The AP Interview: Pope Warns of Elitist German Synod Process

VATICAN CITY (AP) Pope Francis has warned theres a risk that what could be a trailblazing process in the German church over calls for married priests and other possible liberalizing reforms might become harmfully ideological.

Francis, in an interview with The Associated Press at the Vatican on Tuesday, was asked about Germany, where Catholic bishops and representatives of an influential lay organization are engaged in a process that is addressing what would be revolutionary reforms for the church if they were to be realized. Under consideration in the process are married priests, female deacons, and church blessings for same-sex couples.

In the interview, the pope said that while dialogue is good, the process in the German church has been led by the elite because it doesnt involve all the people of God. Francis says the goal must always be unity.

Seeking to assuage Vatican concerns, German church leaders have insisted the process wont trigger a schism.

The German process, dubbed the Synodal Path, was launched in 2019 in response to the sex abuse scandal rocking the Church in Germany, where Christians are roughly evenly split between Catholics and Protestants.