Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Bishop Grzegorz Kaszak of Sosnowiec, Poland, following a scandal involving a priest from his diocese accused of organising a gay orgy with a male sex worker. The Vatican did not provide a reason for the resignation, though Kaszak, 59, is well below the typical retirement age of 75.
The controversy began when Father Tomasz Z was placed under criminal investigation after an alleged orgy in his apartment in Dąbrowa Górnicza. Polish media reported that one participant collapsed from an overdose of erectile dysfunction pills. Prosecutors suspect the priest of failing to provide assistance by allegedly trying to block paramedics from entering the apartment.
This is not the first scandal to hit the Sosnowiec diocese. In 2010, the acting rector of the seminary was involved in a scuffle at a gay club but remained in his role for over a year until the Vatican dissolved the seminary. In 2023, a 26-year-old deacon was found dead with injuries suggesting homicide, and a 40-year-old priest is believed to have killed him before taking his own life.
In a statement on Tuesday, Kaszak said he had asked the pope to accept his resignation in a letter dated 29 September. He thanked the clergy of his diocese and asked “everyone to forgive my human limitations.” Kaszak was appointed bishop by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009 and had previously served in the Vatican's family office.
The diocese confirmed the priest's misconduct, stating that an external commission found he had committed a “very serious violation of moral norms.” Kaszak dismissed him from all duties on 21 September and initiated a canonical trial that could lead to defrocking. The priest has denied preventing paramedics from assisting the collapsed man and questioned the definition of an orgy, calling the scandal “an obvious attack on the church.”
