Knights of Malta: Leader Resigns After Spat with Pope

The head of the Knights of Malta resigned after entering into a public spat with Pope Francis over the ouster of an official involved in a condom scandal, a spokeswoman for the ancient lay Catholic order said Wednesday.

Matthew Festing met with the pope Tuesday and offered his resignation, Knights of Malta spokeswoman Marianna Balfour told The Associated Press.

“I can confirm this,” Balfour said.

Festing had refused to cooperate with a papal commission investigating his ouster of the grand chancellor, Albrecht von Boeselager, over revelations that the order’s charity branch had distributed condoms under his watch. Festing had cited the Knights’ status as a sovereign entity in refusing to cooperate.

Holy See statement

Last week, the Holy See said in a sharply worded statement that it plans to take action to resolve the dispute, which had set the stage for one sovereign entity intervening in the internal affairs of another.

The remarkable showdown is the latest example of Francis clashing with more conservative elements in the Catholic Church, especially those for whom sexual ethics and doctrinal orthodoxy are paramount. In a January 17 statement, the Vatican called the issue a “crisis of the central direction’’ of the Knights of Malta.

Festing suspended Boeselager December 8 over revelations that the Knights’ charity branch had distributed thousands of condoms to poor people in Myanmar under his watch.

Church teaching forbids artificial contraception. Boeselager has said he stopped the programs when he learned of them. The order’s leadership has said the scandal was grave and called it disgraceful that Boeselager refused an order to obey Festing and resign.

Pope appoints commission

Francis appointed a commission to investigate after Boeselager said he had been told by Festing that the Holy See wanted him to resign over the scandal. The Vatican secretary of state has said the pope wanted nothing of the sort and wanted the dispute to be resolved through dialogue.

The order’s leadership had said it wouldn’t cooperate with the pope’s commission, citing its status as a sovereign entity under international law. In a January 14 letter, Festing questioned the credibility of the pope’s commission.

The commission is made up of a noted Jesuit canon lawyer, three members of the order said to be close to Boeselager, and the Vatican’s former U.N. envoy to the U.N. in Geneva.

In its January 17 statement, the Vatican hinted that it plans to take measures based on the commission’s final report, a move that could rile the Knights’ over their sovereignty claim. The order is also a Catholic lay order and its leadership takes an oath of obedience to the pope.