Cardinal Reinhard Marx has announced that he will not seek a new term as chairman of the German Bishops' Conference.
The Archbishop of Munich and Freising said in a statement that it was time for the "younger generation" to take charge when the bishops meet for their spring General Assembly early next month.
Cardinal Marx pointed out that if he were to serve a second term, he would be 72 by the time it finished, almost at retirement age.
"I was very happy to hold the office of chairman of the German Bishops' Conference, but 'everything has its time'," the cardinal said.
Marx has been chairman of the German Bishops' Conference since March 2014, and has served as Archbishop of Munich and Freising since 2008.
