Rumour most gorgeous: Gänswein to become bishop

Kirche: Schönstes Gerücht: Gänswein wird Bischof :: Homepage - Nachrichten - Oberpfalz & Bayern :: Mittelbayerische Zeitung :: www.mittelbayerische.de

Benedict XVI has the final word on the important personnel decision in Regensburg. Nevertheless, there is intense speculation not only in church circles. Papal secretary "Don Giorgio" is not the only favorite.

Archbishop Müller has the succession question in mind

REGENSBURG. Who will be the new Bishop of Regensburg? Who takes up the space deserted following Gerhard Ludwig Müller's appointment as prefect of the Roman Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith? The guessing game is in progress. "I would also like to know," confessed merrily recently the chairman of the Bavarian bishops' conference in Munich, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, on the sidelines of a reception in Schleissheim Castle .

He would not be a tame bishop

Only the Pope knows what will happen next. Nevertheless, there is vigorous speculation.

Rumour most gorgeous: Papal Secretary George Gänswein who Benedict XVI reportedly wishes to get out of the firing line in the Vatileaks affair will move to Regensburg. It's not the first time that a church leader removes a man out from his restricted surroundings to a new position. John Paul II appointed his secretary to be the Cardinal of Krakow.

 If the worst happens: Gänswein would not be a tame bishop. Charm and good looks meet in "Don Giorgio" with a sharp intellect and eloquence.

Often discussed is also the Augsburg bishop Anton Losinger (above right) - a man who enjoys great respect among many. In 2010 he was discussed as a successor to Bishop Walter Mixa of Augsburg (On the Mixa Scandal). Losinger is considered to be gracious in his dealings. As a member of the German Ethics Council, he has become a talking point nationwide.

Also appreciated far beyond church circles,: Monsignor Lorenz Wolf (above- talking to Archbishop Müller), head of the Catholic Official Representation in Bavaria. He sits at the official interface of the church with politics, speaking to government, parliament, municipal associations, economic and trade unions. "A good man," it is said of him.

A tip is Rudolph Voderholzer (on left below talking to the Nuntius), professor of theology in Trier, which is already rooted in Regensburg as director of the Pope Benedict Institute. 

A service which he provides voluntarily by the way. In the rooms of the seminary at Bismarckplatz, he is devoted to the publication of the collected writings of the head of the Catholic Church - in close collaboration with Archbishop Müller.

Only an outside chance should be given to the director of the Maria Vesperbild shrine, William Imkamp. He has close contacts with Princess Gloria - but is thought in Rome to be a little discredited. During the Pope's visit in Germany in 2011, he stayed away from the Mass in Berlin. Instead, he presented with the aristocrat in a trendy club, the "Diary of a Princess", which was written by Gloria's daughter Elizabeth.

Diocese maintains a low profile

The diocese does not comment on the name. "It would be totally inappropriate in any way, if we would speculate," says spokesman Clemens Neck. The personnel decision is on the agenda of the Vatican after the summer break. In the Regensburg ordinariate, they have done their homework and sent a list of three names to Rome. Who is the preferred candidate remains a secret. A list of course is no guarantee of success. Nowhere is reserved, for example, Müller was never on a list before he was appointed to Regensburg.

The prefect of the CDF is the way with the decision on his successor in the game. From him the "nihil obstat" is a kind of ecclesiastical declaration of no objection to the candidate. The Bavarian State Government has a small say - they could lodge a veto on reasonable grounds.

Until the appointment often many months elapse. But there are signs that things could go fast in Regensburg. It is not only the preparations for the 2014 Catholic Congress which play a role, the interim leadership of diocesan administrator Wilhelm Gegenfurtner should not be lengthened.