VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Melbourne's archbishop, who said he'd prefer jail to telling civil authorities about any sex abuse of children that might be revealed to him during the Sacrament of Penance, also known as confession.

The Vatican said Friday that he has appointed Monsignor Peter Comensoli, 54, to head the archdiocese, replacing Archbishop Denis Hart.

At 77, Hart is two years older than the age at which all bishops must offer the pope their resignation.

Last year, Hart in an interview objected to a recommendation from Australia's Royal Commission on child sexual abuse that priests be required to report cases of abuse heard in the confessional to authorities.

Then head of Australia's bishops' conference, Hart defended the special nature of confession as part of religious freedom.