Synod: the German reform

We should not reduce the result of the German synod to a better reception of homosexual couples by the Church, because the process launched by our neighbors goes much further: they have succeeded, in three years, in conducting a profound debate around what may or may not evolve in their way of announcing the Gospel. Driven by a catastrophic internal situation (loss of confidence following sexual abuse), German Catholics indeed felt that they had to respond to the demands of the men of that time. As Cardinal Marx analyzed it, “we have to promote a morality useful to life, which places God’s love for men at the height of the present world”, and this is how we must understand the possibility blessing of same-sex couples.

The Germans have taken the risk of the debate, reminding us that it is a tradition which irrigates the Church from the beginning, it is enough to read the Acts of the Apostles. They didn’t always avoid falling into political clashes (progressive/conservative), but in the end they got a strong consensus. However, they raise the question of the unity of Catholicism: how far can they go alone? The German Church realized that its approach could irritate even the pope, by this way of seeming to hold the truth. What is good for Germany is not necessarily so for others. The conclusions of the synod, voted on Saturday with a broad consensus, are ultimately cautious. They refer the doctrinal questions (female diaconate, celibacy of priests) to Rome, wishing that these points be examined. A challenge posed to Pope Francis, who has always wanted to encourage local initiatives, but whose mission is precisely to preserve the unity of the universal Church.

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