Bishop Bonny: “Vangheluwe has until the end of this week to decide whether to give up his titles himself” | Domestic

Bishop Bonny and his colleague Koen Vanhoutte, the auxiliary bishop of Mechelen-Brussels, personally traveled to Solesmes, France, last Monday, where Roger Vangheluwe is staying in St. Peter’s Abbey. There they talked with Vangheluwe for two hours, asking him to completely renounce his title as bishop. This means that Vangheluwe would request his ‘desecration’: after that he would no longer be a ‘spiritual’, but a ‘layman’. “We think human contact is important with such a question. We hadn’t seen him since 2010. It is better to ask the question in person, rather than by telephone or letter,” says Bonny. No easy feat, since Bonny also had to obtain permission from the Vatican for the meeting.

The bishops tried to convince Vangheluwe with “moral arguments”. “The question must be: ‘How can I best help my successors, the church community and society to process that trauma from the past?’” he said. “We can no longer publicly defend how someone can remain a bishop after such actions. It’s about moral responsibility,” says Bonny.

At the end of the conversation, Vangheluwe asked for time to think about it, and he got it. Bonny expects an answer at the end of this week.

LOOK. Bishop Bonny: “Vangheluwe has until the end of this week to make a decision”

If Vangheluwe does not respond to the request, the Belgian bishops will go to Rome. They will urge the Pope to take away Vangheluwe’s titles. Belgian bishops have asked the pope that question several times in the past. “There was never an answer,” Bonny confirms. “It’s left hanging. Somewhere people expect us to explain why, but we can’t do that either.”

There was a lot of fuss after the VRT program ‘Godforgotten’, in which several victims and loved ones had their say. David Vangheluwe, Roger Vangheluwe’s cousin, also testified in the program. The program also includes a conversation between Roger, Godfried Danneels and Mark. Danneels thinks asking for forgiveness is an option, but that is out of the question for Mark.

Despite his confession, Vangheluwe is never punished. He is able to keep his titles and is exiled to a monastery in France. In an interview he said that what he did with his cousin was “a game”.

Tomorrow, Prime Minister De Croo and Minister Van Quickenborne will receive victims of sexual abuse in church, the Prime Minister’s spokesperson reports. Several representatives of the church will also be present, such as Bishop Bonny.

Almost all parties support the demand for a commission of inquiry into sexual abuse in the church. In VTM NEWS, Bonny said on Wednesday that he is also in favor of such a committee. “We are a constitutional state and that problem has arisen in the church. We have everything to gain from transparency and democratic participation,” said the bishop. “They can investigate everything that has already happened. A lot has already happened. The parliamentary committee of ten years ago also has a follow-up committee, which can safely investigate everything.”

LOOK. Prime Minister De Croo and Minister Van Quickenborne receive victims of sexual abuse in the church