Pope Francis has appointed Gregory O'Kelly, the bishop of Port Pirie, the special administrator of Adelaide following the conviction of Archbishop Philip Wilson for covering up child sex crimes during the 1970s.
Bishop O'Kelly, who will remain the bishop of Port Pirie, north of Adelaide, assumes administrative and executive authority in the archdiocese until any future decision of the Pope, the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference said in a statement.
Wilson was found guilty at Newcastle Local Court on May 22 of failing to report to police the repeated abuse of two altar boys by pedophile priest James Fletcher in the NSW Hunter region.
He is the most senior Catholic official in the world to be charged with concealing child sexual abuse.
He stood aside following the court's decision and said if it became necessary at any point for him to resign, he would do so.
Wilson, who faces a maximum two years' jail, is expected to be sentenced this month.
