On this past March 10, just three days before the tenth anniversary of Pope Francis' election to the Cathedra Petri, the Catholic Church in Germany voted to approve ritual blessings of same-sex unions.
As the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, better known as the Synod on Synodality, heads for its final stage, the German Church concluded its controversial "Synodal Path" with votes over items to be included in its report to the Vatican. Among these many controversial, borderline (at best) schismatic proposals, was their vote to approve a rite for blessing homosexual unions. This is not the same as a proposal to extend the sacrament of marriage to homosexual couples, which the Universal Church has repeatedly taught and reiterated that it has no authority to do. However, it is a thinly-veiled attempt on the part of the German Bishops Conference to confuse the Church's teaching on moral issues and to work at a slow departure from Catholic doctrine.
Over two-thirds of the Bishops present at the assembly voted in favour of the proposal, which the Vatican's Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith explicitly denounced as impossible. Having obstinately ignored the direct ruling of the Church makes it very possible that the Germans have committed schism, but a ruling on this must be promulgated from Rome for any canonical measures to be taken. If such a ruling was made, this would create a massive legal battle in German because of the Reichskonkordat treaty, which was signed in 1933 and still remains in effect.
The Reichskonkordat makes things legally tricky because it guarantees the rights of the Vatican over the Catholic Church in Germany. In short, if a German bishop was declared a schismatic by Rome, the German government would enforce the Church's ruling and he legally could not exercise his episcopal office. However, the bishop could appeal this decision to civil authorities, and so the Vatican would have to argue its case in the German courts. Suffice it to say that canonical penalties removing a German bishop from office would create quite the kerfuffle for the Vatican.
Whatever happens next, one thing is certain: Pope Francis has the divine right and moral duty and obligation to punish the German Church, even if it means declaring them schismatics and forcing the Church to lawyer-up. This is not a small matter which the Church can simply ignore. The German bishops are officially rebuking the diktat of Rome and thereby casting off from itself the yoke of Christ. It desires to go its own way, regardless of what the Supreme Pontiff says. It is not the Pope's right to protect the faith, nor is it his privilege or at his discretion. It is his sacred duty to defend the Depositum Fidei. If he does not do this, the purpose of his Office disappears, and the papacy is reduced to an ineffective ecclesial bureaucrat.
It may be true that declaring the German bishops schismatics might make things complicated. However, allowing the German bishops to blatantly defy the Church and "bless sin," as the Vatican has called it, not only makes things infinitely more complicated in the long run, but it leads souls to Hell. If the Pope wanted to avoid this complicated situation, he should have been more proactive in avoiding it in the first place. Now, the time for harsh words given in media interviews is over. It is now time to act.
Pope Francis must take canonical action against the German bishops. Whether this means declaring a schism, excommunicating the bishop in question, or putting Germany under an interdict (which would essentially remove faculties from the majority, if not all, of the clergy in Germany), is for higher authorities to decide. However, one does not need a degree in canon law to know apostasy when he sees it, and it would be a sin against charity to not call sinners to conversion and boldly proclaim the Gospel.
If the Pope remained silent on this, he would not be acting worthy of his Petrine office. Let us pray that the Pope has the faith, fortitude, and charity to act as a stern but loving father would.
Picture in preview: CNS photo/Julia Steinbrecht, KNA
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