Eklat in Freiburg: Applause and protest at Christmas mass against archbishop!

Eklat in Freiburg: Applause and protest at Christmas mass against archbishop!

Freiburg, Deutschland - A surprising scandal shook the Christmas celebrations in the Freiburg Münster. In the traditional Christmas mass on Christmas Eve, Archbishop Stephan Burger had to interrupt the service due to tumultuous scenes. The reason for the excitement was the dismissal of the popular cathedral conductor Prof. Boris Böhmann, which is to be released without giving reasons at the end of February 2024. The transfer of the service was even canceled by the Catholic television station K-TV. During the Christmas mass, after a song of the choir, a minute of applause broke out, which demonstrated the support for Böhmann and included loud calls against the archbishop, as Oe24 reported .

The atmosphere during the celebrations was characterized by heated emotions, which were expressed in several speech choirs and the distribution of flyers. The supporters of Böhmann demanded the "immediate withdrawal" of the termination. The Archbishop's administration expressed that due to data protection, no details of the reasons for the termination could be revealed, it was willing to talk. Auxiliary Bishop Peter Birkhofer called the termination an “Ultima Ratio” to avoid greater damage, but it was made clear that it was not allegations of sexual abuse, such as Express reported .

The extensive reactions of the community and the dramatic scenes in the Münster show how deep the connection to the cathedral conductor is, which has been leading the fortunes of the gospel -containing choir since 2003. The incident raises questions about the administration and the procedure of the Archdiocese of Freiburg, which has obviously encountered decisive resistance within the municipality. In the middle of the festive atmosphere, the service interrupted was the scene of a loud protest that underlined the concerns of Boris Böhmann's supporters.