WHILE CARDINALS ROCHE AND CUPICH MAKE SILLY INANE COMMENTS ABOUT HOW THE TLM IS A THREAT TO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH’S UNITY, A TRUE HERO OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, CARDINAL RAINER MARIA WOELKI MAKES CLEAR WHAT THE TRUE HERETICAL/SCHISMATIC THREAT TO THE CHURCH IS AND IT ISN’T THE TLM!

 FROM ZENIT NEWS:

We cannot vote on the Resurrection”: Cardinal of Cologne absent from German Synodal Path meeting and considers it over The German Synodal Path has become a test case for how far local churches can go before they collide with the apostolic structure of Catholicism itself. For the Cardinal of Cologne, the line has already been crossed 

 (ZENIT News / Cologne, 01.29.2026).- As Germany’s Synodal Path convenes its sixth and final assembly in Stuttgart on January 29, 2026, one of the country’s most prominent cardinals is notably absent. Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne has chosen not to attend. His reason is blunt: for him, the Synodal Path is over. “I took part in all five agreed assemblies,” Woelki said in a recent interview with Domradio. “But for me, this process has reached its end.” 

His decision marks more than a personal withdrawal. It highlights the deep theological and ecclesiological fault lines running through the German Church — divisions that Rome has repeatedly warned could lead to rupture. Launched in December 2019 by the German Bishops’ Conference and the Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK), the Synodal Path was presented as a reform process in response to the sexual abuse crisis. 

Over time, however, it evolved into a forum advancing proposals that directly challenge settled Catholic doctrine: calls for women deacons, blessings of same-sex unions, revisions to moral teaching on homosexuality, and even the acceptance of “transgender” priests. In 2023, more than two-thirds of Germany’s bishops joined overwhelming majorities in approving several of these texts. Woelki belonged to the minority who opposed them. Yet his critique goes deeper than individual documents. At stake, he argues, is the very nature of the Church. 

“The problem for me is how this Synodal Path has been structured,” he explained. “Synodality has not been practiced in the sense Pope Francis — and now Pope Leo XIV — have repeatedly described it: as a spiritual process, ordered toward evangelization.” For Woelki, synodality is not parliamentary procedure. It is not majority rule. And it is certainly not a mechanism for rewriting doctrine. “We cannot vote on whether Jesus rose from the dead,” he said, offering a deliberately stark example. “At some point, the process became focused on implementing particular political and ecclesial positions.” 

Both Pope Francis and his successor, Leo XIV, have insisted that synodality is meant to foster listening, discernment, and missionary renewal — not doctrinal experimentation. Without evangelization at its core, Woelki argues, synodality loses its meaning entirely. Central to his concern is the proposal — backed by a majority of German bishops and the ZdK — to establish a permanent Synodal Council. This body would give lay representatives decision-making authority alongside bishops, effectively placing 27 diocesan bishops, 27 ZdK members, and another 27 delegates on equal footing. Woelki finds this incompatible with Catholic ecclesiology.

 “As Catholics, we live in a hierarchical and sacramental Church,” he said. “This is not merely an organizational question. It belongs to the essence of the Church.” In Catholic teaching, the bishop holds ultimate responsibility for his diocese, a mandate Woelki stresses comes from Christ himself. While he strongly supports lay participation and values their contributions, he draws a clear distinction between consultation and governance. “Listening to one another is essential,” he said. “But above all, we must listen together to what the Holy Spirit is saying. 

The responsibility to decide, however, belongs to those who have received that charge.” For Woelki, this is not theoretical. It is personal. “I am responsible for my ordination vows,” he said. “I promised to protect the faith of the Church and to walk the path of my diocese in unity with the Pope. I intend to keep that promise.” That sense of accountability explains his refusal to join a body he believes blurs the lines of authority and risks introducing what he calls a “new ecclesiology and a new anthropology” no longer aligned with the universal Church. The Holy See shares these concerns, warning that a Synodal Council granting lay bodies authority reserved to bishops could provoke schism across large parts of German Catholicism. Woelki is careful not to question the goodwill of his brother bishops. He acknowledges that all involved desire what is best for the Church. Still, he describes the current polarization within the German episcopate as deeply troubling.

 “Our common ground must remain the faith and teaching of the Church, unity with the Pope, and the ecclesiology of Vatican II,” he said. The cardinal also lamented what he sees as a glaring omission in the Synodal Path’s agenda: evangelization. Pope Francis emphasized this priority in his 2019 letter to the “Pilgrim People of God in Germany,” yet Woelki says it was largely sidelined during the assemblies. 

That absence, he believes, reveals the deeper imbalance of the process. Beyond ecclesial debates, Woelki also reflected on the broader global climate. In a world increasingly shaped by power politics, he warned, societies risk losing their moral compass. “Where force replaces law, dignity is violated and human rights are ignored,” he said. The antidote, in his view, lies in rebuilding shared values: dialogue over violence, protection of the vulnerable, solidarity, trust, and justice. 

As Rome continues to monitor developments in Germany — and as Pope Leo XIV begins to define his own approach to synodality — Woelki’s stand underscores a reality many prefer to avoid: the German Synodal Path has become a test case for how far local churches can go before they collide with the apostolic structure of Catholicism itself. For the Cardinal of Cologne, the line has already been crossed. His refusal to participate in Stuttgart is not a gesture of protest, he insists, but an act of fidelity — to his priestly vows, to the universal Church, and to a vision of synodality rooted not in ballots, but in discernment under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. 

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“We cannot vote on the Resurrection”: Cardinal of Cologne absent from German Synodal Path meeting and considers it over | ZENIT - English