Catholic Church Bishop of St. Gallen turns 75 and offers his resignation to the Pope
Bishop Markus Büchel of St. Gallen offered his resignation to Pope Francis on his 75th birthday on Friday. However, Büchel will remain in office, according to a statement. It is likely to be months before the Holy See accepts the resignation and a new bishop is consecrated in St. Gallen.
The offer of resignation comes as no surprise. According to a statement issued by the St. Gallen diocese on Thursday, canon law provides for this as soon as the bishop turns 75. However, it can take several months for the Pope to accept the resignation.
After the Pope's response, there are normally two options. Either Markus Büchel continues to lead the diocese on an interim basis until a successor is consecrated. Büchel is ready for this, the diocese wrote. "Or the Pope instructs the cathedral chapter to elect a diocesan administrator who will be responsible for the administration of the diocese until a bishop is consecrated."
Bishop since 2006
Markus Büchel was consecrated bishop in 2006. He is "generally regarded as a popular bishop who is close to all people", the diocese wrote.
He admitted mistakes in dealing with cases of sexual abuse in 2023 following the publication of a Switzerland-wide study by the University of Zurich. Several exemplary cases were described in detail. Two of them came from the diocese of St. Gallen, but happened before Büchel's time as bishop.
Special election of bishops in the diocese of St. Gallen
The election of the bishop is unique in St. Gallen. According to the diocese's founding bull, the right to elect a bishop lies with the cathedral chapter. This 13-member electoral body gives all the faithful in the diocese the opportunity to have their say.
The cathedral chapter then draws up a list of six candidates, who must be priests from the diocese of St. Gallen. After an examination by the Vatican and a voting procedure in the diocese's Catholic parliament, the cathedral chapter finally elects the new bishop.
