THE TELEGRAPH: A close friend and ally of the Pope Benedict XVI, has offered to resign over allegations that he abused children in his care.
Bishop Walter Mixa of Augsburg, in southern Germany, denied for weeks that he had used violence against youngsters. But the bishop from the Pope's native Bavaria later admitted that he "may have" slapped the children while a priest decades ago.
Some of the victims, who are now adults, allege that he hit them in the face with full force and beat their bare skin, shouting: "Satan is in you and I must drive him out."
In his letter of resignation to the Pope, the bishop wrote: "I ask the forgiveness of all those to whom I may have been unfair and to those who I may have caused heartache."
The 68-year-old bishop said he was "fully aware of my own weaknesses" and would co-operate with investigators.
A statement released by the diocese said: "With his resignation, he wants to avert further damage to the Church and to allow a new start."
Adding to Bishop Mixa's troubles, a special investigator has found financial irregularities at the children's home he was in charge of at around the same time as the allegations of beatings.
The case does not involve allegations of sexual abuse. However, the bishop, who was appointed by the Pope in 2005, is a controversial figure who has tried to explain paedophilia in the Church by claiming the sexual liberation movement must share a "significant" part of the blame. >>> Nick Squires in Rome | Thursday, April 22, 2010
