Church leaders in Germany have defended a document on blessings for couples in “irregular” situations after Pope Leo XIV appeared to criticise it. Source: The Tablet.
Irme Stetter-Karp, president of the Central Committee of Lay Catholics (ZdK) said that there was no reason to retract the text Segen gibt der Liebe Kraft (Blessing gives strength to love) because it merely recommended offering blessings to couples who did not wish to enter into a sacramental marriage or to whom this was not available.
“Nothing more and nothing less. There is no possibility of confusion with the sacrament of marriage,” she said, insisting that the Church in Germany would continue its reform process but maintain communications with the Holy See.
During his flight from Equatorial Guinea to Rome on April 23, Pope Leo responded to a question about a statement from the Archbishop of Munich and Freising, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, commending the use of the blessings document in the archdiocese.
The joint conference of the German bishops’ conference and the ZdK issued the document in April 2025 as a platform for pastoral action following Fiducia Supplicans, the document published by the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith in December 2023.
In a letter to clergy and lay ministers, Cardinal Marx asked that the theological meaning of such a blessing be explained to those “who still struggle with this blessing”.
Ministers who prefer not to give this blessing should refer interested couples to the relevant dean or other clergy.
A blessing is distinct from a sacramental marriage, Cardinal Marx said, but this does not mean such couples – who in many cases may have already had a civil wedding – should be marginalised in the Church or in the parish. No couple should be turned away, and where necessary, this could also be the Church’s contribution to healing and reconciliation.
Pope Leo’s comments last week emphasised that “we do not agree with the formalised blessing of couples” beyond the terms of Fiducia Supplicans, which he said made clear that “all people receive blessings”.
The document originates in a request by Germany’s Synodal Way and later included the blessings of same-sex relationships presented in Fiducia Supplicans.
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German Church defends blessings document after Pope voices concerns (By Natalie K Watson, The Tablet)
