By Francis X. Maier, The Catholic Thing, April 12, 2022
Francis X. Maier is a senior fellow in Catholic studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and the 2020-22 senior research associate at the Notre Dame Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government.
In a time of unrest and confusion, well-intended efforts at decentralizing any community or organization can have unwelcome consequences. The Church is not immune to this simple fact. Catholics in Germany seem determined to prove the point.
In late-March remarks to the German magazine Stern, Munich’s Cardinal Reinhard Marx appeared to encourage a change in Church teaching on homosexuality. Acknowledging that he had previously blessed same-sex couples, Marx noted that “the catechism is not set in stone.” He added that, “For years I have felt freer to say what I think, and I want to take Church teaching forward.” …