Austrian bishop plagued by porn scandal says he has resigned

Published: 2004-09-30

SANKT POLTEN, Austria (CNS) -- An Austrian bishop plagued by a porn scandal at a diocesan seminary told a German newspaper that he has resigned. Bishop Kurt Krenn of Sankt Polten told the Austrian Der Standard newspaper that he had resigned. The interview was published Sept. 30. Bishop Krenn, 68, said he stepped down voluntarily, not under pressure from the Vatican. "The pope does not force anybody to resign. He asks at the most that someone go," the bishop told Der Standard. No official announcement was made by the Vatican Sept. 30. The scandal came to light in mid-July after an Austrian magazine published pictures of priests and students kissing and fondling each other. Austrian authorities said the images had been found along with more than 40,000 photos and videos -- including child pornography -- on seminary computers. Shortly after, Pope John Paul II named Austrian Bishop Klaus Kung of Feldkirch to conduct an apostolic visitation of the Diocese of Sankt Polten, particularly the seminary. In August, Bishop Kung announced the closing of the seminary for "serious erroneous trends" among seminarians, citing in particular the practice of viewing and downloading pornography from the Internet and the development of "active homosexual relations" among members of the seminary community.

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