MUNICH, MARCH 8, 2016(CISA)-Fr Olivier Ndjimbi-Tshiende, a Congolese-born parish priest of Zorneding in the Catholic Archdiocese of Munich is stepping down as a priest after he was reportedly racially abused and given death threats.
The Catholic Archdiocese of Munich said in a statement Monday March 3 that Fr Ndjimbi-Tshiende will step down as parish priest in Zorneding, southeast of the Bavarian capital, on April 1.
“We very much regret the decision, but accepts it and stands by Fr Ndjimbi-Tshiende,” the statement read in part.
The priest announced his departure to his congregation on Sunday March 6 when he celebrated the Mass.
Fr Ndjimbi-Tshiende studied and worked in Munich in the 1990s and returned to work for the Archdiocese in 2005. He has been the parish priest of Zorneding since 2012.
The threats and abuse came after the priest last year criticized a local politician’s assertion that Bavaria, a state in southeastern Germany was being overrun by refugees, BBC reported.
