North Rhine-Westphalia: Pastor from Sauerland is not beatified

Paderborn/Arnsberg (dpa/lnw) - After years of examination, the Vatican has rejected the beatification of priest Franz Stock (1904-1948), who was born in Sauerland.

North Rhine-Westphalia: Pastor from Sauerland is not beatified

Paderborn/Arnsberg (dpa/lnw) - After years of examination, the Vatican has rejected the beatification of priest Franz Stock (1904-1948), who was born in Sauerland. According to the Congregation responsible for the beatification and canonization processes in Rome, the conditions for beatification are not met, the Archdiocese of Paderborn announced on Thursday.

The pastor, who was revered above all in France, had looked after prisoners in Wehrmacht prisons as a prison chaplain in Paris and accompanied those sentenced to death on their final journey. Stock was therefore later referred to as the "chaplain of hell". He was born in what is now Arnsberg's Neheim district.

Archbishop Hans-Josef Becker was disappointed with Rome's decision. "I continue to recommend that believers look to Franz Stock as a role model in faith and remember him in prayer," he said.

In order for a person to be beatified, according to the regulations of the Catholic Church, at least one recognized miracle is required, which occurred through the intercession of the person and cannot be scientifically explained. It is often about healing the sick.