Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck of Essen has responded with both praise and skepticism to the Maria 2 reform initiative.0 reacted. He said it was good that the initiative was asking important questions. On the other hand, he is critical of not attending church services.
The women's protest was not only a question of the separation of powers and power. He touched on the understanding of man and woman, marriage, family and partnership, as well as challenges between family and work. At the same time, the debate shows that such questions are answered in very different ways. Overbeck is a Catholic military bishop and made his comments on the sidelines of an international soldiers' pilgrimage to Lourdes.
But he is skeptical about the instrumentalization of the Eucharist. The initiators of Maria 2.0 had called on women, among other things, not to enter churches for a week and to suspend their honorary offices.
Justice between the sexes
The "synodal journey" initiated by the bishops will also have to address the ie of gender justice, the bishop said. This is one of the great cultural questions.
Demands of the Maria 2 Initiative.0 are, among other things, the access of women to all church offices, a consistent clarification of the abuse cases and a sexual morality that takes into account the lifeworld of people. One-week church strike to end this weekend. An initiative by five women from Munster had triggered a nationwide echo.