Holocaust-denying bishop lived in Minn. for 15 years
The Holocaust-denying bishop whose views sparked a "diplomatic crisis" in the Vatican lived and taught at a Minnesota seminary in Winona for 15 years.
Bishop Richard Williamson was one of four bishops from the society Society of St. Pius X whose excommunication was lifted in January. The decision sparked controversy because of a recent interview in which Williamson denies that Jews were gassed during the Holocaust, WCCO reported.
Williamson made similar statements in Winona, the Winona Daily News reported.
Pope Benedict XVI's recent decision to lift the excommunications shouldn't be interpreted as an embrace of the society's beliefs or an endorsement of its practices, said Rev. Donald P. Schmitz, vicar general of the Diocese of Winona.
Argentina newspapers reported that Williamson has been dismissed as the head of an La Reja seminary, CNN reported.
“Monsignor Williamson’s statements do not in any way reflect the position of our congregation," Father Christian Bouchacourt, the head of the Latin American chapter of the Catholic Society St. Pius X, said to the Argentine newspaper.
WCCO. http://wcco.com/local/holocaust.denying.bishop.2.929891.html
CNN. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/09/world/europe/09pope.html?ref=world