The Catholic Church in Germany has published instructions for the blessing of remarried and homosexual couples. According to the authors, this is in the spirit of the late Pope. Nevertheless, there is criticism.
Germany now has rules on how remarried divorcees and homosexuals can be blessed in church. As announced by the German Bishops’ Conference and the Central Committee of German Catholics on Wednesday, the joint conference consisting of bishops and ZdK representatives has now adopted a handout for pastors. The blessings are to be understood as an offer for “divorced and remarried couples, couples of all gender identities and sexual orientations as well as couples who do not want to or cannot receive the sacrament of marriage for other reasons”.
The handout is seen as the result of the reform dialogue of the Church in Germany, the Synodal Path, it said. After the Vatican relaxed the ban on blessing homosexual relationships in December 2023, these changes were also incorporated. The guidelines that have now been published follow the “pastoral approach of Pope Francis’ pontificate”. The Joint Conference also adopted a handout on the respectful treatment of priests who leave the ministry due to a partnership.
Reform group laments shortcomings
Criticism came from the Catholic reform initiative “Out in church”. It criticised the fact that there was no binding textbook for the liturgical organisation of blessings. However, this had been expressly demanded at the time of the Synodal Path. However, gay and lesbian couples, for example, continue to be discriminated against. “Even if a blessing is made possible in principle, it remains a second-class blessing.” It is to be hoped that the handout now presented will develop its own momentum, “which ultimately makes it clear that the traditional doctrine is no longer accepted and must be changed”.
As part of the “Out in church” initiative, around 125 employees and members of the Catholic Church publicly came out as queer, i.e. homosexual or transgender, in January 2022.
