Bishop admits he impregnated friend

National Catholic Reporter, June 16, 1995

The Vatican announced June 2 that Pope John Paul II has accepted the resignation of a Swiss bishop who said the pressures of his job led him to impregnate a longtime friend.

Bishop Hansjorg Vogel, 44, of Basel, Switzerland, in a letter dated June 1, explained the situation and his continuing conviction that it is possible to live a happy and celibate life.

Vogel said that after he was elected bishop in February 1994, he "experienced an emotional difficulty which was harder and harder to bear (and) sought support from a woman whom I have known for a long time."

When this relationship led to a pregnancy, Vogel said, he "had to recognize that it was no longer possible to exercise my ministry with credibility." He did not say whether the pregnancy was carried to term.

A Vatican source said the letter, which did not mention the possibility of seeking laicization, indicated the bishop did not plan to marry and establish a family. The source said the bishop could once again exercise his priestly ministry if an appropriate situation is found that would not lead to scandal among the faithful.

Vogel asked opponents of mandatory celibacy for Latin-rite priests not to use his situation as a rallying point.