VATICAN CITY (RNS) A conservative Austrian priest who said Hurricane Katrina was divine punishment for New Orleans’ sins has refused a papal promotion after his appointment deepened a crisis of confidence in the Catholic Church.
The Rev. Gerhard Maria Wagner said he was turning down the post of auxiliary bishop of Linz following “fierce criticism” from fellow Austrian clerics, although the Vatican has not yet confirmed that it has accepted his refusal.
The affair comes with the Vatican still reeling from the furor caused by Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to lift the 1988 excommunications of four bishops of the ultra-traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), including Holocaust denier Richard Williamson.
Last week, senior priests in the Linz diocese took the rare step of passing a declaration of no confidence in Wagner, who had suggested Katrina was divine retribution for New Orleans’ sexual permissiveness and toleration of homosexuality.
The 54-year-old also pointed out that abortion clinics were among the buildings destroyed by the hurricane in 2005.
Wagner, who had been nominated to the Linz position on Jan. 31, said he wished to remain parish priest of the Austrian town of Windischgarsten, where he has served since 1988.
“I got up very relieved this morning … I’m happy about this decision,” Wagner was quoted as saying by the Associated Press on Monday.
Austria’s bishops called on the Holy See to improve communications and consult local churches when making future appointments after holding an emergency meeting on Sunday. Apparently local churches were not consulted in the decision to nominate Wagner.
“We hope inadequate channels of communication in the Vatican can be improved so the pope’s service to humanity is not impaired,” they said in a statement.