“The Church cannot be bullied into changing her doctrine if change contradicts the spirit of the gospel,” Cardinal Woelki has said.
In an article for Die Tagespost, which will likely be seen as a stern rebuttal to those prelates who suggest that dogma ought to be altered to reflect current social mores, the cardinal adds:
“All those inside and outside the Church who so vehemently push for changes (liberalizing celibacy, reconsidering homosexuality, ordaining women, accepting sex outside of marriage) have not answered one question: Why are Protestant Christians in Germany not flourishing? They have implemented all that is being demanded. Yet they are not in a better position—seen by their practice of faith, how few they recruit for pastoral ministry, and the number of people leaving their churches. Does that not indicate that the real problems lie elsewhere, and that the whole of Christianity has to confront a crisis of faith and understanding, rather than adapt to a “new reality of life” that is presented as irresistible?”
