After many Catholics in the Archdiocese of Cologne and finally even the leading clergy, Pope Francis now seems to have lost patience with Cardinal Woelki.
Because the so-called apostolic visitation that he ordered is one thing above all: a clear vote of no confidence in the Cologne cardinal.
After all, this is not about a cash check among friends.
It is an investigation.
This is a surprising change of course.
For a long time it looked as if people in Rome weren't particularly interested in the scandalous events in the Archdiocese of Cologne and couldn't find anything offensive about Woelki's behavior. The Bishop of Munster, who asked the Vatican in December whether he should initiate an investigation against Woelki, is waiting for an answer to this day.
It is all the more surprising that the communication from the Apostolic Nunciature expressly mentions “possible errors” by the Cardinal. That is a slap in the face for the cardinal. Because he boasted with his legal white vest after the lawyer Gercke had certified in his report - according to the evidence of the files - that he had always acted legally correctly. Apparently the Vatican either came to the conclusion that everything was not in order under canon law, or one could no longer watch how Woelki consistently evades his moral responsibility beyond all paragraphs.