Pro-Homosexual Appointed Archbishop of Berlin

You are not signed in as a Premium user; you are viewing the free version of this program. Premium users have access to full-length programs with limited commercials and receive a 10% discount in the store! Sign up for only one day for the low cost of $1.99. Click the button below.

See All Plans

BERLIN, June 10, 2015 (ChurchMilitant.com) - The German capital of Berlin now has a pro-homosexual cleric as its archbishop, further solidifying the German Catholic Church's descent into heretical liberalism.

Bishop Heiner Koch, 60, ranks alongside Cardinal Reinhard Marx and Cardinal Walter Kasper in the area of open dissent from Church teachings, having said previously that to "portray homosexuality as a sin is hurtful" while calling for the Church to create "a different language when it comes to homosexuals."

"I know gay couples who value reliability and commitment and live these in an exemplary manner," he said in an interview with a German newspaper this past February.

Having also participated in the infamous Shadow Council, which aimed to promote "a pastoral opening on issues such as communion for the divorced and remarried, and the pastoral care of homosexuals," Bishop Koch will be one of three German delegates in attendance at this year's Synod on the Family alongside Cardinal Marx of Munich and Freising, President of the German Bishops' Conference, and Bishop Franz-Josef Bodem. All three support the Kasper proposal and wish to open Communion up to the divorced and civilly remarried.

Pope Francis did not himself handpick Koch as archbishop of Berlin. Under a complex system of concordats regulating the Catholic Church's relations with German secular authorities — a tradition going all the way back to the 1920s — Koch was elected arcbhishop by the Berlin Cathedral Chapter, and had only been appointed archbishop after Pope Francis approved the election.

"One can never tell how well this system works, since the voting is secret and there's no public consultation like in Germany's Protestant churches," said Stefan Forner, spokesman for the Berlin archdiocese. "However, elements of democracy are clearly at work here, since this is a real election. Although the process generally lasts too long, the same problem can occur in dioceses which don't elect their bishops."

Berlin's Diocesan Council of Catholics have been welcoming Koch's appointment with open arms, calling him "the right person for a pluralistic and secular city" who will "take on local challenges."

Have a news tip? Submit news to our tip line.

We rely on you to support our news reporting. Please donate today.