Trying to reconcile the irreconcilable in the German Church

Confidence after visit of German bishops to Vatican

On Wednesday, there was a surprising meeting of German bishops with top representatives in the Vatican. The topic: reform ideas from Germany. The Central Committee of German Catholics has now commented on this.

After the surprising meeting of German bishops with top representatives in the Vatican, supporters of reforms in the Church react with confidence. The Central Committee of German Catholics assumes "that the delegation of the German Bishops' Conference was able to make clear how much the synodal path taken in Germany is oriented towards the future of the Church," spokeswoman Britta Baas (photo) said in Berlin on Thursday in response to a question.

The highest representative body of the Catholic laity in Germany had launched the Synodal Way in 2019 together with the bishops. The central topics included the role of women, the distribution of power and a different approach to sexual minorities. The consultations are to be continued in future in a Synodal Council. The Vatican is critical of such a project: the Catholic Church in Germany is not authorised to set up such a governing body of lay people and clerics.

This topic was apparently left out of the meeting at the Vatican, which took place on Wednesday. Instead, it was reportedly about how sensible reform ideas from Germany can be implemented in such a way that they do not come into conflict with binding rules of the universal Church. The meeting took place "in a positive and constructive atmosphere", according to a joint statement. In it, both sides held out the prospect of further meetings.

Who took part in the meeting

On the part of the Holy See, the heads of the Dicasteries for Faith and the Bishops, Cardinal Luis Ladaria and Archbishop Robert Prevost, the Head of the Ecumenical Dicastery, Cardinal Kurt Koch, and Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin took part in the meeting. Other participants were Archbishops Filippo Iannone, who is responsible for the interpretation of legal texts at the Vatican, and Vittorio Viola, Secretary of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

From the German Bishops' Conference (DBK), the chairman, Bishop Georg Bätzing, and Bishops Stephan Ackermann, Michael Gerber, Bertram Meier and Franz-Josef Overbeck took part. Within the Bishops' Conference, these bishops head the Commissions for Liturgy, Spiritual Vocations, World Church and Faith. Also present were the Secretary General of the Bishops' Conference, Beate Gilles, and Press Spokesperson Matthias Kopp.

Bätzing, Meier and Overbeck will also represent the German bishops at the upcoming World Synod in Rome in October. The process initiated by Pope Francis is intended to change the way the Church deals with and the climate of discussion in the Church. Observers expect that questions about concrete changes in church life will also be discussed on this occasion.

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