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Würzburg (dpa / lby) - The Würzburg bishop Franz Jung has distanced himself from the signature campaigns for a priest convicted of sexual abuse.

"The actions counteract in a bizarre and scandalous way the efforts of the diocese of Würzburg to come to terms with the sexual abuse and cause serious damage to the parish, diocese and church as a whole," said Jung on Tuesday.

The members of a community in the Bad Kissingen district had collected signatures for the clergyman who had been convicted of sexual abuse of a former acolyte.

They wanted to achieve that the bishop stands up for the priest so that he can get involved again in the church.

"I urge the organizers and signatories of the campaigns to accept the judgment and suffering of those affected and not to distort the facts," emphasized Jung.

The priest will definitely not return to the parish community.

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Last August, the Bad Kissingen district court sentenced the German to one year and four months in prison (Az. 8 Js 1298/19).

The sentence was suspended for three years.

The public prosecutor's office and defense initially appealed, but withdrew them in February, making the judgment final.

The acolyte said she had fallen in love with the former chaplain about ten years ago, but he had initially rejected her.

Around 2010, however, there was, among other things, a French kiss, which, according to the victim, was consensual in court.

But because the girl was under 14 at the time, the district court convicted the man of sexually abusing a child.

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210315-99-833681 / 2

Press release