'Call to Disobedience'

A Rift in the German-Speaking Catholic Church

Spiegel (Germany) 
February 20, 2012


 http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,816 528,00.html

	A call by reform-minded Catholics in the
	German-speaking world for the church to soften
	its stances on homosexuality, divorce and
	celibacy among priests and to end its ban on
	women in the clergy is drawing loud criticism
	from conservatives. They argue the group is
	threatening to create a schism within the
	Catholic Church.

With its often more progressive stances on some
controversial issues, the arm of the Catholic Church in
the German-speaking world has long posed problems for
Rome. Now a modern day schism is threatening the area's
priestly establishment. The brewing split exposes a
rift in the German speaking world between more liberal
reform minded and conservative Catholics regarding the
future of the church. The stakes are high, with the
number of men applying for the priesthood in decline as
the church loses appeal among younger generations.

The liberal Pastors' Initiative wants to reverse that
trend, which has forced parishes to close, by making
priesthood more accessible. Last June it put out a
"Call for Disobedience," calling for a rewrite of the
church's long standing views against homosexuality,
divorce and celibacy.

The group wants the priesthood to be opened up to women
and to allow priests to marry. It says that communion
should be more accessible, including to members of
other churches and to those who have divorced. They
want qualified laity to be able to give sermons and
believe that churches should have a stronger local
presence, rather than relying on sermons from traveling
"celebrity" priests. The movement has its roots in
Austria, where it counts more than 400 priests and
deacons as members. But it is gaining ground across
Europe with sympathetic clergy in France, Ireland and
other countries expressing support. The Austrian group
even has its own German Facebook page, with more than
900 likes.

'On Its Way To Building Its Own Church'

The conservative Network of Catholic Priests, founded
in Frankfurt in 2001, claims the movement is "on its
way to building its own church." The reformers are
"creating a schism in the German speaking Catholic
world, which has long since happened under the eyes of
the bishops," said a spokesperson for the network,
which represents more than 500 clergymen.

Together with priests from Germany, Austria and
Switzerland, the network is calling for Catholic
Bishops to intervene in a decisive manner. They say
that the Initiative's reform efforts are doubtful and
in direct opposition to Catholic Church doctrine. The
head of the German Bishops Conference and Freiburg's
archbishop, Robert Zollitsch, has threatened that the
actions of the reformers will have serious
consequences. "Whoever continues to take up the fight
is committing a sin against the unity of the church,"
he said.

The Catholic Church has yet to weigh in on the Austrian
rebel movement. According to the Vatican Insider, Pope
Benedict XVI, who is German, is very worried about the
growing schism and has been calling secret high level
meetings over how to handle the group.

Helmut Schuller, head of the Initiative, told the
Vienna Review that because their numbers are so high,
they aren't worried about being kicked out of the
church. The "Call to Disobedience" has been translated
into nine languages and Schuller believes that it will
gain support in much of the emerging world where the
priest shortage is even more acute. In the end, he has
said his goal isn't to create a separate church, but to
modernize the existing one.

c SPIEGEL ONLINE 2012 All Rights Reserved

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