Belgium Bishop implicated in sexual abuse cover up delegate to October Synod

'Shadow bishop' has the upper hand- from 2014

The diocese of Bruges comes under fire for the third time in a row, Bishop De Kesel says he is "badly affected" by the fuss. He is not alone, of course. For all major decisions, he relies on Vicar General Koen Vanhoutte. "A man who covers everything with the cloak of love."

If anyone was a scapegoat in recent days, it was Bishop Jozef De Kesel. Paedophilia cases were dragged out, in a diocese where paedophile Roger Vangheluwe was once in charge. First came apologies from De Kesel because he had "misjudged the situation". The second time, the church leader was allowed to go and explain it on 'Terzake', where he insisted he had made "no errors of judgement".

It caused great indignation among the general public. Yet De Kesel can count on credit with a lot of insiders. The sleazy approach is even more likely to be blamed on Koen Vanhoutte, Vicar-General and the Bishop's right-hand man. "He is the one who puts the pawns on the board," says an anonymous source. "He knew only too well that these two priests were not irreproachable, but he kept his hand on them," says an anonymous source. "And the bishop relies 100 per cent on him."

It was still under Roger Vangheluwe that Vanhoutte was appointed Vicar for parishes and liturgy. Under Joseph De Kesel, he became Vicar-General. He is also President of the Grand Seminary of Bruges (now closed in another scandal- post to follow)

All these posts make him a powerful man. According to several church sources, Vanhoutte played a decisive role in the paedophilia cases currently plaguing the diocese. "It was partly his advice to appoint priest Tom F. (convicted of sexual assault of minor, ed.) to Middelkerke, just as he advised the Bishop not to pre-emptively suspend Jeroen C. (investigating rape of minor, ed.)," it sounds. In fact, Vanhoutte admitted this yesterday in 'De Morgen', although he stressed that the final decision lay with the bishop. He would not comment further.

'Intelligent and authoritarian'

Opinions differ widely on his personality. "Highly honourable, intelligent and wise", according to some. "Authoritarian and opportunistic", according to another. "He will not be quick to speak out about anything," says another source. "He likes to cover it with the cloak of love."

Another priest agrees. "When the scandal erupted around Roger Vangheluwe in 2010, Vanhoutte informed us about it in the Seminary. But it was done in such an understated, veiled terms that you mainly had to read between the lines. He would rarely tell it like it is."

When Vangheluwe had to compulsorily step aside, Vanhoutte was allowed to temporarily step in. At the time, he was often mentioned as the new Bishop of Bruges, but because the whole paedophilia scandal had left such deep wounds in the province, the church leadership eventually opted for an outsider: the East Flemish Jozef De Kesel. And Vanhoutte became de facto 'shadow bishop'.

(You could not be in that position in Bruges and claim no knowledge of this)

"In my opinion, he has little sense of reality," thinks a church source. "Especially with such sensitive files as paedophilia scandals. He mostly surrounds himself with people who agree with him wholeheartedly. He is in a comfortable position, of course. He determines politics, but it is Bishop De Kesel who is judged on it. He himself stays neatly out of harm's way."

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