Pope Francis declines resignation of German Catholic archbishop

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CNA Staff, Sep 4, 2020 / 03:00 am (CNA).- Catholic bishops across Europe have expressed support for an archbishop who was refused entry to his homeland of Belarus. 

In a Sept. 3 statement, the presidency of the Council of Bishops’ Conferences of Europe (CCEE) said it hoped that Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz would be allowed to return home immediately.

“While ensuring their own prayers for the beloved pastor and for the whole Belarusian community, they hope for an immediate return home for the Archbishop of Minsk and a resumption of his episcopal ministry,” the statement on behalf of bishops from 45 European countries said.

The archbishop of Minsk-Mohilev was turned back by border guards when he attempted to return to Belarus Aug. 31 following a trip to Poland. He told CNA Sept. 1 that he was “very much surprised” and had demanded an official explanation. 

The incident occurred amid ongoing demonstrations in Belarus following a disputed presidential election Aug. 9. The incumbent, Alexander Lukashenko, claimed victory with 80% of the vote. His challenger, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, was detained after she complained to the electoral committee, then fled to Lithuania. 

The decision to stop Kondrusiewicz, a Belarusian citizen, from returning home has provoked international concern. Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, urged the Belarusian authorities Sept. 1 to readmit Kondrusiewicz to the country.

Belarusian authorities should allow the re-entry of Archbishop Kondrusiewicz, so he can tend to his flock during the ongoing protests. He and all Belarusian people must be allowed to exercise their fundamental freedoms, including freedom to worship. https://t.co/S5Gyiq7SdB

— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) September 1, 2020

The archbishop had spoken out in defense of protesters following the election. 

He demanded an investigation last week into reports that riot police blocked the doors of a Catholic church in Minsk while clearing away protesters from a nearby square.

He prayed outside of a prison Aug. 19 where detained protesters were reported to have been tortured.

Kondrusiewicz met with Interior Minister Yuri Karaev Aug. 21 to express his concerns about the government’s heavy-handed response to the protests.

He told CNA that he feared the country was heading towards civil war.

“The situation is very, very difficult, very critical,” he said.

Catholics in Belarus will hold a day of prayer Sept. 7 for the archbishop’s swift return to the country.

The CCEE statement was issued by its secretariat in St. Gallen, Switzerland. The organization, which was officially established in 1971, has 39 members, comprising 33 bishops’ conferences, the Archbishops of Luxembourg, the Principality of Monaco, the Maronite archbishop of Cyprus, the bishop of Chişinău, Moldova, the eparchial bishop of Mukachevo, and the apostolic administrator of Estonia.

The group’s statement said: “The CCEE Presidency expresses the closeness of the entire European Episcopate to Msgr. Kondrusiewicz and to the Church in Belarus in this delicate matter and makes their own the appeal of Pope Francis ‘to dialogue, the rejection of violence and respect for justice and law.’ And, together with the Pope, entrust ‘all Belarusians to the protection of Our Lady, Queen of Peace.’”

The CCEE concluded by saying that Europe’s bishops “encourage everyone to commit themselves to peacefully resolve the conflict and to pursue, with confidence, the path of dialogue for the good of man and of society as a whole.”

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Würzburg, Germany, Jul 6, 2018 / 09:58 am (CNA).- The Bishop of Würzburg issued an open invitation to all Protestant spouses of Catholics to receive the Eucharist on July 5 and 6 while attending Masses celebrated for married couples at the Cathedral of St. Kilian.

Referring to inter-denominational marriages as “denomination-uniting,” a press release published by the diocese says that Würzburg Bishop Franz Jung “especially invited” couples in which one spouse is Protestant to receive the Eucharist in his sermon on July 5.

Jubilee Masses are usually celebrated for couples who have been married for 25, 50 years or longer.

In May, the Vatican rejected a set of norms proposed by the German bishops’ conference on the question of intercommunion. Those norms were subsequently published by the conference as “guidance.”

Bishop Jung announced July 5 that he would discuss in detail the “recommendations made by the German bishops’ conference with his diocesan councils.”

“Today however, on the day of jubilees, I would like to express an invitation to receive the Eucharist to all denomination-uniting marriages in which the two partners have been faithful to one another for such a long time,” Jung continued.  

The 51-year-old Jung was installed as Bishop of the Bavarian diocese of Würzburg in June 2018. He is the fifth German bishop to announce an implementation of the bishops’ “orientation document” thus far.

While that document does not universally allow for Protestant spouses of Catholics to receive the Eucharist, it does allows the practice “under specific circumstances” and “in individual cases.”

The Code of Canon Law permits baptized Protestants to receive the sacraments of penance, Eucharist, and anointing in “danger of death,” or in another circumstance of “grave necessity,” determined by a diocesan bishop or bishops’ conference. However, the Church’s law requires that those receiving them “manifest Catholic faith in respect to these sacraments and are properly disposed.”

The other bishops to announce an “implementation plan” of the German bishops’ guidelines are Archbishop Hans-Josef Becker of Paderborn, who introduced the change with immediate effect on Sunday, July 1st, as did Archbishop Stefan Heße of Hamburg a few days later. Archbishop Ludwig Schick of Bamberg has also followed suit, describing certain requirements in addition to the document. Meanwhile Bishops Gerhard Feige of Magdeburg and Franz-Josef Bode of Osnabrück have declared their intentions but have not implemented the move just yet.

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