Gerhard Cardinal Mueller

Home , Dogmatic theology, Friedrich Wetter, Hermann Volk, Joachim Meisner, Karl Lehmann, Regensburger Domspatzen

MÜLLER, Card. Gerhard Ludwig

Country: Germany

Residence: Rome, Italy

DOB: Dec. 31, 1947

Created by: Pope Francis, February 2014

Consecrated by: Friedrich Wetter, 24 November 2002

Ordained by: Hermann Volk, 11 February 1978

Degree: Ph.D

Expertise/experience: Theological Patronage and Associations:

Episcopal Motto: Dominus Jesus: • Pope Benedict XVI “Lord Jesus” • Fr. Gustavo Gutiérrez

Current positions: • Cardinal Deacon of Sant' Agnese in Agone (Since 2014)

• Grandprior of the Church Council for the Sacred and Military Constantinian Order of Saint George

Notable Previous Positions:

• Bishop of Regensburg (2002-2012)

• Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (2012-2017) https://betterchurchgovernance.org/

Table of Contents I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4 II. BIOGRAPHY 6 A. TIMELINE 6 Birth-1980 6 1981-2000 6 2001-2010 6 2011-2020 7 III. BACKGROUND 8 A. INTELLECTUAL BACKGROUND 9 Education/Academia 9 Select Bibliography 9 B. FINANCIAL/ADMINISTRATIVE BACKGROUND 9 Assignments 9 Other Boards/Committees 10 Membership of Vatican Congregations 11 C. ASSOCIATION AND PATRONAGE 13 Bp. Johannes Joachim Degenhardt Error! Bookmark not defined. Bp. Stephen Ackermann 14 Bp. Georg Bätzing 14 IV. CHURCH GOVERNANCE 16 A. HANDLING OF ISSUES/CASES OF SEXUAL ABUSE 16 B. THWARTING PROCEDURES/LAWS DESIGNED TO LIMIT SEXUAL ABUSE 18 Christian Pfeiffer 18 C. HANDLING OF FINANCIAL/LEGAL INCIDENTS 20 Church Tax: Germany 20 The Becciu/Pell Dispute Regarding Irregular Loans. Error! Bookmark not defined. Residence: Munich Error! Bookmark not defined. Guest House: Rome Error! Bookmark not defined. D. THWARTING ANTI-CORRUPTION PROCEDURES/LAWS ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. E. POSITIVE EVIDENCE OF OPPOSING CORRUPTION/ABUSE 21

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Vatican Abuse Summit: Vatican City Error! Bookmark not defined. Westphal Spilker Wastl Study: Munich Error! Bookmark not defined. F. THWARTING PROCEDURES/LAWS DESIGNED TO LIMIT ABUSE/CORRUPTION ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED. G. TRANSPARENCY 21 Media Transparency 21 Transparency of Governance 22 Financial Transparency 22 Transparency in Handling of Sexual Abuse Cases 22 V. CONTROVERSIES, TEACHINGS, AND PRIORITIES 23 A. TEACHING CONTROVERSIES AND DISPUTES 23 Amoris Laetitia and the Dubia 23 B. PASTORAL/THEOLOGICAL PRIORITIES 23 On Church Governance and Reform 24 Moral Teachings: Marriage, Family, and Sexuality 26 Moral Teachings: Abortion and the Death Penalty 26 Pastoral/Political Teachings: Gun Control, The Environment, Immigration 27 C: OTHER THEOLOGICAL ISSUES 28 VI. APPENDICES 29 APPENDIX I: LUKE HANSEN, S.J. INTERVIEW 29

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I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Background Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig was born on 31 December 1947 in Finden, a suburb of Mainz. He then studied under Karl Lehman for his doctorate in Theology, which he received in 1977. He then served in theological capacities across the Church before becoming Bishop of Regensburg in 2002. Müller’s episcopate was marked by reforms and struggles with several lay organizations such as Wir Sind Kirche and the Zentralkomitee der Deutschen Katholiken (ZdK). He resigned from his Seat in 2012 to become the Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith under Pope Benedict XVI. He performed this duty for one term of five years before he was released rather abruptly under Pope Francis.

Association and Patronage Cardinal Müller has been closely associated with Pope Benedict XVI, receiving most of his major positions from him. Müller also took the motto “Dominus Jesus” “Lord Jesus” when he became a bishop. Dominus Jesus was the title of one of Pope Benedict XVI’s most important and controversial documents when he was Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Cardinal Müller has also been closely associated with Fr. Gustavo Gutiérrez, the father of liberation theology. Liberation theology is a very controversial tradition of theology due to its Marxist ties. Cardinal Müller even wrote a book with Fr. Gutiérrez on liberation theology, titled On the Side of the Poor: The Theology of Liberation.

Issues of Sexual Abuse Cardinal Müller has had several issues of sexual abuse during his time as Bishop of Regensburg. Peter Kramer, a pedophile priest who had been arrested in 2000, was reinstated by Müller in 2004 in a different parish. Kramer then proceeded to continue his molestation and was arrested again in 2007. The other major case is that of the Regensburg Choir School, which had more than 600 cases of physical or sexual abuse. Müller was criticized for his failure to respond effectively to the situation.

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Financial/Legal Issues Cardinal Müller, like all the bishops in Germany, is involved in the decree which bans the laity from most sacraments unless they are registered with the government and pay the Church Tax.

Transparency Cardinal Müller did not implement any procedures to improve clarity and he has been accused of hindering clarity during the 2013 sexual abuse study.

Theological Priorities and Initiatives Cardinal Müller is a longtime supporter of his friend Fr. Gustavo Gutiérrez who is the founder of the liberation theology movement as stated above. Cardinal Müller also has been a proponent of orthodox practices and teaching within the German Bishops’ Conference, reinstating ancient traditions, such as the Pfingstritt Eucharistic procession in Germany, and attempting to clarify matters of doctrine, such as his Glaubensmanifest or Manifesto of Faith. By all the evidence he is a sophisticated theologian, who is deeply engaged with both progressive and traditional branches of Catholic theology.

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II. Biography

A. Timeline

Birth-1980 Dec. 31, 1947: “[B]orn … in Finthen, a suburb of Mainz”1

1977: Earned his doctorate in theology under Prof. Karl Lehmann2

Feb. 27, 1978: “[H]e was ordained as a priest in Mainz-Finthen by Cardinal [Hermann] Volk.”3

1978: Installed as Pastor in Klein-Krotzenburg4

1979: Installed as Pastor in Bürstadt-St. Michael

1981-2000 1982: Tenure as pastor in Bürstadt-St. Michael ends, begins serving as secondary school teacher in Büdingen and Nidda5

1986: “[T]ook up the Chair of Dogmatic theology at the Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich”6

1990: Appointed “member of the Commission for Doctrine and Faith of the German Bishops’ Conference”7

1998: Appointed “member of the International Theological Commission”8

1999: “[A]ppointed as peritus (theological consultant) to the Vatican’s Synod of European Bishops”9

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2001-2010 2001: Appointed “theological consultant to the International Bishops’ Synod in Rome on the subject of ‘The Bishop as Servant of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for World Hope.’”10

Oct. 1, 2002: Nominated Bishop of Regensburg by John Paul II11

Nov. 24, 2002: Consecrated Bishop of Regensburg by Abp Friedrich Wetter12

2004: Then-Bp Müller assigned convicted pedophile Peter Kramer a new parish13

May 30, 2004: Reestablished the 600 year old Kötztinger Pfingstritt as a Eucharistic procession14

2007: Müller founds the Benedict XVI Institute15

2007: Fr. Peter Kramer is arrested and convicted on charges of child molestation16

Jul. 24, 2007: Awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Lima in Peru17

Dec. 20, 2007: Named a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith by Benedict XVI18

2007: “[F]ounded the Pope Benedict XVI Institute in Regensburg”19

Jan. 17, 2009: Nominated to the Pontifical Council on Culture20

2007: Fr. Peter Kramer is arrested and convicted on charges of child molestation21

Jul 24, 2007: Awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Lima in Peru22

2007-12-20: Named a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith by Benedict XVI23

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2011-2020 2012-6-12: Nominated by Pope Benedict XVI to the Congregation for Catholic Education and the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity.24

2012-7-2: “Pope Benedict [XVI] … nominated him Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and President of the Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei”, the International Theological Commission and the Pontifical Biblical Commission, raising him to the dignity of Archbishop.”25

2012-7-29: Müller became a member of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts26

2013-9-23: Pope Francis confirmed him as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.27

2014: Nominated by Pope Francis to the Congregation for the Eastern Churches, the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life and the Pontifical Council for Culture.

2014: Nominations to the Congregation for Catholic Education and the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity were reconfirmed by Pope Francis.28

2014-2-22: Named Cardinal Deacon of the Church of Sant’Agnese in Agone in Rome by Pope Francis.29

2017-07-01: Müller’s tenure as prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith ends.30

2017-07-18: The study commissioned by the Diocese of Regensburg on the abuse at the Regensburger Domspatzen is released31

2019-02-08: Muller publishes his Manifesto of Faith32

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III. Background

A. Intellectual Background

Education/Academia 1977: Doctorate in Theology

“[Müller] earned his doctorate in … under Professor, later Cardinal, Karl Lehmann on the subject of ‘The Church and Sacraments in Religionless Christendom. Bonhoeffer’s Contribution to an Ecumenical Sacramental Theology’ (‘Kirche und Sakramente im religionslosen Christentum. Bonhoeffers Beitrag zu einer ökumenischen Sakramententheologie’).”33

Select Bibliography

B. Financial/Administrative Background

Assignments Klein-Krotzenburg 1978-197934

Bürstadt-St. Michael35 begun 1979

Offenbach-St. Joseph - ended 198236

Religious education teacher at secondary schools in Büdingen and Nidda until 198637

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Other Boards/Committees Congregation for Catholic Education 201238-2017

“The competence of the Congregation for Catholic Education covers two sectors: a) all the Universities, Faculties, Institutes and Higher Institutions of ecclesiastical or civil studies that are dependent on ecclesiastical juridical persons, physical or moral, as well as on the Catholic Institutions and Associations having scientific purposes; b) all the Schools, and pre-university learning and educational Institutions of any order and grade, which are dependent on the Ecclesiastical Authority, and are directed toward the formation of young laity, excluding those Institutions dependent on the Congregations for the Oriental Churches and for the Evangelization of Peoples.”39

Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity 201240

“The Pontifical Council is active in all areas that can contribute to promoting Christian unity by strengthening relationships with other Churches and Ecclesial Communities. It organizes and oversees dialogue and collaboration with the other Churches and World Communions. Since its creation, it has also cooperated closely with the World Council of Churches (WCC) based in Geneva. From 1968, Catholic theologians have been full members of the ‘Faith and Order’ Commission, the theological department of the WCC.

Similarly, it is the task of the PCPCU to name Catholic observers at various ecumenical gatherings and in turn to invite observers or ‘fraternal delegates’ of other Churches or Ecclesial Communities to major events of the Catholic Church.”41

Prefect Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 2012-201742

“The Congregation comprises four Offices:

The Doctrinal Office takes care of the matters that relate to the promotion of the doctrine of the faith and morals.

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The Discipline Office handles the offenses against the faith as well as the grave offenses committed against morals and in the celebration of the sacraments. It attends also to the examination of other problems connected with the discipline of the faith.

The Marriage Office deals with what concerns the privilegium fidei. It involves itself in the instances of the dissolution of the marriage in favorem fidei and of other aspects of the matrimonial bond connected to the validity of the sacrament.

The Office of the Fourth Section deals with the previous areas of competence of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, namely the relations with all the Institutes attached to the celebration of the Roman Liturgy according to the usus antiquior (forma extraordinaria).

At the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith are constituted also the Pontifical Biblical Commission and the International Theological Commission, which, under the presidency of the Prefect, work according to the proper norms. The Congregation also has its Historical Archives, following their own Norms, to which only qualified scholars are given access.”43

President of the Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei” 201244

“The Pontifical Commission exercises the authority of the Holy See over various institutes and religious communities which it has erected which have as their ‘proper Rite’ the ‘extraordinary form’ of the Roman Rite and observe the previous traditions of the religious life.”

Congregation for Catholic Education 201245-2017

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ which are dependent on the Ecclesiastical Authority, and are directed toward the formation of young laity, excluding those Institutions dependent on the Congregations for the Oriental Churches and for the Evangelization of Peoples.”46

Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity 201247

Prefect Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 2012-201749

“The Congregation comprises four Offices:

The Doctrinal Office takes care of the matters that relate to the promotion of the doctrine of the faith and morals.

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President of the Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei” 201251

C. Association and Patronage

Pope Benedict XVI Benedict XVI has long been a patron of Cardinal Müller. Pope Benedict XVI placed Muller in many of his most important positions, including Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Müller even chose the episcopal motto Dominus Iesus which is the title of Pope Benedict XVI’s most important and most controversial document from when he was the Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Müller was also entrusted with editing Pope Benedict XVI’s complete works, for which purpose he founded the Pope Benedict XVI Institute in 2007.52 The first volume of this collection was published with Pope Benedict XVI’s approval in 2008.53 In 2011, Müller complied with Benedict XVI’s instructions to sever all ties with the Donum Vitae centers, even to the

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ point of refusing the Zentralkomitee der deutschen Katholiken’s president the ability to use one of the diocese’s conference centers due to his support for the Donum Vitae centers.54

Response, Objections, Clarifications No known/documented response or comment on this relationship.

Fr. Gustavo Gutiérrez

Fr. Gustavo Gutiérrez is considered the father of the liberation theology movement. Liberation theology is a controversial branch of theology, which “[seeks] to apply religious faith by aiding the poor and oppressed through involvement in political and civic affairs. It stressed both heightened awareness of the ‘sinful’ socioeconomic structures that caused social inequities and active participation in changing those structures.”55 While this may seem uncontroversial, its adherents will use Marxist language in their writing, in some cases even openly espousing Marxist beliefs. For example, “CHRIST LED ME TO MARX,’ [sic] bluntly declares Ernesto Cardenal.”56 This has drawn criticism from many theologians, including Pope St John Paul II.57

“‘On the Side of the Poor. The Theology of Liberation’, a collection of essays co-written [by Cardinal Müller] with liberation theologian Gustavo Gutiérrez and published in Germany in 2004. ...

The book put an official seal on a common path the two had followed for many years. Müller never hid his closeness to Gustavo Gutiérrez, whom he met in Lima in 1988, during a study seminar. During the ceremony for the honorary degree which the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru granted to Müller in 2008, the then bishop of Regensburg defined the theological thought of his master and Peruvian friend as fully orthodox.”58

Response, Objections, Clarifications

“At his recent book presentation, a Vatican cardinal [Cardinal Müller] explained that although Marxist ideology had sought to influence Liberation Theology, the two have

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ ultimately been shown incompatible....But, he [Cardinal Müller] added, ‘when a new theology is developing, there are issues to clarify.’”59

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IV. CHURCH GOVERNANCE

A. Handling of Issues/Cases of Sexual Abuse

1. Fr. Peter Kramer: Reikofen, Germany

Summary

[Fr. Peter Kramer] “was convicted of child molestation in 2000.”60 Prior to his arrest, the diocese had been aware of his proclivities and had assigned him a psychiatrist. After his arrest, he was sentenced to three years probation and counseling. This counseling was done by the same Church employee who had counselled him prior to his arrest.61 All of these events transpired before Müller was installed as Bishop of Regensburg in 2002. “[Kramer] received a clean bill of mental health and was reinstated by Bishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller in 2004.”62 However, he had already been voluntarily performing services in Riekofen since 2001, working with the elderly. There are no known cases from this three year period. After he was established, he was described as a popular pastor in Reikofen.63 He began molesting altar servers at this time, taking them on trips and allowing them to drink alcohol and smoke a hookah in his basement. In 2007, the father of one of his previous victims found out and contacted the parish. Kramer was then arrested and sentenced to three years in prison and was placed in a psychiatric institution.64

Evidence

This is not in dispute and is a matter of public record.

Response, Objections, Clarifications

Even though Müller offered his “tiefstes Bedauern und Mitgefühl (deepest regrets and compassion),” he denies responsibility for this event.65 He claims that the personnel department recommended Kramer to that post and it is the Bishop’s job to approve their

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ decisions. In addition, Müller claimed that Kramer was requested for the parish in Riekhofen by the parishioners themselves. He also claimed that the psychiatrist had claimed that he was cured and there was no risk of relapse, that the court-ordered period had passed without incident, and finally that he believed in Kramer’s possibility of reformation.

2. Regensburger Domspatzen: Regensburg, Germany

Summary

“At least 547 members of a prestigious Catholic boys’ choir in Germany run by the brother of Pope emeritus Benedict XVI were physically or sexually abused between 1945 and 1992, according to a report released [in 2017].

Allegations involving the Domspatzen choir in Regensburg, which was run for 30 years by Benedict’s elder brother, Monsignor Georg Ratzinger, were among a spate of revelations of abuse by Catholic clergy in Germany that emerged in 2010. In 2015, lawyer Ulrich Weber was tasked with producing a report on what happened.

The report said that 547 boys at the Domspatzen’s school ‘with a high degree of plausibility’ were victims of physical or sexual abuse, or both. It counted 500 cases of physical violence and 67 of sexual violence, committed by a total of 49 perpetrators….

It also cited criticism by victims of the Regensburg diocese’s initial efforts to investigate past abuse. It said that the bishop at the time the allegations surfaced, Gerhard Ludwig Müller, bears ‘clear responsibility for the strategic, organizational and communicative weaknesses’ of those efforts.”66 Weber also criticized Müller for getting bogged down in individual cases and failing to investigate the structural abuse. He suggests that Müller should at least apologize for the “verschleppte Aufarbeitung (delayed processing).”67

Evidence

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The evidence is the report compiled by Ulrich Weber in 2017 for the current Bishop of Regensburg, Bp Rudolf Voderholzer.

Response, Objections, Clarifications

Müller claims that when allegations began surfacing during his tenure as Bishop, he began processing them immediately. Müller also criticized Ulrich Weber’s study saying, “Das entspricht nicht der Wahrheit (That is not the truth.)”68

B. Thwarting Procedures/laws Designed to Limit Sexual Abuse

1. Fritz Wallner

Summary

Fritz Wallner was the head of the Diocesan Lay Council for Regensburg. In 2005, Müller disbanded this council, causing a great deal of unrest and a canonical lawsuit in which Müller was ultimately vindicated.69 In early 2016, Wallner gave an interview to Zeit in which he claimed that Müller disbanded the council in order to cover up the abuses at the Regensburg Choir School.70

Evidence

There does not seem to be any substantiated evidence for Wallner’s claims.

Response, Objections, Clarifications

Müller has not issued any documented response to Wallner’s claims.

Christian Pfeiffer Summary

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Christian Pfeiffer is a renowned criminologist from Germany and former head of the Kriminologisches Forschungsinstitut Niedersachsen (Criminological Research Institute of Lower Saxony). In 2011, the KFN, with Pfeiffer at the helm, was contracted to research sexual abuse within the Church.71 However, in 2013, the study was cancelled.72

“Christian Pfeiffer, who as the director of the KFN had led the investigation, told SPIEGEL ONLINE this week that the Church had refused to cooperate with the investigation, and that he had had to remind the Church of its promise of transparency.

Pfeiffer sharpened his criticism of the Church on Thursday. ‘There was an attempt to censor our work,’ Pfeiffer told the newspaper Passauer Neue Presse. He told the paper that representatives of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising had wanted to make decisions about the work and texts produced by his institute and to have church employees decide on who would be involved in examining the cases of sexual abuse.”73

Pfeiffer claims that then-Bishop Müller was one of the driving forces for censorship of the research, and ultimately one of the reasons for its cancellation.74

Evidence There does not seem to be any substantiated evidence. It appears to be Pfeiffer’s word against that of the German Bishops’ Conference. However, in the studies that have been conducted, the Diocese or Dioceses have examined their files and given the researchers the files they deemed relevant.

Response, Objections, Clarifications “In response, the secretary of the German Bishops' Conference, Hans Langendörfer, told German radio station Deutschlandfunk that control and censorship were never an issue. He also vehemently denied the suggestion made by Pfeiffer that some of the files might have been destroyed. ‘There are absolutely no indications of the destruction of church files,’ he said, adding that the Church had followed up on the issue.

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Stephan Ackermann, the representative of the Bishops' Conference for issues of sexual abuse, said Wednesday: ‘I regret, that the current step became inevitable, and it was only because of the lack of confidence in Dr. Pfeiffer.’”75

C. Handling of Financial/Legal Incidents

Church Tax: Germany Summary In Germany, the state will collect a portion of a citizen’s income for the church with which the citizen is registered. However, one can deregister from a church to avoid the tax.

“In response to the de-registering, the German bishops issued a decree in September 2012 calling such departures ‘a serious lapse’ and listing a number of ways such individuals are barred from participating in the life of the Church.

The decree specified that those who do not pay the church tax cannot receive the sacraments of confession, Communion, confirmation or anointing of the sick, except when in danger of death; cannot hold ecclesial office or perform functions within the Church; cannot be a godparent or sponsor; cannot be a member of diocesan or parish councils; and cannot be members of public associations of the Church.”76 In addition to these things, the document requires those who are not registered to obtain a dispensation from the Bishop of the Diocese before they can be married in the Church.77 Critics have argued that this practice equates to simony. “The German definition of mercy, critics say, is a ‘pay-to-pray system’ that has its ‘financial’ limits.”78 This decree was rejected in a document approved by Pope Benedict XVI from the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts: “This means that the formal act of defection must have more than a juridical- administrative character (the removal of one’s name from a Church membership registry maintained by the government in order to produce certain civil consequences)”.79

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Müller’s involvement in this decree is unclear. It was promulgated in September and at this point Müller had already been named as the next Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith only ten days before its publication. In December of that year, Müller’s successor was announced, so it is likely his resignation from his bishopric was long in the making.80 However, even though his name is not on the document rejecting the decree of the German Bishops’ Conference, Muller had been installed on the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts at the time of its writing.81

Evidence This is not a contested fact.

Response, Objections, Clarifications There has been no documented response to this incident.

D. Positive Evidence of Opposing Corruption/Abuse

G. Transparency

Media Transparency Has he answered pertinent questions about credible allegations of abuse/corruption?

Has he answered these questions from skeptical members of the press, or only ideological 'allies'?

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Transparency of Governance Has he gone on the record to publicly request transparency from other members of the hierarchy regarding these same pertinent questions?

Has he worked to answer difficult questions, such as changing practices, closing of parishes or schools, etc.?

Financial Transparency Has he implemented structures to ensure financial transparency in his diocese or area of governance?

Transparency in Handling of Sexual Abuse Cases Has he implemented structures or procedures to improve transparency regarding cases of abuse and abuse investigations, such as releasing the names of credibly accused priests in his diocese or area of governance?

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V. CONTROVERSIES, TEACHINGS, AND PRIORITIES

A. Teaching Controversies and Disputes

Amoris Laetitia and the Dubia Cardinal Müller was Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith when Amoris Laetitia was published. “In an interview with the Italian magazine Il Timone, Cardinal Müller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, was asked whether the teaching reaffirmed by Pope St John Paul II’s Familiaris Consortio is still valid.

St John Paul said that the divorced and remarried cannot take Communion, except possibly when they try to live ‘in complete continence’.

Cardinal Müller said of this condition: ‘Of course, it is not dispensable, because it is not only a positive law of John Paul II, but he expressed an essential element of Christian moral theology and the theology of the sacraments.’. . .

‘Amoris Laetitia must clearly be interpreted in the light of the whole doctrine of the Church.’ He added: ‘I don’t like it, it is not right that so many bishops are interpreting Amoris Laetitia according to their way of understanding the Pope’s teaching. This does not keep to the line of Catholic doctrine.’”82

However, Müller “had reportedly revealed at the Curia’s spiritual retreat in 2016 that the CDF had submitted 200 queries concerning the draft text of Amoris Laetitia, none of which were addressed before the final version of the apostolic exhortation was released. Some of those queries concerned passages in the eighth chapter of Amoris Laetitia that have become the subject of controversy, most publicly in the formal request for clarification on five questions (or dubia) made by Cardinals Walter Brandmüller, Raymond Burke, Carlo Caffarra and Joachim Meisner on Sept. 19, 2016, to Pope Francis and Cardinal Müller.”83

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A. The Dubia

“Cardinal Burke said the Pope must respond to the ‘dubia’ because they directly impact the faith and the teaching of the church. If there is no response, he said, a formal ‘correction of the Pope’ would be in order.

Cardinal Müller told the Italian television that ‘a possible fraternal correction of the Pope seems very remote at this time because it does not concern a danger for the faith,’ which is the situation St Thomas Aquinas described for fraternal correction. ‘It harms the Church’ for cardinals to so publicly challenge the Pope, he said. . . .

In the TGCom24 interview, Cardinal Müller said, ‘everyone, especially cardinals of the Roman church, have the right to write a letter to the pope. However, I was astonished that this became public, almost forcing the pope to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to the cardinals’ questions about what exactly the Pope meant in Amoris Laetitia.

‘This, I don’t like,’ Cardinal Müller said.”84

B. Pastoral/Theological Priorities

On Church Governance and Reform A. Reforms in Regensburg

Müller, in stark contrast to the current trend in Germany, tends to attempt to put more power in the hands of the clergy rather than the laity. In 2005, he reformed the structure of the councils in Regensburg with the intent of bringing its governance more in line with the Code of Canon Law: “In 2005, Bishop em. Cardinal Müller reorganized the diocesan lay apostolate for canonical and pastoral reasons. The aim was to structure the structures more efficiently and to fully adapt them to current church law (CIC 1983) in order to further develop and promote the lay apostolate in the diocese in line with the Second Vatican Council. After numerous discussions with representatives of the various levels and diocesan bodies, the reform came into force in November 2005 despite headwinds in the media. In the decree of the Apostolic Signature, the highest Roman court, of

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February 9, 2007, the reform by the Regensburg bishop em. finally declared lawful. … In the future, separate working groups will be set up at the dean's level on a project- and topic-related basis, thereby avoiding duplication. At the diocesan level, the diocesan council was transferred to two diocesan bodies, the diocesan pastoral council and the diocesan committee. Instead of the 33 deanery councils, there is now the diocesan pastoral council for the entire diocese. The lay apostolate is particularly appreciated here by the disproportionate share of lay representatives. In the diocesan committee, the church associations and associations can come together to represent Christian positions in society even more effectively. Such a reorganization after 30 years makes sense based on the experience gained so far and corresponds to Vatican II and the new documents of the Church Magisterium.”85

Despite the Church’s ruling on his reforms, the Zentralkomitee der Katholiken (Central Committee of Catholics) or Zdk persisted in its belief that these reforms were not lawful. As a result, from 2005 to 2007, the Diocese of Regensburg cut off funding to the ZdK.86

The Synodal Way: “Der Synodale Weg” The “Synodal Path” or “Synodaler Weg” seeks to define the Church’s stance on controversial issues within Germany. These issues, as stated on the resolutions which were passed 1 August, 2019 are as follows: “Macht und Gewaltenteilung” (authority and separation of powers), “Sexualmoral” (sexual morality), “Priesterliche Lebensform” (Priestly way of life[Celibacy]), and “Frauen in Diensten und Ämtern in der Kirche” (women at the service of – and in – ecclesiastical offices).87 The statues can be found here. An unofficial English translation created by the Catholic News Agency can be found here.

This “Synodaler Weg” is controversial. Pope Francis rejected the process in a letter he wrote “an das pilgernde Volk Gottes in Deutschland (To the Pilgrim People of God in Germany)” on 29 June, 2019. He warned against a “neuen Pelagianismus der dazu führt, unser Vertrauen auf die Verwaltung zu setzen, auf den perfekten Apparat”, a “new pelagianism which leads to put our trust in the administration, in the perfect apparatus.”88

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“The Vatican has said that plans for a binding Church synod in Germany are ‘not ecclesiologically valid… In a Sept. 4 letter addressed to [the head of the German Bishops’ Conference], Cardinal Marc Ouellet, head of the Vatican’s Congregation for Bishops, said that plans for a Synodal Assembly must conform to guidelines issued by Pope Francis in June, especially that a synod in Germany could not act to change universal Church teaching or discipline.”89

Cardinal Müller has echoed these critiques and has drawn criticism for the way in which he has expressed them. He has expressed dissatisfaction with the structure of the Synod, even going so far as to say that the Synod would invalidate the Bishops’ sacramental authority. He also criticized the truth-by-vote method of the Synod.90 Cardinal Müller compared this process to the Empowerment Act by which Adolf Hitler was given almost unlimited political power. He drew criticism for this from Bishop Franz Jung of Wurzburg.91

Moral Teachings: Marriage, Family, and Sexuality Homosexuality A. Marriage

In 2013, Cardinal Müller, as Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, issued a document titled “TESTIMONY TO THE POWER OF GRACE: ON THE INDISSOLUBILITY OF MARRIAGE AND THE DEBATE CONCERNING THE CIVILLY REMARRIED AND THE SACRAMENTS” In the document, Cardinal Müller explores the Sacrament of Matrimony through the lenses of Scripture, Tradition, and the Magisterium. He concludes that marriage is indissoluble and that those who have been civilly divorced and remarried do not have access to the Eucharist. He does note that this poses a pastoral problem and says that pastors ought “to devote ‘special concern’ to those affected: in the wish that they ‘live as fully as possible the Christian life through regular participation at Mass, albeit without receiving communion, listening to the word of God, eucharistic adoration, prayer, participation in the life of the community, honest dialogue

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ with a priest or spiritual director, dedication to the life of charity, works of penance, and commitment to the education of their children.’”92

Moral Teachings: Abortion and the Death Penalty A. Teaching

Cardinal Müller has been a staunch believer in pro-life issues. In compliance with Pope Benedict XVI’s order to cut all ties with the Donum Vitae counseling centers, he refused to allow the president of the ZdK to host a book signing at a diocesan center due to the group’s support of the Donum Vitae counselling centers.93

B. Death Penalty

Cardinal Muller, as Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the faith made these remarks in an interview with Edward Pentin, referring to Pope Francis’ revision of the catechism in 2013: “We’re against executions, but theoretically we absolutely cannot deny them, if we look at the history of discussion on this subject. If there are capital crimes, the question is if the secular state has the right to perform an execution. But Jesus was condemned to death, he was innocent, and this belongs to soteriology; but these questions weren’t reflected on before the new declaration was made. And the impression is not good that the Pope, if he wants to do, can simply change the Catechism. Where are the limits? The magisterium is not above the word of God, but under it and serves it (Dei Verbum, 10)....

It was justified as a development of dogma, but the death penalty has nothing directly to do with dogma. This is a natural truth belonging to the natural ethics of the state. It’s not material related to God’s self-revelation of the truth and the salvation of all. This is the self-revelation of God in Jesus Christ, or the sacraments belonging to the materia fidei. But we also have natural truths: The Church fights for human rights, for example, but natural human rights don’t belong to supernatural Revelation.”94

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Pastoral/Political Teachings: The Environment, Immigration C: Other Theological Issues

Ecumenism Cardinal Müller during his episcopate was named chairman of the ecumenical commission of the German Bishops' Conference. During his tenure, he resumed dialogues between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church in 2009.95 He altered some intercessions during Good Friday which appeared Anti-Semitic. This led to a Jewish Newspaper reporting that the relationships were the best they had been in 2000 years. However, he does clarify that Ecumenism does not mean that the Catholic Church becomes Protestant.96

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VI. APPENDICES

Appendix i: Luke Hansen, S.J. Interview

“Here is a ZENIT translation of the L’Osservatore Romano interview, which was published in Italian.

* * *

“Faith is characterized by the greatest openness. It is a personal relationship with God, which has within it all the treasures of wisdom. Because of this our finite reason is always in movement toward the infinite God. We can always learn something anew and understand with ever greater profundity the richness of Revelation. We will never be able to exhaust it,” said the new prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, archbishop Gerhard Ludwig Müller, in a long talk with this correspondent and with the director of our newspaper. During the meeting in the old palace of the Holy Office, Archbishop Müller also spoke of his arrival in the Roman Curia, of his decision to become a priest, of the time spent as docent of theology and as bishop, of his repeated sojourns in Latin America. And he explained that he learned to know and appreciate Joseph Ratzinger from his Introduction to Christianity, which already in 1968 was a best-seller.

Q: Can you tell us your first impressions of the post you have just taken up of prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in an environment that you already knew well as a member for years of different offices of the Roman Curia.

Archbishop Müller: For five years, as a member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, I was able to take part in the meetings of cardinals and bishops, admiring the conscientious and collegial way of working. Hence, the tasks of this dicastery are not unknown to me. For many years I was also part of the International Theological Commission and I was also able to collaborate with other dicasteries. Altogether, however, many things are new and unheard of for me. I will need a bit of time before I am able to find my way in the complex structure of the Curia. Of course new for me,

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ above all, is the role of prefect. As a member I studied the documents prepared by the Congregation and participated in the consultations. Now, instead, I must carry out and guide the work every day with those who work in the dicastery, preparing and acting on the decisions correctly. I am grateful to the Holy Father for having given me his trust and for having entrusted this task to me.

The problems that are foreseen are very great if we look at the universal Church, with many challenges that must be addressed and in face of a certain downheartedness that is spreading in some environments but which we must overcome. We also have the problem of groups — of the right and the left, as is usually said — which take up much of our time and our attention. Here the danger easily arises of losing sight of our main task, which is to proclaim the Gospel and to explain concretely the doctrine of the Church. We are convinced that there is no alternative to the revelation of God in Jesus Christ. Revelation responds to the great questions of men of all times. What is the meaning of my life? How can I face suffering? Is there hope that goes beyond death, given that life is brief and difficult?

We are fundamentally convinced that the secular and immanentistic vision is not enough. We cannot find a convincing answer on our own. Because of this, Revelation is a relief, given that we must not seek answers at all costs. However, our capacities are so great as to render the human being capax infiniti. The infinite God has manifested himself to us in Christ. Christ is the answer to our most profound questions. Because of this we are willing to face the future with joy and strength.

Q: Much has been written about the new prefect. Instead, would you like to tell us something about yourself, about your family, your studies, your choice to become a priest, your experience as a scholar and docent of theology, as bishop?

Archbishop Müller: For almost 40 years my father was a simple worker of Opel at Russelsheim. We lived close by, at Mainz-Finthen, a small locality founded by the Romans and still today there are ruins of an aqueduct built by them. From this point of view, our fundamental stamp is Roman. At Mainz we are still very aware of this legacy, and we are

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ proud of it. To have a Roman horizon at the heart of Germany has left a sign. And when one is a Catholic the two realities are linked automatically. My mother was a homemaker. I am grateful to my parents for having educated me in the normal way from the human point of view, without exaggerating in one or another direction. Thus we grew in the Catholic faith and its practice, in the right balance between freedom and ties, with clear principles. Still today I agree fully with my parents.

Then the theological studies followed from which I acquired a more profound dimension of the faith. Important for my choice to become a priest was having continued to meet priests who led an exemplary spiritual life, with intellectual exigency. From this point of view, for me there were never contradictions between being a priest and study. I was always convinced that the Catholic faith corresponds to the highest intellectual exigencies and that we must not hide ourselves. The Church can boast of many great figures in the history of culture. Because of this we can respond with security to the great challenges of the natural sciences, of history, of sociology and of politics. Faith is characterized by the greatest openness. It is a personal relationship with God, which bears within it all the treasures of wisdom. Because of this our finite reason is always in movement toward the infinite God. We can always learn something anew and understand with ever greater profundity the richness of Revelation. We will never be able to exhaust it.

As bishop I continued to stress to seminarians that the identity of the vocation to the priesthood is in need of an encounter with genuine priests. Faith begins with personal meetings, beginning with parents, priests, friends, the parish, the diocese, in that great family which is the universal Church. We must never fear intellectual confrontation; we don’t have a blind faith, but faith cannot be reduced in a rationalistic way. I hope that everyone will have an experience similar to mine: that of identifying themselves in a simple way and without problems with the Catholic faith and of practicing it. It is most beautiful.

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Q: Pope Benedict has entrusted to you the care of his “Gesammelte Schriften.” Leaving also to you his Roman apartment, where Cardinal Ratzinger lived until the conclave of 2005 and where there are still many of his books. How did you meet Joseph Ratzinger?

Archbishop Müller: As a young student I read his book Introduction to Christianity. It was published in 1968, and we absorbed it practically as a sponge. In those years, in fact, there was uncertainty in the seminaries. In the book, the profession of the faith of the Church is explained in a convincing manner, analyzed with the help of reason and explained with mastery. It is an important subject that characterizes the whole theological work of Joseph Ratzinger: fides et ratio, faith and reason. Then I met and learned to appreciate Ratzinger also as a person. In my commitment as docent and as bishop he was a support for me and a clear point of reference. I will describe him as a paternal friend, being older than me by a generation. And I hold that the reason for my coming to Rome is certainly not to burden him with various questions. My task is to relieve him of part of the work and not to present problems to him which can be resolved at our level. The Holy Father has the important mission to proclaim the Gospel and to confirm brothers and sisters in the faith. It is for us to address all the questions that are less pleasing, so that he is not burdened with too many things, although always being informed, of course, of the most essential issues.

Q: Shortly before the end of the Council, Paul VI transformed the Holy Office into the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. What do you think of this change and of the role of the dicastery today?

Archbishop Müller: The Church is first of all a community of faith; hence the revealed faith is the most important good, which we must transmit, proclaim and protect. Jesus entrusted to Peter and to his Successors the universal magisterium, and it is this that the dicastery must serve. Hence the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has the responsibility for what concerns the whole Church in profundity: the faith that leads us to salvation and to communion with God and among ourselves.

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I think that the most important aspect of the transformation of the dicastery was not the relationship with the other institutions of the Holy See, but rather the main orientation of its work. Pope Paul VI wanted the positive aspect to be at the forefront: the Congregation must first of all promote the faith and render it comprehensible, and this is the decisive factor. To this is added the fact that the faith must be defended against errors and devaluations. In fact at present we are in need of hope and signs to begin again. If we look at the world, especially at our European countries, which, naturally, are the ones I know best, we see many politicians and economists who do extraordinary things; but they are not the first to be looked at when it is a question of transmitting hope and trust. It is here that I see one of the great tasks of the Congregation and of the Church in general: We must rediscover the faith and make it shine anew as positive power, as force of hope and as potential to overcome conflicts and tensions, and continue to meet in the common profession of the One and Triune God.

Q: The Pope’s concern for the proclamation of the faith is notable. This is expressed also in the institution of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization and in the proclamation of a “Year of Faith.” What are the plans of your dicastery?

Archbishop Müller: The faith is realized in the Holy Mass, in Christian life, in families. In reality we can do no more than give support. There are already many valid texts for children, young people and adults, in addition to theological studies and documents of the magisterium. The forthcoming Synod of Bishops must give the participants and the whole Church a new thrust for the transmission of the faith. I consider it my personal task to encourage bishops and theologians in this sense. We must reinforce one another. The Lord himself said to Peter: confirm your brothers and sisters. This is true in particular for the Pope, but not only for him. In fact, for those who proclaim it is important to be on the terrain of faith, to access its sources, holy Scripture, the Fathers of the Church, documents of Councils and of Pontiffs, the great theologians and spiritual writers. Where this doesn’t happen, everything is arid and empty. When, instead, the faith is accepted with joy and determination, life is born.

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Scripture proposes to us some beautiful images: the light on the candelabrum, the salt that gives flavor to everything, the Gospel as leaven in the world. As a bishop of a diocese, as a priest caring for souls, we see real people. There we see them concretely in their situation of life. We cannot proclaim the Gospel to them if we don’t love them and don’t see that each one of them is a mystery, image and likeness of God. We must continue to repeat that Christ died on the cross for us all. We are aware that our vocation is to be friends of God and thus discover to what hope, in reality, we are destined. This makes doubts disappear from the heart. Atheists and enemies of the Church should ask themselves, perhaps, with a spirit of self-criticism if they themselves have means of salvation to offer the men of today.

Q: You have many contacts with Latin America: How did this relation begin?

Archbishop Müller: I went often to Latin America, to Peru, but also to other countries. In 1988 I was invited to take part in a seminar with Gustavo Gutierrez. I went with a certain reservation as a German theologian, also because I knew well the two statements of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on liberation theology published in 1984 and in 1986. However, I was able to see that it is necessary to distinguish between a mistaken liberation theology and a correct one. I believe that every good theology has to do with the freedom and glory of the children of God. However, certainly a mixture of the doctrine of Marxist self-redemption with the salvation given by God must be rejected. On the other hand we must ask ourselves sincerely: How can we speak of the love and mercy of God in face of the suffering of so many people who don’t have food, water, health care, who don’t know how to offer a future to their children, where human dignity is truly lacking, where human rights are ignored by the powerful? In the last analysis this is possible only if we are also willing to be with the people, to accept them as brothers and sisters, without paternalism from on high. If we consider ourselves as God’s family, then we can contribute to make these situations that are unworthy of man change and improve.

In Europe, after World War II and the dictatorships, we built a new democratic society thanks also to Catholic Social Doctrine. As Christians we must stress that it is from

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Christianity that the values of justice, solidarity and dignity of the person were introduced into our Constitutions. I myself come from Mainz. There, at the beginning of the 19th century, there was a great bishop, Baron Wilhelm Emmanuel von Ketteler, who was at the beginning of the social doctrine and encyclicals. A Catholic child of Mainz has social passion in his blood, and I am proud of it. This was certainly the horizon with which I arrived in the countries of Latin America. For 15 years I always spent two or three months of the year [there], living in very simple conditions. In the beginning, for a citizen of central Europe, this implies a great effort. However, when one learns to know the people in person and one sees how they live, then one can accept it. I also went to South Africa with our Domspatzen, the famous choir that the Pope’s brother directed for 30 years. I was able to hold conferences in several seminaries and universities, not only in Latin America but also in Europe and in North America. And this is what I was able to experience: You are at home everywhere; where there is an altar, Christ is present; wherever you are, you are part of the great family of God.

Q: What do you think of the discussions with the Lefebvrists and with the religious sisters of the United States?

Archbishop Müller: It is important for the future of the Church to overcome ideological clashes no matter where they come from. There is only one revelation of God in Jesus Christ which was entrusted to the whole Church. This is why there are no negotiations on the Word of God and one cannot believe and not believe at the same time. One cannot pronounce the three religious vows and then not take them seriously. I cannot make reference to the tradition of the Church and then accept it only in some of its parts. The path of the Church leads ahead and all are invited not to enclose themselves in a self- referential way of thinking, but rather to accept the full life and the full faith of the Church.

For the Catholic Church it is altogether evident that man and woman have the same value: It is stated already in the account of creation and confirmed in the order of salvation. The human being does not need to emancipate himself, or to create and invent himself; he is already emancipated and liberated through the grace of God. Many

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ statements regarding the admission of women to the sacrament of Holy Orders ignore an important aspect of the priestly ministry. To be a priest does not mean to create a position for oneself. One cannot consider the priestly ministry as a sort of position of earthly power and think that emancipation will only exist when all can occupy it. The Catholic faith knows that it is not up to us to dictate the conditions for admission to the priestly ministry and that behind one’s being a priest there is always the will and call of Christ. I invite [all] to give up the controversies and the ideologies and to immerse oneself in the doctrine of the Church. In fact in America women and men religious have done extraordinary things for the Church, for education and for the formation of young people. Christ is in need of young people who follow this path and who identify themselves with their own fundamental choice. The Second Vatican Council affirmed wonderful things for the renewal of religious life, as also for the common vocation to sanctity. It is important to reinforce mutual trust rather than to work against one another.

Q: Apart from Merry del Val from 1914 to 1930, the dicastery was always led by Italians. After 1968, Seper, Ratzinger, Levada and now you have been appointed. What does this new tendency manifest?

Archbishop Müller: At first the possibility of frequent trips didn’t exist, so the persons of the Curia came from around Rome and Italy. Today, modern technical means help us to live in a more concrete way the catholicity of the Church. Because the primacy of the Pope is, however, linked to the Church of Rome, it is obvious that in the Curia there are still many Italians. The internationalization has to do, however, with the catholicity of the Church. Already at the time of the Empire, there were many Christians in Rome and even Popes originating from other places, for example from the East. Today, as then, we are, in the Church, members of one family and we must, so to speak, be the engine of humanity’s genuine progress. No other organization, in fact, has this international dimension, which embraces humanity and is so committed to the unity of persons and of peoples. Wherever we celebrate the Eucharist, we share the most intimate part of our conviction and we have the same communion of life with Christ, even if the culture and language are different. We feel immediately that we are one thing, that we are members

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ of one body and that we build together the temple of God. It is, in a certain sense, the follow-up of the experience of Pentecost: we come from all countries and we can render praise to God all together, we can hear in our language the one Word of God. The Holy Spirit speaks to us in the language of love, which unites us all in God, our Father.”97

Appendix ii: additional material

Manifesto of Faith

“‘Let not your heart be troubled!’ (John 14:1)

In the face of growing confusion about the doctrine of the Faith, many bishops, priests, religious and lay people of the Catholic Church have requested that I make a public testimony about the truth of revelation. It is the shepherds' very own task to guide those entrusted to them on the path of salvation. This can only succeed if they know this way and follow it themselves. The words of the Apostle here apply: ‘For above all I have delivered unto you what I have received’ (1 Cor. 15:3). Today, many Christians are no longer even aware of the basic teachings of the Faith, so there is a growing danger of missing the path to eternal life. However, it remains the very purpose of the Church to lead humanity to Jesus Christ, the light of the nations (see LG 1). In this situation, the question of orientation arises. According to John Paul II, the Catechism of the Catholic Church is a ‘safe standard for the doctrine of the faith’ (Fidei Depositum IV). It was written with the aim of strengthening the Faith of the brothers and sisters whose belief has been massively questioned by the ‘dictatorship of relativism.’

1. The one and triune God revealed in Jesus Christ

The epitome of the Faith of all Christians is found in the confession of the Most Holy Trinity. We have become disciples of Jesus, children and friends of God by being baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. The distinction of the three persons in the divine unity (CCC 254) marks a fundamental difference in the belief in God and the image of man from that of other religions. Religions disagree precisely

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ over this belief in Jesus the Christ. He is true God and true Man, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. The Word made flesh, the Son of God, is the only Savior of the world (CCC 679) and the only Mediator between God and men (CCC 846). Therefore, the first letter of John refers to one who denies His divinity as an antichrist (1 John 2:22), since Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is from eternity one in being with God, His Father (CCC 663). We are to resist the relapse into ancient heresies with clear resolve, which saw in Jesus Christ only a good person, brother and friend, prophet and moralist. He is first and foremost the Word that was with God and is God, the Son of the Father, Who assumed our human nature to redeem us and Who will come to judge the living and the dead. Him alone, we worship in unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit as the Only and True God (CCC 691).

2. The Church

Jesus Christ founded the Church as a visible sign and instrument of salvation realized in the Catholic Church (816). He gave His Church, which ‘emerged from the side of the Christ who died on the Cross’ (766), a sacramental constitution that will remain until the Kingdom is fully achieved (CCC 765). Christ, the Head, and the faithful as members of the body, are a mystical person (CCC 795), which is why the Church is sacred, for the one Mediator has designed and sustained its visible structure (CCC 771). Through it the redemptive work of Christ becomes present in time and space via the celebration of the Holy Sacraments, especially in the Eucharistic Sacrifice, the Holy Mass (CCC 1330). The Church conveys with the authority of Christ the divine revelation, which extends to all the elements of doctrine, “including the moral teaching, without which the saving truths of the faith cannot be preserved, explained, and observed” (CCC 2035).

3. Sacramental Order

The Church is the universal sacrament of salvation in Jesus Christ (CCC 776). She does not reflect herself, but the light of Christ, which shines on her face. But this happens only when the truth revealed in Jesus Christ becomes the point of reference, rather than the views of a majority or the spirit of the times; for Christ Himself has entrusted the fullness

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ of grace and truth to the Catholic Church (CCC 819), and He Himself is present in the sacraments of the Church.

The Church is not a man-made association whose structure its members voted into being at their will. It is of divine origin. Christ himself is the author of ministry in the Church. He set her up, gave her authority and mission, orientation and goal (CCC 874). The admonition of the Apostle is still valid today, that cursed is anyone who proclaims another gospel, ‘even if we ourselves were to give it or an angel from heaven’ (Gal 1:8). The mediation of faith is inextricably bound up with the human credibility of its messengers, who in some cases have abandoned the people entrusted to them, unsettling them and severely damaging their faith. Here the Word of Scripture describes those who do not listen to the truth and who follow their own wishes, who flatter their ears because they cannot endure sound doctrine (cf. 2 Tim 4:3-4).

The task of the Magisterium of the Church is to ‘preserve God’s people from deviations and defections’ in order to ‘guarantee them the objective possibility of professing the true faith without error’ (890). This is especially true with regard to all seven sacraments. The Holy Eucharist is ‘source and summit of the Christian life’ (CCC 1324). The Eucharistic Sacrifice, in which Christ includes us in His Sacrifice of the Cross, is aimed at the most intimate union with Him (CCC 1382). Therefore, the Holy Scripture admonishes with regard to the reception of the Holy Communion: ‘Whoever eats unworthily of the bread and drinks from the Lord's cup makes himself guilty of profaning the body and of the blood of the Lord’ (1 Cor 11:27). ‘Anyone conscious of a grave sin must receive the sacrament of Reconciliation before coming to communion’ (CCC 1385). From the internal logic of the sacrament, it is understood that divorced and civilly remarried persons, whose sacramental marriage exists before God, as well as those Christians who are not in full communion with the Catholic Faith and the Church, just as all those who are not disposed to receive the Holy Eucharist fruitfully (CCC 1457), because it does not bring them to salvation. To point this out corresponds to the spiritual works of mercy.

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The confession of sins in Holy Confession at least once a year is one of the Church’s commandments (CCC 2042). When the believers no longer confess their sins and no longer experience the absolution of their sins, salvation becomes impossible; after all, Jesus Christ became Man to redeem us from our sins. The power of forgiveness that the Risen Lord has given to the Apostles and their successors in the ministry of bishops and priests applies also for mortal and venial sins which we commit after Baptism. The current popular practice of confession makes it clear that the conscience of the faithful is not sufficiently formed. God's mercy is given to us, that we might fulfil His Commandments to become one with His Holy Will, and not so as to avoid the call to repentance (CCC 1458).

‘The priest continues the work of redemption on earth’ (CCC 1589). The ordination of the priest ‘gives him a sacred power’ (CCC 1592), which is irreplaceable, because through it Jesus becomes sacramentally present in His saving action. Therefore, priests voluntarily opt for celibacy as ‘a sign of new life’ (CCC 1579). It is about the self-giving in the service of Christ and His coming kingdom.

4. Moral Law

Faith and life are inseparable, for Faith apart from works is dead (CCC 1815). The moral law is the work of divine wisdom and leads man to the promised blessedness (CCC 1950). Consequently, the "knowledge of the divine and natural law is necessary" to do good and reach this goal (CCC 1955). Accepting this truth is essential for all people of good will. For he who dies in mortal sin without repentance will be forever separated from God (CCC 1033). This leads to practical consequences in the lives of Christians, which are often ignored today (cf 2270-2283; 2350-2381). The moral law is not a burden, but part of that liberating truth (cf Jn 8:32) through which the Christian walks on the path of salvation and which may not be relativized.

5. Eternal Life

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Many wonder today what purpose the Church still has in its existence, when even bishops prefer to be politicians rather than to proclaim the Gospel as teachers of the Faith. The role of the Church must not be watered down by trivialities, but its proper place must be addressed. Every human being has an immortal soul, which in death is separated from the body, hoping for the resurrection of the dead (CCC 366). Death makes man's decision for or against God definite. Everyone has to face the particular judgement immediately after death (CCC 1021). Either a purification is necessary, or man goes directly into heavenly bliss and is allowed to see God face to face. There is also the dreadful possibility that a person will remain opposed to God to the very end, and by definitely refusing His Love, "condemns himself immediately and forever" (CCC 1022). ‘God created us without us, but He did not want to save us without us’ (CCC 1847). The eternity of the punishment of hell is a terrible reality, which - according to the testimony of Holy Scripture - attracts all who ‘die in the state of mortal sin’ (CCC 1035). The Christian goes through the narrow gate, for ‘the gate is wide, and the way that leads to ruin is wide, and many are upon it’ (Mt 7:13).

To keep silent about these and the other truths of the Faith and to teach people accordingly is the greatest deception against which the Catechism vigorously warns. It represents the last trial of the Church and leads man to a religious delusion, ‘the price of their apostasy’ (CCC 675); it is the fraud of Antichrist. ‘He will deceive those who are lost by all means of injustice; for they have closed themselves to the love of the truth by which they should be saved’ (2 Thess 2:10).

Call

As workers in the vineyard of the Lord, we all have a responsibility to recall these fundamental truths by clinging to what we ourselves have received. We want to give courage to go the way of Jesus Christ with determination, in order to obtain eternal life by following His commandments (CCC 2075).

Let us ask the Lord to let us know how great the gift of the Catholic Faith is, through which opens the door to eternal life. ‘For he that shall be ashamed of me, and of my

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https://betterchurchgovernance.org/ words, in this adulterous and sinful generation: The Son of Man also will be ashamed of him, when He shall come in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.’ (Mark 8:38). Therefore, we are committed to strengthening the Faith by confessing the truth which is Jesus Christ Himself.

We too, and especially we bishops and priests, are addressed when Paul, the Apostle of Jesus Christ, gives this admonition to his companion and successor, Timothy: ‘I charge thee, before God and Jesus Christ, Who shall judge the living and the dead, by His coming, and His kingdom: Preach the word: be instant in season, out of season: reprove, entreat, rebuke in all patience and doctrine. For there shall be a time, when they will not endure sound doctrine; but, according to their own desires, they will heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears: And will indeed turn away their hearing from the truth, but will be turned unto fables. But be thou vigilant, labour in all things, do the work of an evangelist, fulfil thy ministry. Be sober.’ (2 Tim 4:1-5).

May Mary, the Mother of God, implore for us the grace to remain faithful without wavering to the confession of the truth about Jesus Christ.

United in faith and prayer,

Gerhard Cardinal Müller, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 2012- 2017

Editor's note: After this text was published, the cardinal's office submitted to CNA three amendments to the text originally submitted to CNA. Two were minor syntactical corrections. The third change replaced the word "to" with "cannot" in the following phrase: ‘just as all who are not properly disposed, to cannot receive the Holy Eucharist fruitfully (CCC 1457) because it does not bring them to salvation.’”98

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