On Monday, Jan. 24, 2022, German Catholic bishops welcomed a campaign seeking to change Church teaching on sexuality and gender identity.
Newsroom (25/01/2022 10:15 AM, Gaudium Press) A Campaign titled “#OutInChurch — For a church without fear,” launched on Jan. 24, appealed for the revision of what it described as “defamatory and outdated” expressions of Catholic doctrine.
In a seven-point list of demands, the organizers claim that “Defamatory and outdated statements of Church doctrine on sexuality and gender need to be revised on the basis of theological and human-scientific findings. This is of utmost relevance, especially in view of worldwide Church responsibility for the human rights of LGBTIQ+ persons.”
Backed publicly by 125 people, including priests, religion teachers, and Church employees, the demands also included blessings and “access to the sacraments” for same-sex couples.
The campaign — launched in Germany with a blaze of publicity on a simultaneous television program — was welcomed on behalf of the bishops’ conference by Bishop Helmut Dieser, chairman of the “Synodal Way” forum on “Living in Successful Relationships.”
Bishop Helmut Karl Dieser of Aachen, western Germany, told reporters on Jan. 24 that the Synodal Way — a multi-year process bringing together bishops and laypeople to discuss power, sexual morality, the priesthood, and the role of women in the Church — was approaching the issues raised by the initiative in “a new way.”
He said: “No one should be discriminated against, devalued, or criminalized because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Because with the Synodal Way, we learn to understand more deeply that sexual orientation and gender identity are part of the person, and we have an image of the human being that tells us that the person is absolutely loved by God, and from this, we approach the topics of sexual orientation, identity, but also sexual fulfillment in a new way.”
Archbishop Stefan Heße of Hamburg, northern Germany, also welcomed the campaign: “I have respect for the people who confess their sexual orientation in this initiative. A Church in which people have to hide because of their sexual orientation cannot, in my opinion, be in the spirit of Jesus. We are always called to authenticity and transparency before God and, of course, before each other. There must and should be no fear of this.”
He added: “This topic is also being discussed at the Synodal Way of the Catholic Church in Germany. That is where I am participating in the discussion. It should lead to a further development of the Church’s sexual morality and also of the Church’s labor law.”
The initiative is calling for an overhaul of employment laws in the Catholic Church in Germany, the country’s second-largest employer after the state.
“An open life according to one’s sexual orientation and gender identity, even in a partnership or civil marriage, must never be considered a breach of loyalty or a reason for dismissal,” reads one of the demands.
Heße’s comments were echoed by Bishop Franz-Josef Bode of Osnabrück, northwest Germany, who appreciated the campaign as “a courageous step by 125 queer employees of the Catholic Church from all over the country.”
“Under labor law, the loyalty of Church employees is closely linked to their lifestyle. Individual arrangements are possible, and these are sought sensitively and to the best of our ability in our diocese,” he said.
“But individual solutions always create uncertainties. It is urgently necessary to find reliable solutions for all sides. The Synodal Way reform process is working on this.”
He said that the topic would be discussed at the next meeting of the Synodal Assembly, the Synodal Way’s supreme decision-making body, on Feb. 3-5.
“The basic message of the Church is God’s unconditional love for all people — in their diversity and uniqueness. This must also apply to all relationships, provided they are based on love and mutual respect,” he commented.
Bishop Heinrich Timmerevers of Dresden-Meißen, eastern Germany, said that he was “very grateful” for the “impressive testimonies” gathered by the campaign.
Compiled by Saju Hasmukth
