André Léonard (he added Mutien to his name in 1989 after the canonisation of Mutien-Marie Wiaux, a Walloon monk and teacher) was born in 1940, the youngest of four sons, who all became priests. He studied in Leuven and at the Belgian college in Rome. He was ordained in 1964 and made bishop in 1991. A personal friend of the late Pope John Paul II, he also has close ties with the current Pope.

His appointment raises fears of a swing to what is seen as the hard-line wing of the Catholic Church. He has made no secret of his views on abortion, homosexuality and euthanasia and on measures in those areas introduced by parliament. His arrival in the Mechelen palace, according to federal social affairs minister Laurette Onkelinx, represents “a threat to the Belgian compromise,” by which the leaders of the church agree to maintain political neutrality.

There is another fear that Léonard’s appointment may be a risk to scientific research, especially on stem-cell therapies, at the Catholic University of Leuven.

Archbishop Léonard does not automatically succeed to his predecessor’s red hat, but it is thought highly likely he will be made a Cardinal by the Pope in short order, making him only the fifth Belgian cardinal since 1906. A fluent Dutchspeaker, he will eventually take up residence in the archiepiscopal palace in Mechelen.