In my preceding article, I indicated that reports about the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith rejecting the German Bishops’ Conference proposal to publish guidelines for permitting non-Catholic spouses to receive Holy Communion were based upon anonymous sources.
Within hours, German Bishops’ Conference spokesman, Matthias Kopp, stated unequivocally:
“Reports that the Vatican, whether the Holy Father or dicasteries, has rejected the handout are false.”
In February, Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising announced that the German Bishops' Conference would publish a pastoral handout for married couples that allows Protestant spouses of Catholics "in individual cases" and "under certain conditions" to receive Holy Communion, provided they "affirm the Catholic faith in the Eucharist”.
The announcement concerned a draft version of the guidelines, which were adopted “after intensive debate” during a February 19-22 General Assembly of the German Bishops' Conference under the leadership of Cardinal Marx, who is the Conference Chairman.
In his statement on Thursday, Kopp said that Cardinal Marx will inform his fellow Bishops on the matter of the guidelines at a meeting on April 23. He has been invited to Rome by Pope Francis to discuss the issue. Cardinal Rainier Woelki of Cologne, who asked for clarification on the draft guidelines from the Vatican, may have been invited as well.
And so, it appears that it remains unclear whether the Vatican has asked the Bishops' Conference to modify the contents of the draft guidelines, whether they have suspended the development of a draft while the matter is considered further, or whether it has been entirely rejected.
I shall continue to follow this story and offer reports and commentary regarding the German Bishops proposal and the Holy See’s response to it.
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