German proposal for ten bishops to defy Rome and ordain 50 married men as priests
The declining number of priests poses an acute threat to pastoral care. Creative solutions are now needed from the bishops and in Rome, demands theologian Ulrich Lüke.
With ever-new euphemistic magic words – currently the slogan is "expand pastoral spaces" – the reduction of parishes and the closure of churches, primarily oriented towards the declining number of priests, is being hyped up as a concept. Eucharist-free zones are the result, even though, according to the Council, the Eucharist is the "source and summit of communion." The Diocese of Aachen, for example, is to be reduced to eight parishes.
What would happen if ten German bishops, in their pastoral duty to care for the Eucharist, were to ordain five married, theologically well-trained men each to the priesthood on the Feast of St. Peter and St. Paul in 2027? According to canon law, the candidate for ordination must be a "vir baptizatus," a baptized man. These 50 married priests would then be ordained "validly, but not legally." Would Rome dare to remove the ten bishops and the 50 married priests from their office? And on what theological grounds would it be, if married Protestant pastors who have converted to Catholicism were ordained as Catholic priests? This Church is blocking itself if it lacks the courage to embrace different speeds of development.
The author:
Ulrich Lüke is a hospital chaplain at St. Francis Hospital in Münster. The theologian and biologist was Professor of Systematic Theology at RWTH Aachen University from 2001 to 2017. In his research, he particularly examines the relationship between science and faith.
Courage was one of the essential skills of shepherds protecting their flocks. Don't the shepherds of the Church, and especially those who call themselves "chief shepherds," need to be more courageous? Is what we are experiencing among the bishops with these ever-new "pastoral structural adjustments" perhaps better described as "cowardice in the face of a friend" in Rome.
I am not claiming that the above-mentioned measure would solve all of the Church's problems, but it would solve a few. Many other problems still await resolution, such as the diaconate of women, which has existed in the Church for 600 years! All that's needed here is a "reminder of the future." The ordination of women to the priesthood also remains irrevocably on the agenda, even if key figures in the Church unfortunately still turn a blind eye to it.
Future Bishops need courage
But because many bishops lack the courage to take the first step, is it permissible or necessary to bury the hope for further steps along with it? Courage that grows out of Christian hope is needed not only in the world but also with regard to Rome, and should perhaps be part of the talent spectrum of future bishops. But it would also be a good fit for us "average Catholics."
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