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Pope Leo XIV-approved Bishop of St. Gallen elected

The new Bishop of St. Gallen is Beat Grögli
The new Bishop of St. Gallen is Beat Grögli Keystone-SDA

Beat Grögli has been chosen as the 12th bishop of St. Gallen. He was elected by the cathedral chapter on Tuesday but result then remained secret until it was approved by the Vatican.

“I accept this new, great task with joy and respect and thank everyone who has encouraged and supported me on my path so far,” said the new bishop shortly after the election.

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Grögli previously headed the cathedral parish and was involved in pastoral care throughout the city of St Gallen as pastor of the pastoral care unit in the centre and as dean.

He was chosen from a list of six candidates compiled by the cathedral chapter – a committee of thirteen clergy – in autumn 2024. The list was then sent to Rome and checked there. On Tuesday, the parliament of the Catholic denomination of the canton of St. Gallen was also able to comment on the candidates.

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After the election on Tuesday afternoon, the result remained secret for a while. It first had to be approved by the new Pope Leo XIV. This took place during the course of Wednesday. The name of the new bishop could therefore only be announced on Thursday lunchtime. The cathedral bells rang at the same time as the announcement at noon.

Adapted from German by DeepL/ac

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