At the German Synodal Way, bishops intervened to prevent a vote calling for revisions to the Church’s doctrine on sexuality. Organisers expressed their disappointment with the decision on Friday and pledged to “take it to” Rome.
Bishop Georg Bätzing, one of the Synodal Way’s two presidents, expressed “personal sadness” that the text urging modifications to the Church’s doctrine on homosexuality, bisexuality, gender identity, and masturbation was not formally endorsed due to a blocking minority of bishops.
Only roughly 61% of the bishops voted in favour of adopting the document, titled “Living in Successful Relationships,” whereas about 83% of the synodal assembly in Frankfurt did.
Due to the fact that 33 bishops voted in favour of adopting the declaration, while 21 bishops opposed it and three abstained, the document on sexuality only received a two-thirds majority, according to CNA Deutsch, CNA’s German-language news partner.
A document must have approval from two-thirds of the current members as well as two-thirds of the present bishops in order to be legally accepted under the German process’s laws.
According to CNA Deutsch, Bätzing stated that the rejected text was still a result of the Synodal Way, and that as a result, “we will take it to the level of the universal Church when we are in Rome in November for the ad limina visit when we go about preparing the World Synod with the continental bishops’ conferences in January.” An “ad limina apostolorum” visit is a papal meeting necessary for every diocesan
When the proposed wording was rejected on Sept. 8, attendees in the Frankfurt venue saw emotional outbursts and several accused the bishops of failing to speak out before casting their votes.
Several bishops said they had refrained from speaking before the secret ballot on Thursday out of fear of the synodal assembly.
This statement was criticised on Friday as being “whiny” and “rather helpless” by Irme Stetter-Karp, co-president of the Synodal Way and president of the Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK).
In response to yesterday’s events, the ZdK president wished to see “a movement now arising from the bishops’ conference, that communication transforms, that people communicate with an open mind.”
One of many courting disputes is the document on sexuality. On the agenda are resolutions calling for the ordination of women, the abolition of clerical celibacy, and the establishment of a permanent Synodal Council.
On the assembly’s agenda on Friday, September 9, the action, which would establish a permanent body to supervise the Church in Germany, is highlighted.
Critics have compared the practise to communist Soviets and said that it is just repurposing Protestant institutions.
The German method, sometimes known as the Synodal Path even though it is not a synod, has drawn intense criticism from the start.