José Ramon Lopez-Gaston

José Ramon Lopez-Gaston is a Traditionalist Catholic bishop from Rockford, Illinois.

He was a Roman Catholic seminarian studying for the priesthood for some years, before deciding to marry. He holds several doctorates.

He was consecrated bishop on June 29, 1992 in Miami, Florida by Guy Jean Tau Johannes de Mamistra Olivares. He was later re-ordained conditionally by Jean Charles Roux.

On June 26, 1994 Lopez-Gaston conditionally re-consecrated Emmanuel Korab of the Czech Old Catholic Chuch.

Lopez-Gaston is a married man; it is not understood how he sought or was consecrated a bishop despite this disqualification. What is known is that Lopez-Gaston has claimed to have dispensed Rama P Coomaraswamy from the requirement of being either a celibate or being separated by mutual agreement from his wife and has ordained him that action is denounced by other Traditionalist Catholics as encroachment upon the prerogative of the Pope, and therefore null and void. (But see statement of Rama Coomaraswamy defending the actions of both Lopez-Gaston & himself).

Lopez-Gaston has an affinity with bishops Jose Urbina Aznar and Merrill Adamson and a few priests, and has publicly supported a move among Sedevacantists to end the Sede vacante by calling a Conclave to elect the pope.