Overview

• St. Laurentius Church in Braunschweig experienced an overnight bell malfunction during memorials for the late Pope Francis, disturbing local residents.
• The Diocese of Hildesheim had planned daily five-minute noon tolling until the burial, but the bells rang unexpectedly for an extended period during the night.
• Church officials issued a public apology, acknowledging the disruption to residents' rest and expressing deep regret over the incident.
• Automatic bell systems at the church have been deactivated pending inspection, with manual ringing to be used for Sunday services temporarily.
• The Diocese continues its commemorative Totengeläut tradition, with bells tolling daily at noon in honor of Pope Francis until his burial.