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VATICAN CITY. – The Vatican yesterday suspended indefinitely a German Catholic cleric dubbed the “bling bishop” for his luxury lifestyle, despite multiple calls in Germany for the prelate to be dismissed.
“The Holy See deems it appropriate to authorise a period of leave from the diocese for Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst,” the Vatican said in a statement.
“The Holy Father has been continuously and objectively informed of the situation,” it said.
“A situation has been created in which the bishop can no longer exercise his episcopal duties.”
It did not specify how long the bishop would have to stay away, but added that this would depend on an analysis of the finances of his Limburg diocese and the responsibilities for its high costs. The Central Committee of German Catholics, which brings together all Catholic lay associations in the country, said it was satisfied with the decision to suspend the bishop.
“Pope Francis’ decision offers a chance at a new beginning in the diocese of Limburg where the situation has become heavy in recent weeks both for believers there and for the Church in Germany as a whole,” its president Alois Glueck said.
The bishop flew to Rome last week with low-cost airline Ryanair to explain himself to Francis – following accusations he took an expensive ticket on a trip to India and squandered money.
His private quarters in a new diocesan building are reported to have cost US$3,9 million and included a 63-square-metre dining room and a 15 000 euro bathtub – using the revenue from a religious tax in Germany.
The reports have caused a scandal in Germany and sparked calls for greater transparency in Catholic Church finances – a reform aim of the new pope who has called for a “poor Church for the poor”.
“The Pope has already shown he can act energetically,” said Marco Politi, a Vatican expert writing for the Italian weekly L’Espresso, giving the example of two Slovenian archbishops sacked for their poor financial management.
“Good management of money is essential for him . . . He has said that priests, even when they are buying a car, should think about children going hungry in the Third World,” Politi told AFP.
Asked for a reaction after yesterday’s news, government spokesman Georg Streiter said: “There is no comment from the German government. This is an internal matter for the Church.”
The 53-year-old bishop is under fire over the ostentatious building project in the ancient town of Limburg, which includes a museum, conference halls, a chapel and private apartments.
The project was approved by his predecessor and was initially valued at 5,5 million euros but the final bill ballooned to 31 million euros, including a 783 000-euro garden. – AFP.
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