German Catholic youth distressed by Synod and call for open defiance of Rome. But Catholic Truth cannot be decided by a group of laity, selected to fulfil quotas!

BDKJ: World Synod has not been specific enough so far

The BDKJ takes a critical view of part one of the World Synod: despite "welcome changes", there is still a lack of recognition of the systemic causes of abuse. The youth organisation has formulated concrete expectations for next year's consultations.

For the Catholic youth organisations in Germany, the reform steps taken so far at the World Synod do not go far enough. Even though "some pleasing changes" have been observed, the time for merely listening is over, according to a statement published by their umbrella organisation BDKJ in Düsseldorf on Saturday: "Specific systemic changes must finally be decided with the participation of all people."

It is expected that young people will also be allowed to have a say in next year's deliberations and the drafting of the final document, demanded BDKJ Federal Chairman Gregor Podschun: "Even if at least some women have a voice in the synod this time, the Synod is a long way from having a gender- and generation-equitable composition. This must change!"

The appropriate participation of the people of God must not be limited to the preliminary consultations and the accompanying prayer, but must also take place in a representative manner in the synod hall in Rome.

Final text very vague on some topics

Many topics that had already been discussed in the Synodal Path reform project in Germany had also found their place in the deliberations of the Synod in Rome, Podschun continued. As examples, he mentioned the role of women, gender identity and sexual orientation, the greater participation of lay people and decentralisation in dealing with decisions from Rome.

However, the final document remains very vague on other topics such as the diversity of images of God in the liturgy and the diaconate of women; the topic of priestly ordination for all genders is not included at all: "Even if we can recognise some good approaches, the recognition of the systemic causes of sexualised violence and abuse in the church is still missing," Podschun added: "The power structures in the church should remain unchanged and the power of the clergy is not restricted."

However, it is positive that it has become clear that the topics of the synodal path are not special German topics: "This is another reason why we should courageously implement the resolutions passed in Germany and continue to loudly advocate for our topics in Rome," demanded the BDKJ chairman: "What changes are already possible in the local churches must be tackled quickly, this is the only way to counter the suffering and otherwise the Church will lose even more people. Further steps need to be taken now. As the BDKJ, we also expect this from the German bishops." 

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