Knights of Malta reaffirm loyalty to Pope after clash
The Order of Malta has sought to reassure members and donors that a recent showdown between its former leader and the Vatican had not weakened its loyalty to the Pope
Albrecht Freiherr von Boeselager was reinstated as Grand Chancellor of the Sovereign Order of Malta on Saturday
The Knights of Malta, the ancient Catholic order of knights which is now a worldwide charity, has reaffirmed its allegiance to the Pope while acknowledging damage was done by a clash with the Vatican that stemmed from an aid project distributing condoms in the developing world.
Matthew Festing was effectively fired as grand master of the Catholic order by Pope Francis as a result of the dispute.
Festing had himself fired Albrecht Freiherr von Boeselager, the Grand Chancellor of the aristocratic order, in December, accusing him of turning a blind eye to the use of condoms in aid projects in the developing world. Von Boeselager was reinstated last Saturday.
"The order reaffirms its loyalty to the Holy Father. Let me reassure our members and everybody that the government of the order is and will remain at the service of the Holy Father. Our devotion to the teachings of the Church is irrevocable and beyond question," von Boeselager told a news conference.
Festing, backed by conservative Cardinal Raymond Burke, had challenged the right of the Vatican to hold an inquiry into the removal of von Boeselager, arguing that the Rome-based institution that has sovereign status and is run like a small country.
The Pope had pushed for von Boeselager’s reinstatement, who insisted he had shut down the programmes as soon as he could after finding out they were distributing condoms.
Dominique Prince de La Rochefoucauld-Montbel, the order’s health minister, said the crisis had led to a drop in donations, including a fall of about €30,000 in a recent fundraising campaign in France.
He said leaders of the order – which counts some 13,000 members, 80,000 volunteers and about 25,000 paid employees, mostly medical staff – would have to work hard to regain lost trust.
