Pope Francis walks next to Archbishop Georg Ganswein, prefect of the papal household, during his general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican May 29, 2019. The Vatican downplayed the absence of Archbishop Ganswein from several papal audiences after an article claimed he was placed on an indefinite leave. CNS photo/Paul Haring

The Vatican downplayed the absence of Archbishop Georg Ganswein from several papal audiences after an article claimed he was placed on an indefinite leave.

“No leave, we have no information in that sense,” the Vatican press office said in an email to Catholic News Service Feb. 5.

Earlier in the day, the German newspaper Die Tagespost reported that Pope Francis placed Archbishop Ganswein, prefect of the papal household, on an “indefinite leave” due to the fallout from the recent publication of a book defending priestly celibacy that was promoted as being co-authored by Cardinal Robert Sarah and retired Pope Benedict XVI.

Archbishop Ganswein, who also serves as personal secretary to Pope Benedict, phoned several German news agencies and spoke with the Reuters news agency Jan. 14, saying the retired pope had requested that his name be removed as co-author of the book, its introduction and its conclusion.

The last public event where the German archbishop was seen was Pope Francis’ weekly general audience Jan. 15, prompting speculation about his absence for subsequent audiences and events, including U.S. Vice President Mike Pence’s visit to the Vatican.

However, the Vatican attributed his absence to “an ordinary redistribution of the various commitments and duties of the prefect of the papal household who, as you know, is also the personal secretary of the pope emeritus.”