Catholic Church in Germany

[Tired]

I'm often somewhat ignorant of details of the Church elsewhere, even though I try to stay at least casually informed. This article made me wonder about the Catholic Church in Germany. It's a 5-10 minute read so only bother is you are bored. Curious people's thoughts, both about the accuracy of the assessment and what direction things might take.

https://europeanconservative.com/articl ... e-to-this/

[Doom]

The Catholic Church in Germany is the richest in the world; it is like Scrooge McDuck rolling through his money bin. This is because the German government collects a mandatory tithe from every registered Catholic in the country through the income tax system. And, no one in Germany is allowed to receive any sacraments unless they can prove they paid the Church tax. So, is the Catholic Church in Germany practicing simony, making people pay for the sacraments? In a word, yes.

And because the Church in Germany is rolling in money like Scrooge McDuck leaping through his money bin, the only thing the vast majority of the bishops care about is making sure the gravy train never ends, and they are willing to compromise every principle of the faith to keep the money rolling in.

I have little doubt that if they thought it would work, they would discard every belief, including the existence of God, just to keep the money rolling in. They care about little else.

This is what you need to understand if you want to understand what is happening in Germany.

[Highlander]

...no one in Germany is allowed to receive any sacraments unless they can prove they paid the Church tax.

I admit to being an ignoramus on the subject of German Catholicism, but I don't believe this. Absent the Church itself, the bureaucratic apparatus required to enforce such a practice would be impossibly overwhelming.

[Doom]

...no one in Germany is allowed to receive any sacraments unless they can prove they paid the Church tax.

I admit to being an ignoramus on the subject of German Catholicism, but I don't believe this. Absent the Church itself, the bureaucratic apparatus required to enforce such a practice would be impossibly overwhelming.

Not as difficult as you think. It is essentially the same practice as the "Temple Recommend" in Mormonism, which is based on many completely trivial factors, including paying your tithe.

[p.falk]

The Catholic Church in Germany is the richest in the world; it is like Scrooge McDuck rolling through his money bin. This is because the German government collects a mandatory tithe from every registered Catholic in the country through the income tax system. And, no one in Germany is allowed to receive any sacraments unless they can prove they paid the Church tax. So, is the Catholic Church in Germany practicing simony, making people pay for the sacraments? In a word, yes.

And because the Church in Germany is rolling in money like Scrooge McDuck leaping through his money bin, the only thing the vast majority of the bishops care about is making sure the gravy train never ends, and they are willing to compromise every principle of the faith to keep the money rolling in.

I have little doubt that if they thought it would work, they would discard every belief, including the existence of God, just to keep the money rolling in. They care about little else.

This is what you need to understand if you want to understand what is happening in Germany.

A priest who used to be the associate pastor at my church told a few of us about this.

We asked him, how is this not a scandal in the church? To which he replied, "it is a scandal... but one quelled by money". What a shame.

[Doom]

A priest who used to be the associate pastor at my church told a few of us about this.

We asked him, how is this not a scandal in the church? To which he replied, "it is a scandal... but one quelled by money". What a shame.

You want an example of the lengths the Church in Germany is willing to go for the money? German law requires that before a woman can get an abortion, she needs to undergo "counseling". Before John Paul II put a stop to it, it used to be possible to go to a priest for counseling, who would then usually just rubber-stamp the abortion by signing the card indicating that counseling had taken place, authorizing the abortion. Yes, priests in Germany used to give permission for abortions.

[Tired]

hmmm. Maybe I shouldn't have asked. That's sad.