Venezuelan cardinal, Chavez critic and retired Vatican official, dies

Published: 2007-10-17

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Venezuelan Cardinal Rosalio Castillo Lara, a retired Vatican official and outspoken critic of his country's leftist president, died Oct. 16 at the age of 85. Cardinal Castillo Lara had been suffering from an unspecified illness and died after being hospitalized for several weeks in Caracas, Venezuela. Pope Benedict XVI praised the late cardinal for his many years of hard work and generous service. His long career working both in Venezuela and at the Vatican was a sign of his dedication to living the Gospel and his "deep love for the church," the pope said in a telegram sent to Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino of Caracas. Cardinal Castillo Lara served for many years at the Vatican, most notably as president of the Pontifical Commission for the Revision of Canon Law, president of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See and president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State. But after his retirement and return to Venezuela, he stood out among church leaders in Venezuela denouncing President Hugo Chavez's government for becoming increasingly authoritarian.

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