Germany: German Church resumes synodal journey. Vote on theological introduction and preamble today

(Frankfurt) The 230 members of the synodal journey that the Catholic Church in Germany began in 2019 are resuming their meetings in Frankfurt today. The Synodal sessions, scheduled from this afternoon until Saturday, will no longer take place in the large Dominican convent hall, but in the enormous rooms of the Congress Centre. The last meeting of all the bishops, priests, men and women religious and lay men and women was in February 2020, when the pandemic made face-to-face meetings impossible. The work will begin with a report from the presidency (composed of the presidents and vice-presidents of the Bishops’ Conference and the Central Committee of German Catholics who jointly lead the synodal process). The plenary will then read and debate the first draft of the sixteen texts that have been prepared. The agenda for this afternoon includes a discussion and vote on the theological introduction and preamble (drafted by the presidency). Tomorrow morning, discussion will focus on the texts prepared by the four Forums that have advanced reflection on the issues of power structures in the Church, priestly life, the role of women, and sexual morality, despite the limitations imposed by the pandemic. The sessions are scheduled to end at 4 pm on Saturday. Both the sessions and the celebrations will be fully streamed online (in German and English) on the website https://www.synodalerweg.de/. During the three-day event, there will be regular meetings with the 110 accredited journalists and media professionals.
Valentina Bombelli