On the resignation of Gregor Maria Hanke: From organic-abbot to bishop

Franz Maria Hanke was not only late once: after studying theology, the Middle Franconian first became a religion teacher. He then joined the Benedictines in Plankstetten and took the first name Gregor; he was 29 when he was ordained a priest. He took twelve years to complete his doctoral thesis, which he finished in 2004. And, as he himself admits, he should have taken action earlier in the reorganisation of asset management in the diocese of Eichstätt - some called for his resignation as early as 2018. Now it has happened - because Hanke wants to return to pastoral care, according to reports.

So far, his career has consisted of two parts - with his episcopal ordination on 2 December 2006 as the turning point. This made the then 52-year-old the youngest member of the German episcopate. For this, the slender man with a full beard had to leave his first life, 25 years in a tranquil monastery, behind him - even if he still often wears the simple black habit. He was abbot at Plankstetten for 13 years and promoted the ecological conversion to an organic monastery with nationwide appeal.

Under Hanke, the diocese of Eichstätt pursued the goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2035; a comprehensive climate campaign was launched in 2013. Hanke also emphasised that climate protection and combating poverty belong together and called for a new attitude of cooperation in the spirit of the Gospel. He also pays personal attention to environmentally friendly behaviour.

Bishop's office anything but a dream job

However, the office of bishop was anything but a dream job for Hanke. Shortly after his ordination, he was called upon as a crisis manager for the first time. In 2008, he suspended the rector of the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (KU ) and had external auditors scrutinise the administrative files. Not without reason: as the leadership crisis at the KU grew, he made sure that his Bavarian confreres stayed on board and eventually Cardinal Reinhard Marx, as Chairman of the Freising Bishops' Conference, made the only Catholic university in the German-speaking world a matter for the boss.

However, Hanke experienced unpleasant surprises when he turned his attention to the diocese's internal asset management: The Eichstätt financial scandal was investigated by the public prosecutor's office. This was triggered by Hanke's transparency campaign. The former deputy finance director of the diocese had invested around 60 million US dollars in mostly unsecured loans in the USA together with project developers and an intermediary. These went to project companies in the US property development sector.

Hanke made this public at the beginning of 2018 after filing a complaint the previous year. The Munich 2 Regional Court has since brought charges against the former deputy finance director, the intermediary and another person, including for breach of trust and bribery. There is still no trial date; preliminary investigations against Bishop Hanke were discontinued in June 2020.

However, the diocese was still preoccupied with finances: in 2023, the diocesan tax committee rejected the business plan submitted. As a result, the diocese announced that it would close its five general education schools and its church newspaper to save money. Following criticism, a U-turn was made: The diocese retained the sponsorship of four of the schools after all. In April 2025, it was announced that the last of these schools, a girls' secondary school in Abenberg, would close in 2030. However, an admissions freeze announced at the time has since been lifted and the future of the institution is uncertain. The church newspaper has been published in cooperation with other dioceses since 2024.

Hanke was also critical of the synodal path

The planned closure of the deanery offices and Catholic youth centres in the diocese by the end of 2026 recently attracted criticism. The administration is to be centralised and duplicate structures dismantled, it was said in February. The youth organisation BDKJ in the diocese then accused the diocese management of being presented with a fait accompli without any room for discussion. Shortly afterwards, the highest lay body in the diocese, the Diocesan Council of Catholics, expressed a similar view. However, the decision was not reversed, even though Hanke and his deputy, Vicar General Michael Alberter, admitted that they understood that many felt taken by surprise.

Hanke remained critical of the "Synodal Way" reform process until the very end. Together with his counterparts from Cologne, Regensburg and Passau, he had refused to participate in the Synodal Committee, which was to prepare a synodal body for the Catholic Church in Germany. The four bishops repeatedly referred to criticism from high-ranking Vatican representatives regarding the establishment of a governing body at federal level, in which the joint deliberation and decision-making of bishops and laity should be stabilised.

Nevertheless, Bishop Hanke in Eichstätt wanted to enable more co-determination. Most recently, it was reported that the diocese was examining whether lay people from the diocesan council should also be allowed to participate in decision-making in the important finance committee - without creating new committees. Christian Gärtner, Chairman of the Eichstätt Diocesan Council, proposed the so-called Rottenburg model, in which the church administration and parish council, diocesan council and tax committee would be merged. What will become of these processes now remains to be seen following Hanke's resignation.