Church - Solemn farewell to Bishop Fürst after 23 years
After 23 years as bishop of the Rottenburg-Stuttgart diocese, Gebhard Fürst retired on Saturday. At the same time, invited guests from politics, church and society congratulated Fürst on his 75th birthday, which he celebrated with more than 200 guests in the festival hall in Rottenburg (Tübingen district). The birthday was also the reason for Fürst's request to resign from office, which he forwarded to Rome some time ago. A Catholic bishop retires from office at the age of 75. Canon law prescribes this.
"It's good that the time has come," the bishop told the German Press Agency when asked what his first thoughts were the morning after waking up. He was not nervous before the big day, said Fürst. "I have a gift. The closer the events get, the calmer I become." He was really looking forward to the beautiful festival. "I will take it easy during the day and really enjoy the time when I don't have any appointments."
Minister President Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) spoke of an intensive friendship that Fürst and he have cultivated for many years. "Our friendship is a friendship of conversation." Kretschmann described Fürst's life with the sequence of a menu. The starter was Fürst's time as Academy Director of the diocese. The main course came in 2000 when he took over the office of bishop. The dessert "as a sweet final act" was retirement. He emphasized Fürst's constant willingness for dialogue and community. Referring to his government motto "Politics of being heard", Kretschmann said that Fürst had pursued an "ecclesiastical policy of being heard". Fürst had tried everything to ensure that faith and the church remained in contact with the people.
The festivities were to continue in the afternoon with a pontifical mass in Rottenburg's St. Martin Cathedral in the presence of Georg Bätzing, Bishop of Limburg and Chairman of the German Bishops' Conference. At the end of the ceremony, a taps ceremony and civic reception were planned. In addition to Kretschmann, prominent guests included Nuncio Nikola Eterović and SWR director Kai Gniffke.
Fürst is the longest-serving German bishop and head of 1.7 million Catholics. He has been Bishop of Rottenburg since 2000. A phase of transition begins for the diocese on December 3.
This time, the diocesan council of the diocese also wants to have a say in the election of the new bishop. The successor should be a "strong personality". "He must be open to consultation, because the church is a community. His quality is that he allows himself to be consulted and impressed by this," said Warmbrunn.
Fürst, who enjoys reading thrillers and travel literature as well as theological texts, has never been a revolutionary. Decisions of the universal church and the word of the Pope were binding for him. He rejected a relaxation of celibacy. However, in Rottenburg-Stuttgart, unlike other dioceses, he set up an independent "sexual abuse commission" 20 years ago.
However, even Fürst, who is perceived as extremely friendly, was unable to stop the mass exodus from the Catholic Church. This is because fewer and fewer Catholics are living in Baden-Württemberg, partly as a result of abuse reports. In the Rottenburg-Stuttgart diocese, the third largest in Germany after Cologne and Münster, around 40,000 Christians left the church last year. A total of 1.66 million people still belong to the church there. In 2000 - the year Fürst took office - there were still over two million believers.
Gebhard Fürst was born on December 2, 1948 as the youngest of three children in the Swabian town of Bietigheim. His father was a gardener and his mother a housewife. Questions of religion occupied him from a very early age, he says. He was ordained a priest in 1977, just like one of his older brothers before him. He was ordained a bishop in September 2000.
Lesen Sie auch:
- GDR civil rights activist Lengsfeld has left the CDU
- BRK: Emergency services at their limits
- Snow and ice paralyze large parts of Bavaria
1.Minister President Winfried Kretschmann, from Baden-Württemberg, considered Gebhard Fürst as a "strong personality" who will be missed in the Rottenburg-Stuttgart diocese.2.The celebration for Gebhard Fürst's retirement and 75th birthday was attended by numerous personalities from politics, church, and society, including Nuncio Nikola Eterović and SWR director Kai Gniffke.3.As Bishop of Rottenburg-Stuttgart for 20 years, Fürst was responsible for over 1.7 million Catholics, making him the longest-serving German bishop.4.According to Warmbrunn from the diocesan council, the new bishop of Rottenburg-Stuttgart must be a "strong personality" who is open to consultation, as the church is a community.5.The German Press Agency reported that Gebhard Fürst, who was born in Bietigheim, Swabia, approached his retirement with calmness and looked forward to enjoying his days without appointments.6.While serving as Bishop of Rottenburg, Fürst set up an independent "sexual abuse commission" in the diocese, addressing a sensitive issue within the Catholic Church.
Source: www.stern.de
