Heiligenkreuz abbot plans to step down in September

Maximilian Heim will step down as abbot of Heiligenkreuz monastery in the Baden district on September 14, ORF reported Thursday. The 65-year-old cited health problems, including a heart condition last year, and said he wanted to return to pastoral work and continue working as a theologian.

Heim has led the monastery since 2011. More than 80 monks with solemn vows will then choose his successor from among their ranks, the monastery said.

However, the community will elect an administrator rather than an abbot for a three-year term. Abbot President Pius Maurer said this decision followed consultations with the Vatican’s Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life because more than one-third of those eligible to vote had never taken part in an abbatial election.

Heim also served as president of the Austrian Cistercian Congregation from 2016 to 2025.

Vatican visitation concluded in April

Heiligenkreuz monastery was recently the subject of a Vatican-ordered visitation concerning possible misconduct. The 10-month visitation concluded in April.

Instructions based on the final report were presented to the monastery’s community. They included improving communication within and outside the community, developing strategic plans for the monastery’s future, reflecting on its theological and spiritual direction, better introducing young people to monastic life, and sharpening the monastery’s identity and self-image.