Administrator of Vaduz: Archdiocese of Liechtenstein is a different world

Feldkirch/Vaduz - The diocesan administrator of Vaduz, Benno Elbs, is once again celebrating the traditional mass at the opening of Parliament this year. He did not ask Wolfgang Haas, who had cancelled the mass – as a protest against the approval of "marriage for all".

Published on 15.01.2024 at 11:46 –

The diocesan administrator of the vacant Archdiocese of Liechtenstein, Benno Elbs, feels like he is in a different world in Vaduz. This is mainly due to the diocese's regional church model, Elbs told the Austrian newspaper Kronenzeitung am Sonntag. "This means that the mayors are actually the employers of the priests," said Elbs. He has been Bishop of Feldkirch since 2013 and Diocesan Administrator of the Archdiocese of Vaduz since 2023.

After three months of working in Vaduz, Elbs said that he has a good relationship with Archbishop Wolfgang Haas, the Vaduz clergy and the faithful. He experiences good cooperation - despite different approaches "on many issues". However, as interim head, it is not his job to "shape the future of pastoral care in Liechtenstein", said Elbs.

Elbs celebrates mass again for the opening of parliament

However, there will now be one change: Elbs is once again celebrating the traditional mass for the opening of parliament this year. "The members of the parliamentary groups have asked me to do this," says Elbs. "If someone asks for a blessing before they take office or begin their work, then I am happy about it and do not make it dependent on the content of the parliamentarians' work." Former Archbishop Haas cancelled the service during his term of office because he was dissatisfied with the decision of the state parliament on "marriage for all". He did not see this decision as an affront to Haas: "I didn't ask him," said Elbs. "I am a different person and perhaps have a more relaxed, Austrian approach based on the separation of church and state," said the Bishop of Feldkirch.

Elbs was appointed Apostolic Administrator in Liechtenstein on 20 September after Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Archbishop Wolfgang Haas due to his age. The then Pope John Paul II had established the small diocese with just 30,000 faithful for him in 1997, after there had been considerable disputes in Haas' former diocese of Chur about his church policy and leadership style. There were also repeated tensions in Vaduz. (ben)