The German Catholic association Pro Fide Ecclesiae is holding the second day of its protest this Wednesday, September 30, in Fulda in front of the autumn plenary assembly of the German Bishops’ Conference (DBK). The movement is calling on the bishops who support the Synodal Way to back down and «bury plans for a fully democratized Church.»
According to Kath.net, the organization has issued an «urgent appeal» to the prelates gathered in Fulda, warning of the weakening of Catholic identity in Germany and arguing that the situation in Europe requires «a strong Catholicism.» The demonstrations were called for Tuesday, September 29, and this Wednesday, September 30, between 12:00 and 15:00.
«Jesus is not a prime minister»
The appeal directly targets the direction taken by the German Synodal Way. Pro Fide Ecclesiae is urging the bishops who support it to reverse course and abandon projects aimed at a «fully democratized» Church.
«Jesus is not a prime minister,» the association reminds them, but the «King of kings.»
The criticism touches on one of the main points of friction the German process has had with Rome: the intention to establish permanent structures of shared governance between bishops and laity, as well as proposals for changes in areas such as sexual morality and the ordained ministry.
Pro Fide Ecclesiae was founded last July precisely as a group of laity and clergy who do not feel represented by the Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK) and who seek to preserve and witness to the faith of the Church in accordance with the Magisterium. Among its promoters is Bishop Marian Eleganti, auxiliary bishop emeritus of Chur.
A call to recover Europe’s Christian roots
The manifesto places the ecclesial controversy within a broader concern for the future of Europe. The association defines the continent as «a community of destiny historically shaped» by the confluence of Greek philosophy, Roman law, and the Christian faith, and calls for it to remain united around its «traditional values.»
In this context, Pro Fide Ecclesiae attributes to the Catholic Church an essential role as «the most important actor of our Western identity.»
The organization also recalls that man was created in the image of God and defends the family constituted by a man, a woman, and their children as «the fundamental cell of society.» In contrast, it considers that the introduction of «non-Catholic» demands into ecclesial life represents «a dangerous weakening of Catholic faith life.»