Franz Hengsbach’s sculpture is being dismantled. At the same time, there are already further reports of abuse in the diocese. And the abuse scandal also becomes an issue at the bishops’ conference.
The monument to Cardinal Franz Hengsbach in Essen, who is suspected of abuse, has been dismantled. In the morning, fitters loosened the monument’s holder and a crane lifted the statue onto a truck, as a dpa reporter observed on site. A sign with the cardinal’s vital information was also removed. The sculpture is to be stored.
Almost a week ago, the diocese of Essen announced that there was a “serious” suspicion that Hengsbach (1910-1991) may have sexually abused a 16-year-old during his time as auxiliary bishop in Paderborn in the 1950s. A woman also accuses Hengsbach of another attack in 1967 during his time as bishop in Essen.
More cases
Last week, the diocese called on believers to report possible further cases of abuse. As a result, some new reports have already been received, said a diocese spokesman. The current Bishop of Essen, Franz-Josef Overbeck, made a similar statement on WDR television on Sunday evening. The new cases are now being checked, said the diocese spokesman.
Representatives of those affected and the Maria 2.0 reform initiative had called for the larger-than-life statue of the clergyman to be removed. Victims of abuse held a vigil in front of the Hengsbach sculpture. The statue by the sculptor Silke Rehberg was unveiled in autumn 2011.
Franz Cardinal Hengsbach was the first bishop of the Ruhr diocese founded in 1958 for 33 years, at the same time the founder of Adveniat – the episcopal Latin America relief organization – a German military bishop for many years and a socio-political activist for the Ruhr area in the steel and coal crisis.
Apologies from Bishop Overbeck
“The horror that I am experiencing these days is so great because he was such an important identification figure for our diocese. But the facts now speak a different language and so I had to react accordingly,” Overbeck said in the statement WDR interview.
Overbeck apologized for his handling of the Hengsbach allegations in a letter that was read out at the service yesterday. He had already learned of the first allegations against Hengsbach in Paderborn in 2011, but relied on the information from Rome that the allegations were not plausible and therefore took no further action. Looking back, Overbeck described this as a mistake.
Early in the morning, only a few passers-by watched the dismantling of the two-meter-high, heavy hard ceramic sculpture. A passerby touched the cardinal’s hand again. A nun stood silently to one side and then turned away.
Bishops’ conference starts
The autumn general assembly of the German Bishops’ Conference begins today in Wiesbaden. The 65 bishops of the Catholic Church in Germany will discuss until Thursday. Topics include the abuse scandal and the internal church reform process.
Source: Stern
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