FRANCE
ABC News (US)
By PHILIPPE SOTTO
PARIS — Apr 6, 2017
In an unusually swift move, the Vatican on Thursday decided to dismiss a French bishop days after Catholic officials in the country were informed of alleged “inappropriate” gestures and words from the prelate with young people.
The bishop’s superior, Cardinal Jean-Pierre Ricard, announced in a statement that the Holy See had asked Monsignor Herve Gaschignard “to submit his resignation.”
The French Conference of Bishops said in a separate statement that Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Gaschignard, bishop of Aire and Dax in southwest France, and that French bishops understand the “gravity” of the pontiff’s decision.
Cardinal Ricard, the archbishop for the region, said he reported the bishop’s alleged doings to the local prosecutor but that no complaints have been filed so far, making the pope’s decision even more notable.
The French bishops’ statement said concerns about Gaschignard made it difficult for him to continue in his duties and that the papal nuncio in France “suggested” that he resign.
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