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Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki. Credit: Jochen Rolfes/Archdiocese of Cologne. / nullCologne, Germany, Mar 2, 2022 / 02:34 am (CNA).Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki has submitted his resignation for a second time to Pope Francis as leader of Germany s Catholic archdiocese of Cologne.The archdiocese announced the cardinal s move on March 2, Ash Wednesday, the day that he returned to lead the archdiocese after a period of "prayer and reflection," reported CNA Deutsch, CNA s German-language news partner.The Cologne archdiocese, which is Germany s largest and reportedly also its richest diocese, said that the pope had instructed the 65-year-old cardinal to resume his ministry on Wednesday, pending a decision on his resignation. Woelki began his sabbatical at the end of September 2021 "at his own request," after he was confirmed in office by Pope Francis, who had ordered an apostolic visitation amid fierce criticism of the archdiocese s handling of abuse cases.In a Lenten pasto
Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, Archbishop of Cologne, makes a statement in the garden of the Archbishop s House. German Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, who was criticized in the past for not publicly releasing a report on child sexual abuse, said on Wednesday he had offered his resignation to Pope Fran.
Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki. Credit: Jochen Rolfes/Archdiocese of Cologne. / null
Cologne, Germany, Mar 2, 2022 / 02:34 am (CNA).
Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki has submitted his resignation for a second time to Pope Francis as leader of Germany.
Spain’s Catholic Church took its first step on February 22 towards addressing child sex abuse by engaging lawyers to conduct a year-long investigation that will take cues from similar probes in France and Germany. The move came as political pressure grows for a formal investigation into alleged abuse by the clergy in a country where no such official probe has ever happened.