NEW YORK (AP) — The wife of an African archbishop who
violated his church vows by getting married said she had no
regrets.
``We are an eternal couple, no matter what,'' said Maria
Sung, arriving in New York on Saturday, days after she and
Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo parted ways.
Sung, 43, and Milingo, 71, married in May in a group
ceremony in New York led by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, head of
the South Korea-based Family Federation for World Peace and
Unification Movement.
Threatened with excommunication, Milingo announced in late
August that he was heeding the pope's appeal to return to his
church and embrace the vow of celibacy required of its
priests. Weeks after leaving Sung, he met with her Wednesday
and told her he would not stay married to her.
Speaking through a translator, Sung told reporters Milingo
had told her he would be with her in her heart.
``I don't have any problems with his decision because he
loves the Catholic Church so much,'' Sung said. ``I believe
his being separated from the Catholic Church would have been a
greater pain than being separated from me.''
The Vatican has not said what Milingo will do now that his
marriage is over. Even before the marriage scandal, Milingo
had problems with the church.
In 1983, the pope brought Milingo to work at the Vatican.
Milingo had been in Zambia, where he led the diocese of
Lusaka. But last year Milingo was removed from his Vatican
post dealing with immigrant issues after he attracted
thousands of people from across Europe seeking cures for
cancer and AIDS. Milingo has also performed exorcisms.
Sung had no definite plans for her future, saying she was
considering her options.
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