Pope Francis has written a letter to four German lay Catholic women expressing his "concerns" regarding the direction of the Catholic Church in Germany.
Here is the full translation of the German letter, signed by the Pope on November 10 and first published by the German newspaper Welt on November 21:
From the Vatican, November 10, 2023
Dear Professor Westerhorstmann,
Dear Professor Schlosser,
Dear Professor Gerl-Falkovitz,
Dear Mrs. Schmidt,
I express my gratitude for your kind letter dated November 6. Your concerns regarding current developments within the Church in Germany have reached me, and I share your worries. Indeed, there are many initiatives taken by significant segments of this local Church that risk distancing it more and more from the common path of the universal Church.
This undoubtedly includes the creation of the synodal committee you mentioned. This committee aims to establish a consultative and decision-making body. However, as stipulated by the corresponding resolution, its proposed structure is not in accordance with the sacramental structure of the Catholic Church. Consequently, its formation was prohibited by the Holy See in a letter dated January 16, 2023, a letter which received my specific approval.
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In my "Letter to the Pilgrim People of God in Germany," I did not seek to find "salvation" in ever-evolving committees, nor to persist in self-centered dialogues rehashing the same themes. Instead, I sought to reaffirm the importance of prayer, penance, and worship.
I encouraged an openness and a call to action to engage with our brothers and sisters, especially those found at the doors of our churches, in the streets, in prisons, hospitals, public squares, and cities (as mentioned in section 8). I firmly believe that it is there the Lord will guide us.
I salute your contributions to theology and philosophy and I thank you for your witness of faith. May the Lord bless you and may the Virgin Mary keep you. I earnestly ask you to continue praying for me and for our common commitment to unity.
United in the Lord,
Francis