Francis accepted the resignation of Archbishop Luc Ravel (66) of Strasbourg. The announcement was made by the Vatican press office on Saturday.
The Pope appointed the Bishop of Metz, Philippe Ballot (66), as interim administrator. Ravel had already offered the move on April 20, after months of wrangling over his tenure and after a Vatican review in June 2022. He has headed the wealthy diocese of Alsace since early 2017; previously he was the military bishop of France.
At the same time, according to the French Episcopal Conference, French President Emmanuel Macron accepted Ravel’s resignation. Acceptance of the resignation of the French head of state is only necessary in the cases of the Archdiocese of Strasbourg and the Diocese of Metz, since the French Concordat of 1801 is still valid in these cases. This means that the president nominally appoints the bishops along with the pope, and the French state also pays the salaries of the clergy.
The now appointed Apostolic Administrator Ballot has headed the Diocese of Metz since September 2022. He was previously Archbishop of Chambery.
(vatican news/kna – mg)