Innovation and reforms behind ecclesiastical walls are not welcomed by the Vatican. “There is no point in your getting involved,” says theologian Julia Knop, translating the brief letter from Rome to the synodal path in Germany. Despite the affront, she continues to believe in the success of the institution.
The Germans were forewarned. Sometimes Pope Francis babbles, and on such an occasion the 85-year-old Argentinian recently revealed what he thinks of the reform plans of the dear brothers and sisters in “Alemania”: “There is a very good Protestant church in Germany,” said he. “We don’t need two of them.”
On Thursday, the Vatican surprisingly published a declaration which, as canon law expert Thomas Schüller puts it, caused all German dreams of renewal to “burst at the Roman walls”. The synodal path in Germany is simply “not authorized” to develop new forms of leadership or even to adapt the teachings and morals of the church. In its succinct brevity and harshness, the unsigned letter could only be seen as an open affront.
The Erfurt theologian Julia Knop translates the message to the German believers as follows: “There is no point in getting involved. In the end you will bite on concrete.” The two presidents of the synodal path, the chairman of the German Bishops’ Conference, Georg Bätzing, and the president of the Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK), Irme Stetter-Karp, are correspondingly irritated. The Vatican’s actions are “not in good style,” they criticize.
To Bätzing’s great annoyance, the Vatican steadfastly refuses to even speak to Stetter-Karp. It is assumed that from the Vatican point of view it has two decisive disadvantages: First, it does not belong to the clergy. And second, she’s not a man.
The synodal path of the German Catholics is a consequence of the mass sexual abuse of children by priests. Criminologists and other outside experts have repeatedly pointed out that the structure of the Church encourages such crimes. This is due to the fact that the exclusively male decision-makers can do whatever they want. At the same time they are bound by celibacy to celibacy and “chastity”. If one wants to prevent abuse in the future, then something must urgently change in these conditions, according to the almost unanimous recommendation of experts.
This is exactly what the German Bishops’ Conference and the ZdK – the representation of the so-called lay people – have been trying to implement since 2019. They have set up a kind of church parliament for this purpose, the Synodal Assembly, which draws up proposals for all problem areas and votes on them. But because the “synods” also know that the Catholic Church is not a democracy, all decisions must ultimately be approved by the bishops with a two-thirds majority. And even then the individual bishops are not bound by it.
The Roman Curia follows all this with Argus eyes. A reform of the Catholic Church was finally tackled from Germany, but it ended in a split: Martin Luther’s Reformation. And if the oldest institution in the world is vindictive about one thing, it’s this one. Does this mean the Synodal Path is dead? No, the fourth and fifth synodal assemblies would take place in September and March 2023, as agreed, Stetter-Karp assures us: “Of course we will stick to this plan.”
Julia Knop, one of the most committed reformers in the assembly, continues to believe that the synodal path can be a success – even if the desired reforms should not ultimately receive the necessary two-thirds majority of the bishops. “But if the entire synodal assembly passes the resolutions with a large majority, that would still be a very important signal.” In addition, one must note that the synodal assembly decides on texts from three different categories, says Knop.
For category 1, the approval of the Roman central administration is required. Here she assumes “that many things simply disappear in the drawer”. The second category will be passed on to the World Synod that Pope Francis has invited to Rome next year. But there is also a third category of resolutions, and these fall within the sole competence of the German Church. This includes, for example, changing Catholic labor law so that no one can be discriminated against because of their sexual orientation. Another point is participation in the appointment of bishops. “Believers can be included in the pre-selection of candidates,” says Knop.
The question is whether that will be enough to stop the exodus of German believers – last year alone 359,338 German Catholics turned their backs on their church, more than ever before. The vast majority probably expects much more, for example the admission of women to the priesthood. However, according to general opinion, that would border on a miracle. And that only exists – apart from in fairy tales – in the Bible.
