display

The demand for dates for leaving the church in Cologne remains high.

On Monday, all 1500 online appointments activated on that day for the month of May were booked out by noon.

For the time being, there are no appointments for leaving the church in the fourth largest German city.

The next 1,500 dates for June would be activated on April 1, said a spokesman for the Cologne District Court.

In the past few weeks, the number of appointments has already been increased twice.

Since the staff will not be increased, the authority is set limits.

The denomination of the citizens concerned cannot be read from the appointment bookings.

Nevertheless, there is a connection with the abuse scandal of the Catholic Church in Cologne around Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki.

The latter is holding back an expert opinion that investigates the way in which diocese officials dealt with allegations of sexual abuse against Catholic priests.

display

The criminal lawyer Björn Gercke, who is preparing a new abuse report for Woelki, has found breaches of duty of “still living officials” of the Catholic Church.

That said Gercke the "Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger".

Woelki classified the first report as unsatisfactory and kept it under lock and key for legal reasons.

The law firm that made it denies the allegations.

In each case, it is examined how those responsible in the Archdiocese of Cologne have dealt with allegations of sexual abuse of children by priests in the past.

To dispel the allegations was "not successful in every case"

Gercke said the officials incriminated in his report are currently trying to dispel the allegations, but "not always succeeded".

Their behavior is "very, very different".

At the moment it is finally being examined what can be made public from the report.

"I'm not giving away too much today when I say: The reactions of one or the other potentially responsible person or his lawyers lead to the expectation that an oath could be made in terms of the law of expression." Expert opinions can be presented.

Woelki is heavily criticized for not having published the first report so far.

However, the former prefect of the Roman Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller, asked for understanding.

"I find it shocking that a formal procedural process is being instrumentalized to pursue ideological power politics," he told the German Press Agency.

Ultimately, it is a matter of doing justice to the injured party - the formal procedural rules are secondary.

"A bishop is not a political actor, but rather as the successor of the apostles to be measured by his service to the gospel for the eternal salvation of men with God," emphasized Müller, former bishop of Regensburg.

Clarification required - Cardinal Woelki withholds abuse reports

In the Archdiocese of Cologne, Cardinal Woelki is holding back an expert opinion on cases of abuse over decades.

A topic that is now the focus of the German Bishops' Conference.

But for many Catholics the enlightenment is too slow - they draw their own conclusions.

Source: WELT / Lea Freist

The Catholic aid organization Misereor activated a new whistleblower portal on its website, on which violations can be reported.

"Misereor is very interested in that verifiable or suspected border crossings or even legal violations are reported," said managing director Thomas Antkowiak.

Particular attention was paid to the subject of abuse of power through sexual violence and exploitation.

The goal is an organizational culture of mindfulness, observation and intervention.