By Jörg Völkerling
Bild
March 15, 2010
http://www.bild.de/BILD/news/bild-english/world-news/2010/03/15/outburst-in-german-church/congregation-hit-out-over-child-abuse-scandal-priest.html
GERMANY -- Members of a congregation hit out during a church service in Bavaria after the revelation that their priest is a convicted child abuser.
Father Peter H. (62) is a paedophile, who even caused trouble for the Pope…
On Friday it was revealed that when Pope Benedict XVI was Archbishop of Munich and Freising in 1980, he had agreed to the transfer of Peter H. from Essen to Munich after the priest abused an 11-year-old in North Rhine-Westphalia.
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| Priest Peter H. (62) at a festival service in Garching near Munich. Originally from Gelsenkirchen, he was liked because of his populism. |
Peter H. should have received therapy in Munich but instead he was sent to serve in a parish without the knowledge of the then-Archbiship Ratzinger.
The paedophile priest abused another teenager and was convicted in 1986 and sentenced to 18 months probation.
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| The baroque Franziskanerkirche church in Bad Tölz, Bavaria: The congregation were shocked and indignant to find out their priest is a convicted child abuser. |
It is just the latest in a string of revelations about child sex abuse in the German church.
On Sunday some members of the congregation the Bavarian parish of Bad Tölz learned about the past of their priest, who has served in their parish since 2008. Peter H. was due to lead the service, but was replaced.
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| Pope Benedict XVI (82) agreed to the transfer of Peter H. from Essen to Munich when he was the archbishop of Munich and Freising in 1980. |
And according to German newspaper 'Süddeutscher Zeitung', an outraged man who had been set to be married by the priest interrupted the sermon with an angry outburst. He jumped up and shouted: "What's going on with Father H.?"
A few members of the congregation walked out of the mass.
After Peter H.'s paedophile tendencies had repeatedly come to light, he was ordered by the diocese never to work with children, including altar boys.
But the Father continued to hold services for young people.
Hamburg Archbishop Dr. Werner Thissen spoke out about the abuse scandal in his Sunday sermon, demanding clarification: "Everything that is swept under the carpet decays, stinks and pollutes the atmosphere.
"That has been the case for far too long. Everything that is uncovered, worked through and repented can only lead to healing."
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