Strasbourg: What has become of former Chancellor Bernard Xibaut?
In the wake of the Spina affair—this priest convicted of rape will ultimately not become Chancellor of the Diocese of Toulouse—and the priest convicted of child pornography who was promoted to various diocesan positions, including that of notary at the Chancery (these positions have been withdrawn since the media coverage of this situation), our readers remind us of the case of the former Chancellor of the Diocese of Strasbourg, implicated in April 2023—more than two years ago—for inappropriate gestures towards a seminarian in 2006 and suspended from his duties. However, the conclusions of the investigation, if any, have not been made public, and the situation remains in a grey area.
Chancellor and Secretary General of the Diocese of Strasbourg from 2003 to 2023, Bernard Xibaut was kept in this post by successive bishops, NNSS Doré, Grallet, Ravel – and had been called into question at the same time as his more or less forced departure. Sent to the coalface in 2017-2018 to explain that the Diocese of Strasbourg knew nothing about the abuse cases emerging at the time, he co-authored a book on bishops emeritus with Bishop Doré in 2017—a work partially pro domo for the latter, but which has the merit of questioning and explaining the situation of 29 bishops emeritus. He has also been the president of the diocese's historical society since 2008.
Bishop Delannoy, grappling with the recent troubled past of the Concordat archdiocese—including abuse and a suicide at the seminary—announced on June 1, 2024, in a letter to the priests, laity, and collaborators of the diocese, shortly after his arrival, the suspension of Chancellor Bernard Xibaut "following proceedings initiated before the National Canonical Criminal Tribunal and until further notice" for the office of Chancellor and that of Dean of the Cathedral Chapter, but without seeking to comment further. An expert on the Diocese of Strasbourg notes that "during the installation of Bishop Delannoy, Bernard Xibaut was not invited. This was noticed by many. Since then, no one knows where he is or what he is doing."
And this report from 2018
An official from the Archdiocese of Strasbourg confirms that the Church covered up acts of pedophilia
Bernard Xibaut, priest and chancellor of the Archdiocese of Strasbourg, acknowledged this on Sunday on the France 5 program C Politique: "We weren't sufficiently aware of what this was doing to children." The priest and chancellor of the Archdiocese of Strasbourg (Bas-Rhin) stated that at that time, "there wasn't yet a law requiring us to denounce these acts." He added, "In the past, we were more attentive to the reputation of the institution, so we had to save the Church at all costs."
Why did the Church protect pedophile priests?
The testimony of priest Bernard Xibaut is edifying: "Well, because we weren't sufficiently aware of what this type of act did to children, for their entire lives," adds the bishop. "We thought that for the child, it would be a bad memory and that they would recover. Now we understand, in light of people who are 75 years old and still remember in their flesh what they experienced at 15. We had to be aware of it."
The Church's Whistleblowers
Journalist Béryl Chaumeil met with whistle blowers in the Church. They no longer want to remain silent in the face of pedophilia scandals. Victims are speaking out, but priests are also determined to fight this scourge that is eating away at the Catholic Church.
This investigation by our colleagues at France 5 was broadcast this Sunday, September 23, at a time when the Catholic Church is in turmoil with the increasing number of judicial investigations into alleged sexual assaults committed by members of the Church against minors and adults since the 1960s.
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