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Bishop Joe S. Vásquez, of the Diocese of Austin, issued the following pastoral message to the Catholic faithful on July 21, 2020:
Today, the Diocese of Austin learned that a lawsuit was filed against the Schoenstatt Fathers due to alleged misconduct by one of their priests, Fr. Gerold Langsch, ISP.
Fr. Langsch served as the pastor of St. Paul Parish in Austin from December 2015 to February 2019. In the Summer of 2019, Fr. Langsch pled no contest to the criminal charge of Assault by Contact of a Disabled Person. By the time he entered his plea, other adult females had reported to the police that Fr. Langsch had breached boundaries or inappropriately touched them. The lawsuit filed today is the civil action resulting from those same allegations.
The diocese first became aware of alleged misconduct by Fr. Langsch on February 13, 2019. Seven days later, after an initial review, Bishop Joe S. Vásquez asked for Fr. Langsch’s resignation as pastor, which he tendered the next day, February 20, 2019.
Fr. Langsch is 76 years old and he has not served in ministry in the diocese since his resignation and no longer has faculties to serve as a priest in the Diocese of Austin. The Schoenstatt Fathers are a religious order based in Schoenstatt, Germany serving in various places around the world. They began serving in Austin in 2005.
We continue to pray for anyone who has been hurt by ministers of the Church and ask that God offer his consoling presence as they heal and rebuild their lives.