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German Synodal Way

View of the Vatican from the Tiber / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Synodal Standoff: German Bishops and Vatican Commit to Resolution Roadmap

Mar 23, 2024

The Vatican and the German bishops have announced they will work together to resolve the controversial German Synodal Way. 

German bishops in Rome on Nov. 17, 2022. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

German Bishops to Discuss Synodal Way with Vatican amid Controversy

Mar 21, 2024

A delegation of German bishops is expected in Rome this Friday for talks with the Vatican about the German Synodal Way. 

The cross of the German “Synodal Way.” | Credit: Maximilian von Lachner/Synodaler Weg

German Catholics Ask Bishops to Reconsider Synodal Way Plans

Feb 15, 2024

Ahead of a high-stakes gathering of the German bishops next Monday, a lay group warned the prelates of moving “further away from the people of God.”

The cross of the German “Synodal Way.” | Credit: Maximilian von Lachner/Synodaler Weg

Critics Challenge German Synodal Way in Light of Abuse Study

Jan 30, 2024

A new study looking at survivors of abuse within the Evangelical Church in Germany calls into doubt the narrative that abuse is “specific to Catholic factors.”

Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/ACI Prensa

Cardinal Fernández: Vatican’s same-sex blessings guidance is ‘clear answer’ to German bishops

Jan 3, 2024

Members of the controversial German Synodal Way overwhelmingly approved developing formalized ritual texts for same-sex blessings in March 2023.  

A blessing service at St. Augustin Catholic church in Würzburg, Germany, for couples, including those of the same-sex, May 10, 2021. | Credit: CNA Deutsch

TIMELINE: What Has the Catholic Church Said about Same-sex "blessings"?

Dec 20, 2023

Here’s a timeline of how the controversy over same-sex blessings has unfolded.

Bishop Stefan Oster. | Credit: Diocese of Passau

German Bishop Says Divisions within Local Church are a "disaster for the faithful"

Nov 30, 2023

Bishop Stefan Oster did not shy away from identifying profound theological disagreements as the source of division within the Church in Germany.

Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg, Germany, (left) and Archbishop Stanisław Gądecki of Poznań, Poland. | Credit: Bistum Limburg/Episkopat.pl. / Bistum Limburg/Episkopat.pl

Confronting Controversy: German-Polish Bishops’ Dialogue Highlights Synodal Way Tensions

Nov 28, 2023

A public dispute between the German Bishops’ Conference president and his Polish counterpart took another turn on Monday.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin. | Claude Truong-Ngoc via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Vatican Draws Line on Women’s Ordination and Homosexuality in New Letter to German Bishops

Nov 24, 2023

The Vatican has informed German bishops in writing that the ordination of women and changes in the Church’s teaching on homosexuality cannot be subjects of discussion in the upcoming meetings with delegates of the German Synodal Way in Rome.

Pope Francis' general audience of April 19, 2023. | Credit: Daniel Ibanez/CNA

Pope Francis Expresses "concerns" about German Synodal Way, Says It Threatens Church Unity

Nov 21, 2023

Pope Francis has expressed deep reservations about the direction of the Catholic Church in Germany.

Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica on Oct. 29, 2023. | Daniel Ibanez/CNA

Full Text: Pope Francis’ Letter Expressing Concern about German Synodal Way

Nov 21, 2023

Here is CNA’s English translation of Pope Francis’ letter to four German Catholic laywomen expressing his “concerns” about the direction of the German Church.

The cross of the German “Synodal Way” | Maximilian von Lachner / Synodaler Weg

The Vatican’s Statements on the German Synodal Way: A Timeline

Nov 21, 2023

Tuesday was not the first time Pope Francis and the Vatican have expressed reservations about the German Synodal Way.

Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck of Essen, Germany at the Synod on Synodality press briefing Oct. 21, 2023. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez

Church should not ignore "signs of the times": German Synod Delegate

Oct 21, 2023

Bishop Overbeck cites Germany's "post-secular" context amid Synod's discussions on "decentralization."

Archbishop Faustino Armendáriz of Durango, Mexico. | Credit: Archdiocese of Durango

"It’s a challenge to seek the will of God" at Synod on Synodality, Synod Delegate Says

Oct 20, 2023

The archbishop of Durango, Mexico, Faustino Armendáriz, commented that “it’s a challenge to seek the will of God” at the Synod on Synodality.

Synod on Synodality delegates seated at discussion tables inside Paul VI Hall at the Vatican in October 2023. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez | CNA

Synod on Synodality 2023: Work Begins on the Final Text as Second Week Wraps up

Oct 14, 2023

The past week risked being overshadowed by a letter about the German Synodal Way shared with Synod participants by Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg.

A blessing service at St. Augustin Catholic church in Würzburg, Germany, for couples, including those of the same-sex, May 10, 2021. | Gehrig/CNA Deutsch.

TIMELINE: What has the Catholic Church said about Same-sex "blessings"?

Oct 9, 2023

Here’s a timeline of how the controversy over same-sex blessings has unfolded.

Bishop Georg Bätzing addresses journalists on Sept 28, 2023. | Credit: Martin Rothweiler/EWTN Germany

German Bishops Conclude Tense Gathering with all Eyes on Synod on Synodality in Rome

Sep 29, 2023

Conscious of mounting tensions and open defiance around certain issues, the assembly in Wiesbaden served as a charged prelude to more significant debates.

Birgit Mock, a vice president of the ZdK, on July 31, 2023, attacked Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne for admonishing a priest his statements against blessing same-sex unions. | Synodaler Weg / Maximilian von Lachner

German Cardinal Under Fire for Admonishing Priest Over Same-sex Blessings

Aug 1, 2023

A German cardinal was publicly criticized by the powerful Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK) on Monday for formally warning a priest over same-sex blessings in the Archdiocese of Cologne.

Bishop Georg Bätzing watches ZdK president Irme Stetter-Karp speak at the "Synodal Way" assembly in Frankfurt, Germany, Sept 8. 2022. | Synodaler Weg / Maximilian von Lachner

Vatican and German Bishops Discuss Theological Questions from Synodal Way

Jul 27, 2023

German bishops and representatives of the Roman Curia met in the Vatican on Wednesday to continue discussions started last year about the German Synodal Way.

Archbishop Víctor Manuel Fernández, pictured here in 2014, is the archbishop of La Plata, Argentina. He will take up his new post as prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith in September 2023. | Daniel Ibanez/CNA

"I will do it my way": Newly Appointed Head of Doctrine of Faith Dicastery

Jul 6, 2023

When asked about the controversy surrounding his recent appointment as the Vatican’s doctrinal chief, Archbishop Víctor Manuel Fernández responded: “I will do it ‘my way.’”