Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller has strongly rejected accusations of financial irregularities during his time as prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, calling them “cheap sensationalist literature.”
The former prefect, who held the position from 2012 to 2017, insists that “not a single cent” was mishandled under his leadership, reported CNA GermanGerman-language agency of EWTN News.
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In an interview with the German Catholic weekly The daily mailCardinal Müller addressed a recent report suggesting that his mandate was not renewed due to financial mismanagement.
Citing several anonymous sources in the Vatican, the website The Pillar reported that large sums of cash were allegedly found in the dicastery’s offices, and that more than 200,000 euros intended for the dicastery’s bank account were deposited in Cardinal Müller’s personal account.
The report also stated that these discoveries were made during an investigation led by the Ministry of the Economy led by the late Cardinal George Pell.
In response to these accusations, Cardinal Müller said: “If people had realized, as Cardinal Pell did, that the dicastery did not lose a single cent in the end, they could have saved themselves the rehashing of a long-settled matter.” time”.
According to CNA Deutsch, the cardinal acknowledged that a staff member had “moved money back and forth between the dicastery’s individual accounts and, although not illegally, kept unusually large amounts of cash.”
However, Cardinal Müller emphatically assured that this employee had not misappropriated “the slightest” of the dicastery’s property.
The former prefect also responded to questions about the replacement of an old conference table in the dicastery’s offices. Cardinal Müller explained that during his tenure he had acquired valuable new furniture for the dicastery thanks to fundraising efforts. As part of this process, he said, the ancient conference table was duly arranged with the approval of the Apostolic See Patrimony Administration (APSA).
“As prefect, I was able to acquire new and valuable furniture for the dicastery through fundraising,” declared the cardinal, emphasizing that all actions were carried out with due supervision and approval.
Speculations and successors
The accusations that suddenly emerged this week are not the first time that Cardinal Müller’s departure has made headlines, in reports that the cardinal later rejected.
Pope Benedict XVI appointed the German cardinal to head the Catholic Church’s highest doctrinal department in 2012. His five-year term ended without renewal in 2017, during the pontificate of Pope Francis.
At the time, media reports claimed that the Pope had asked the cardinal “five pointed questions” in a personal conversation, a claim that Cardinal Müller categorically rejected.
However, his departure from office was widely interpreted as a desire for new leadership in the Vatican’s doctrinal office.
Cardinal Müller’s successor, the Jesuit Cardinal Luis Ladaria Ferrerwas succeeded in 2023 by the personal theologian and ghostwriter (ghostwriter) of Pope Francis, Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernandez.
Translated and adapted by the ACI Prensa team. Originally published in CNA.
Anian Christoph Wimmer
Anian Christoph Wimmer, a multilingual Australian with Bavarian roots, is the editor-in-chief of CNA Deutsch. He held senior positions at Australia’s SBS and was editor-in-chief of the historic Münchner Kirchenzeitung. Graduated in Philosophy and Chinese Studies from the University of Melbourne, Anian Christoph Wimmer was on the jury for the Catholic Media Award of the German Bishops’ Conference and was an honorary researcher in Communications at the University of Melbourne. He has served on the Board of Directors of Caritas in Munich.