostolic nuncio that he had planned to resign from his previous see at the age of 70 to become a hermit. The nuncio, Archbishop Giambattista Diquattro, told him, “No, you still have five years to work.”

 

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Further information:

• Resignations and Appointments (Holy See Press Office, 6/1/26)
• Bispo de Porto Nacional renuncia a seu posto antes dos 75 anos (ACI Digital,