Francisco lifted the suspension weighing on the priest and poet Ernesto Cardenal

Pope Francis revoked divinis suspension imposed on Nicaraguan poet and priest Ernesto Cardenal by the Vatican in 1985, that this prevents him from exercising his priestly functions.

"The Holy Father has kindly granted the absolution of all canonical censorship" imposed on the cardinal, said the president of the nunciature in a statement to the Nunciature of Waldemar Sommertag. He was prevented from administering the sacraments for nearly 35 years after John Paul II sanctioned his political activism.

This suspension was imposed on Cardenal when he became Minister of Culture under the Sandinista government (1979-1990). At the Vatican, it was argued that such an accusation was not compatible with his pastoral work. In fact, Juan Pablo II publicly criticized him at the Augusto Sandino airport during his first visit to Managua in 1983.

"The priest accepted the canonical punishment that was inflicted on him and he always followed it, without any pastoral activity", continues the document which indicates that the cardinal "has abandoned all political commitment for many years".

He was ordained priest in 1965 and founded in Lake Nicaragua a community of artists among the remaining islanders. The sanction took place in a context of tense relations between the Sandinista government and the Catholic Church. In addition, he is considered one of the pillars of liberation theology in Latin America and is also one of the most important poets.s Latin American letters.

The decision of the Sovereign Pontiff comes after the poet presented the request by his representative in Nicaragua to be readmitted to the exercise of priestly ministry. Cardinal, 94, has been hospitalized for a few weeks for vesicle disease.