Fiona Govan
A CATALAN bishop who made headlines after he abandoned his calling to marry the author of saucy novels has formally been stripped of his powers by Spain’s Catholic Church authorities.
Xavier Novell i Goma had been Spain’s youngest ever bishop before stepping down to marry Silvia Caballol and start a new career trading in lucrative pig semen.
The Spanish Episcopal Conference has now confirmed that Novell had automatically forfeited his powers when he married Caballol in a civil ceremony last month.
“As is public and well known, Monsignor Xavier Novell i Goma, bishop emeritus of Solsona, contracted civil marriage with Doña Silvia Caballol y Clemente in Súria, Barcelona province, on November 22,” said a statement released on Saturday.
It added that Novell, 52, was forbidden under canon law, from “exercising any of the rights and duties inherent to the episcopal office” and warned that “other possible consequences” could follow.
“This means that although Monsignor Xavier Novell i Goma retains his title as bishop, he cannot undertake any of the functions that relate to that title. Accordingly, he is forbidden to administer the sacraments or engage in any teaching activity, whether public or private.”
Novell, who was ordained at the age of 41 to become Spain’s youngest bishop, resigned from his post in August citing “personal reasons”.
But it soon came to light that he had given up the cloth to pursue a relationship with a 38-year-old woman who writes what is described as ‘erotic fiction with satanic overtones’.
She had penned Amnesia Trilogy and The Hell of Gabriel’s Lust.
He reportedly told friends at the time: “I’ve fallen in love with a woman, for the first time in my life, and I want to do things right.”
Since giving up his post he has returned to using skills he learned when studying agricultural engineering at university and is working for a company that extracts and sells pig semen.
Spain’s ABC newspaper reported last month that the ex-bishop has bagged a position with Semen Cardona who export pig semen to several countries for ‘high-grade swine artificial insemination’.
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