Former military chaplain retracts statements deeply critical of new Archbishop of Buenos Aires

Rodrigo Vázquez is still a priest in San Nicolás

A former military chaplain criticised the appointment of the new Archbishop of Buenos Aires because he is "Kirchnerist", "a friend of the Grandmothers" and supports "LGBT and all that expletive".

The viral audio forced him to retract his statement. The former chaplain complains about the appointment of Bishop García Cuerva, who was a slum priest, and says he regrets that he is a "recontrafrancisquista". Just three years ago he presided over a commemoration of the last Carapintada uprising. His story. And the repudiation by human rights organisations. 

Pope Francis' choice of a bishop who was once a slum priest as the new Archbishop of Buenos Aires did not go down well with some sectors of the Church. It was to be expected: you can't please everyone. It was even more surprising to hear the comments of former military chaplain Rodrigo Vázquez who, in a WhatsApp audio sent to a group of comrades, lamented the fact that Francis' chosen one, Jorge Ignacio García Cuerva, is "Peronist", "Kirchnerist, recontrafrancisquista", and on top of that "homosexual". The former chaplain also accused the new Archbishop of Buenos Aires of supporting "LGBT" and "terrorism", and commended himself to the Lord and his providence for the future of the Church. Hours later - of course the audio went viral - Vázquez had to apologise. 

The author of the diatribe is a priest of the Diocese of San Nicolás, which extends from the town of San Pedro to the city of Rosario. It is known that he studied for a few years in the seminary of the Diocese of San Isidro, but that from there he was thrown out and went to the Military Seminary, where he was ordained as a priest. He was a military chaplain. His subjectivity is undoubtedly referenced in the military bishopric, the arm of the Church whose function is to assist Catholic personnel in the armed forces and security forces.

In fact, the audio message is addressed to his "comrades". Vázquez's remarks were repudiated by human rights organisations and figures in the struggle for human rights. "They are part of a hate speech that can provoke more violent reactions, and that is why they must be denounced," they said. 

The violent audio by the new Archbishop of Buenos Aires appointed by the Pope

 "Good morning to all of you, dear friends, comrades of this distinguished group. I don't write or speak much, but I participate assiduously in this group, listening and praying for the intentions of each one of you, the Holy Mass and the Holy Rosary", Vázquez begins by saying in the message. He then speaks of the appointment of García Cuerva as Archbishop of Buenos Aires.

Here are his arguments: he attributes to him being "a homosexual person, who supports the LGTB, all that crap"; he adds that "he also supports terrorism, is Kirchnerist, Peronist and is a recontrafrancisquista". He notes that "he is anti-military of course, a friend of the Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo, of course he is". He concludes that this is "the worst thing that could have happened, so let us pray a lot and ask the Lord to accompany us in his providence. Long live Christ the King, long live Mary the Queen and the glorious Patriarch Saint Joseph". The case is similar to that of Bishop Antonio Baseotto when, in the public debate on abortion, he asked "that they hang a stone on Gines González García and throw him into the sea".

José Ignacio García Cuerva, the object of the hatred, was appointed by the Pope as Archbishop of Buenos Aires to replace Mario Poli, who retired after turning 75. García Cuerva, twenty years younger, has a profile linked to working with the poor. He was ordained a priest in 1997 and his first assignment was in the La Cava slum in San Isidro. He then took part in the Prison Pastoral; he was also chaplain of several penitentiary centres in the province of Buenos Aires. He was also chaplain to several penitentiaries in the province of Buenos Aires. From this journey he was given the name of slum priest, which was later changed to slum bishop. The Pope has just installed him in the most visible diocese in the country, in the main showcase of the Church in Argentina.

Former military chaplain

In the Ministry of Defence, which is responsible for military chaplains, Rodrigo Vázquez assured that he stopped being a military chaplain a long time ago, at least twenty years ago, and they estimate that the group of "comrades" to whom he sends the audio is more ecclesiastical than military, that is to say, that his circle is made up of priests and not so much military. In any case, Rodrigo Vázquez continues to operate and speaks to a sector of the Church - of the armed forces and of society - in which the anachronistic defence of the values of the dictatorship is being updated in new clothes.

In 2020 - just three years ago - Rodrigo Vázquez officiated at a commemoration of the last Carapintada uprising (mutiny in the army), which was 30 years ago. Before a group of military personnel and their families, the priest warned that there is "an organised plan" to establish "a new world order subversive of the natural order given by God". A tool for this plan, he said, is "the gender perspective, which denies that sex is something imposed by nature". The strategists of this "satanic" programme, he added, disguise their attack "with a cloak of solidarity, of fighting for human rights, when in reality what they are trying to do is to annihilate people and even prevent them from being born".

Last December, in a message broadcast on a far-right Catholic website, Vázquez returned to the charge and denounced that "Satan has increased his power, we see it in the defence of abortion and in the aggressive promotion of transgenderism and gender identity as a non-negotiable truth, which it would seem cannot be rejected, which we should all accept if we wish to participate in society, a terrible demonic attack". He put this development in the context of "government tyranny".

It is not known who called the former chaplain to order for his attack on García Cuerva. What is concrete is that hours after the first message, the priest released a second audio with an apology. The tone was one of contrition: "dear brothers" replaced "comrades", and as for the content, Vázquez assured that all his comments had been "just a meaningless comment". 

The Diocese of San Nicolás has so far issued no statement. Its head, Hugo Norberto Santiago, was in the news in 2021 because of a judicial restraining order to "cease acts of disturbance" and "psychological violence" against a complainant of ecclesiastical abuse. The victim protected by this measure was one of the complainants of another priest of the diocese, investigated for five cases of child abuse. The families of the children who reported abuse claim that the prelate has for years engaged in cover-ups, judicial pressure and attacks on the victims in order to cover up the abuse. 

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