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The German 'Bishop of Bling' could see his newly renovated multi-million pound mansion used as a soup kitchen.

Bishop Franz Peter Tebartz-van Elst was formally suspended after it was revealed he had spent over £26MILLION on renovating his official residence in Limburg.

Tebartz-van Eslt was ordered out of his diocese by Pope Francis while the Vatican investigation takes place.

And according to church officials the 53-year-old - dubbed "the luxury bishop" by the German media - now faces the prospect of seeing his residence turned into a soup kitchen or refugee centre.

A spokesman from the Caritas organisation for the homeless said: "The residence is like an inherited sin which the bishop has left in his wake.

"People who seek sanctuary with us could be given food in the residence."

The lavish residence was fitted with a free-standing bath that cost 15,000 euros, a conference table that cost 25,000 euros and a private chapel for 2.9 million euros.

The Bishop of Bling has been front page news across Germany for weeks, deeply embarrassing the Catholic church.