I’m no paedophile, ex-Bishop tells Belgian TV

Roger Vangheluwe resigned as Bishop of Bruges last year after admitting he had abused one of his nephews over a 13-year period, until the boy was 18.

But, in an interview on Belgian television, he has now revealed that he abused a second nephew “a few times, a couple of times”.

The interview has prompted a storm of protest in Belgium, with the country’s Justice Minister calling on the Vatican to impose “severe” punishment upon the former Bishop.

The Minister, Stefaan de Clerck, said: “We expect the Church to punish him. They told him to leave the country – that was also to shut him up. Making comments trying to minimise what happened is unacceptable.”

Vangheluwe claimed that his abuse of his two nephews was no more than “a little game”, involving fondling but no “rough sex”.

“It was just a little piece of intimacy,” he said, adding that, “It started as, I would call it, a game. And in fact it never went much beyond that.

“It started as, I would call it, a game. And in fact it never went much beyond that.” Roger Vangheluwe, former Bishop of Bruges

“During family reunions, family members would stay with me. Since there wasn’t much space, one of the nephews would sleep with me.

“During these occasions it would happen. It was like a habit, but it was not really sexual. My nephew never saw me naked. There was never any penetration.”

Vangelhuwe offered an apology for any pain he had caused, but he denied being a paedophile. “I never felt the least attraction to a child,” he said. “And I still don’t.”

The Belgian Church authorities said they were “shocked” to hear him seeking to excuse his abuse and the damage it had done.

A statement from the Belgian Bishops Conference said: “This interview is extremely hurtful for the victims, their family and all those confronted with the sexual abuse problem. It is a slap in the face for the faithful who, like us, are surely despairing and bewildered.”

But the Vatican said it was up to the Pope to decide on any disciplinary action against Vangelhuwe – and no decision had yet been made.

“I never felt the least attraction to a child. And I still don’t.” Roger Vangheluwe

It emerged earlier this month that Vangheluwe himself cannot be prosecuted because his offences took place too long ago.

The Bishop’s resignation in 2010 prompted a wave of revelations of sexual abuse in Belgium’s Catholic Church. Pope Benedict begged forgiveness for the scandal, which set off protests around the world.

In recent years instances of abuse by priests have come to light elsewhere in Europe and the US. Last July the Vatican published a document which aims to codify procedures for trying priests accused of child sexual abuse.

However, it provoked outrage in some quarters by bracketing child sex abuse and the ordination of women as comparable “crimes”.