Summary
In a planned Synod conference, three representatives from multilingual communities will be added to the 23-member group. This decision was made by the 6th Synodal Assembly in Stuttgart over a heated debate about including multilingual members. Initially, Emeka Ani, member of the Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK), proposed adding five members but later reduced it to three after facing criticism regarding demographic differences between growing multilingual communities and declining traditional ones. Ani emphasized that not accounting for multilingual communities in synodical decisions would be a significant oversight. He highlighted their increasing importance, which he observed firsthand from his experience with the growing non-German-speaking Catholic community in Germany. Ani argued against the proposed quota system, fearing it could overshadow the church’s efforts to address criticisms of its stance on parties like AfD. Ani’s perspective was that some prominent church figures had neglected multilingual communities’ issues, making them appear insensitive or irrelevant. He contended that without a quota, critics might argue against the church for not incorporating these voices in synodical decisions. Anis’ position underscores his concern about maintaining traditional values and beliefs rather than adopting trendy but ephemeral cultural standards.
Key Topics
Synodal conference, muttersprachliche Gemeinden, Emeka Ani
