German bishops' conference

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Bishop Georg Bätzing addresses journalists on Sept 28, 2023.

German bishops conclude tense gathering with all eyes on Synod on Synodality in Rome

Sep 29, 2023

By AC Wimmer

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

Bishop Georg Bätzing, chairman of the German bishops’ conference, meets with Pope Francis at the Vatican, June 24, 2021.

German bishops’ president rebukes Pope Francis for criticism of Synodal Way 

Jan 30, 2023

By AC Wimmer

Bishop Georg Bätzing says the Germans have “fundamentally different views of synodality” than Rome.  Read more

Bishop Georg Bätzing, president of the German bishops’ conference in St. Peter’s Square, June 27, 2020.

German bishop dismisses Vatican concerns over a permanent synodal council

Jan 23, 2023

By AC Wimmer

On Monday, Bishop Georg Bätzing said he welcomed a new letter from the Vatican detailing concerns about the push for... Read more

Facing the German bishops in Rome, Nov. 18, 2022: Cardinal Luis Ladaria Ferrer, SJ, prefect of the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith; Cardinal Pietro Parolin, secretary of state; and Cardinal Marc Ouellet, PSS, prefect of the Dicastery of Bishops (from left).

Did the Vatican ‘snub’ German bishops over Synodal Way?

Nov 21, 2022

By AC Wimmer

Bishop Georg Bätzing said supporters of the Synodal Way wanted to remain Catholic, “but we want to be Catholic in... Read more

Cardinal Reinhard Marx and fellow bishops from Germany meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican, Nov. 17, 2022

German bishops meet with Pope Francis at the Vatican amid concern over Synodal Way

Nov 17, 2022

By AC Wimmer

The audience with Pope Francis lasted about two hours, the German Bishops’ Conference said in a statement published after the... Read more

The visit of the German bishops to Rome in November 2022 began with a Holy Mass in the grottoes of St. Peter's Basilica.

‘Truly not an easy task’: German bishops begin talks in Rome amid Synodal Way concerns

Nov 14, 2022

By AC Wimmer

Bishop Georg Bätzing said the German bishops would “openly and honestly address” the topics of the process during their ad... Read more

Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, in Rome on Oct. 23, 2019. Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA.

Vatican cardinal says he did not compare German Synodal Way to Nazi ideology

Sep 29, 2022

By AC Wimmer

A Vatican cardinal has defended himself against the accusation by the president of the German bishops’ conference, Bishop Georg Bätzing,... Read more

Bishop Georg Bätzing

Religion is ‘interruption,’ not continuity, German bishops’ president says

Sep 27, 2022

By AC Wimmer

Bishop Georg Bätzing spoke in a live-streamed Mass on Tuesday on the occasion of the bishops’ plenary assembly in Dulda,... Read more

The 2021 March for Life in Berlin, Germany.

Majority of German Catholics don't like Church being against abortion, poll finds

Aug 11, 2022

By AC Wimmer

According to a new representative poll, 58% of German Catholics do not like "the fact that the Pope and the... Read more

The third Synodal Assembly of the ‘Synodal Way’ in Frankfurt, Germany, on Feb. 4, 2022.

Cost of Germany’s ‘Synodal Way’ remains a mystery

May 9, 2022

By CNA Staff

A spokesman declined to give a breakdown of the costs of the multi-year project. Read more

Archbishop Samuel Aquila (L) delivers brief remarks during the funeral Mass for Boulder police officer Eric Talley on March 29, 2021, in Denver, Colorado.

Archbishop Aquila: My letter on ‘Synodal Way’ is a call to conversion, not division

May 28, 2021

Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver expounded on his recent open letter on the German bishops’ “Synodal Way,” in an interview... Read more

Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg.

German bishops’ leader: Day of same-sex blessings not ‘helpful’

Apr 29, 2021

A nationwide event in defiance of the Vatican’s “no” to blessings for same-sex couples will take place on May 10. Read more

Cardinal Beniamino Stella, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, pictured Oct. 24, 2019.

Vatican to discuss parish instructions with German bishops, not Synodal Way committee

Oct 26, 2020

By Courtney Mares

The Vatican has told the German Bishops’ Conference that a forthcoming meeting in Rome to discuss Germans’ concerns about the... Read more

Bishop Dominikus Schwaderlapp.

German bishop quits synodal forum endorsing 'polyvalent sexuality'

May 28, 2020

An auxiliary bishop of the German archdiocese of Cologne has announced he is no longer participating in the "Synodal Forum"... Read more

Bishop Georg Bätzing. Courtesy: Diocese of Limburg

New president of German bishops says he is following the 'big footsteps' of Cardinal Marx

Mar 7, 2020

The new president of the German bishops’ conference has emphasized his support for the ongoing synodal process of German bishops... Read more

Pope Francis received Cardinal Reinhard Marx, Archbishop of Munich and Freising, in a private audience at the Vatican on May 27, 2019.

Analysis: Pope Francis and the Germans

Jan 31, 2020

By Ed Condon

Whether he turns his attention to the furthest corner of the Amazon, or to reforming his own curia in Rome,... Read more

Cardinal Reinhard Marx at the German Bishops' Press Conference at the Pontifical Teutonic College on October 5, 2015.

German bishops' news agency launches English edition

Jan 10, 2020

A news agency owned by the Catholic Church in Germany has launched an English language service, which it says will... Read more

Cardinal Reinhard Marx, chairman of the German Bishops' Conference, during a press conference in Rome, 24 Feb, 2019.

After Cardinal Marx visits Vatican, Germany's 'synodal way' up for bishops' vote

Sep 23, 2019

By Ed Condon

The German bishops are set this week to vote upon statutes for a “binding synodal process,” days after Cardinal Reinhard... Read more

Cardinal Reinhard Marx at the Vatican Press Office on Oct. 17, 2014.

Marx says German 'synod' will proceed despite Vatican objections

Sep 16, 2019

By Ed Condon

Cardinal Marx has informed the Vatican that the German synodal process will continue as planned, despite recent instructions from the curia... Read more

Pope Francis meets with German bishops during their ad limina visit Nov. 20, 2015.

Pope Francis tells German Catholics to focus on evangelization

Jun 29, 2019

By Courtney Mares

Pope Francis sent a 28-page letter to Catholics in Germany Saturday calling for a focus on evangelization in the face... Read more