Philippe Bär


Ronald Philippe Bär, is a retired Dutch Roman Catholic bishop. He was born in Manado, North Sulawesi, then Dutch East Indies. He was bishop of the Diocese of Rotterdam from October 19, 1983, to March 13, 1993, as well as bishop of the Dutch military ordinariate. He resigned unexpectedly because of rumours of homosexual contacts.

Roman Catholic sex abuse case

In 2011, Bär's name was mentioned in connection with a sex abuse case involving a Roman Catholic priest, who reportedly abused dozens of children in the period from 1987 to 2008:
"The cardinal was told by the then bishop of Rotterdam, Philippe Bär, that the priest had sexually abused underage boys in his parish in Zoetermeer. Bishop Bär wanted the priest out of his diocese. Archbishop Simonis then arranged for the man to be moved to a parish in Amersfoort."