Belgian PM urges Vatican to strip abusive bishop of title
Belgian prime minister Alexander De Croo reiterated his call for the Vatican to strip bishop Roger Vangheluwe of his title in a meeting with the Apostolic Nuncio on Monday. Vangheluwe confessed in 2010 that he had abused a minor for years.
Stripping Vangheluwe of his title is "important for the victims", De Croo said on X after the meeting. De Croo had already called on the church to face up to its moral responsibilities in a conversation with the nuncio in early October.
The church's handling of abusive clergy has recently come under renewed scrutiny in Belgium in response to Godvergeten (Godforsaken), a Flemish TV series about sexual abuse in the church that aired in late 2023.
The series, which included testimonies from abuse victims, prompted a wave of people to have their names struck off the church's baptismal register.
Vangheluwe resigned as bishop of Bruges in 2010 after confessing to abusing his underage cousin for years. He did, however, retain his title as a bishop. Vangheluwe, now 87, currently lives in seclusion in an abbey in France.
In September 2023, the bishop of Antwerp, Johan Bonny, asked Vangheluwe to renounce his titles during a visit. Vangheluwe responded by sending a letter to the Pope, the contents of which are not known.
De Croo met with Nuncio Franco Coppola on Monday to discuss the planned visit of Pope Francis to Belgium. The exact date of the Pope's visit is not yet known, nor is the content of the programme.
#FlandersNewsService | Belgian prime minister Alexander De Croo © BELGA PHOTO JAMES ARTHUR GEKIERE
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