An "essential" Church” “

The economic crisis of the German Church, the difficult integration of migrants in German society, and World Youth Day: these are all issues that challenge the Church and society in Germany. We discussed them with Msgr. JOSEF VOSS , auxiliary bishop of Munster and delegate of the German Bishops’ Conference for problems of immigration. The Churches in fact receive from the State the proceeds of the “Kirchensteuer”, the Church tax paid by taxpayers who declare their membership of a Church. Bishop Voss confirms that the tax reform, the high rate of unemployment and the demographic crisis are among the main factors responsible for the economic crisis (cf. SirEurope 65/2004 ), but also points out ways of hope. What’s the cause of the financial crisis of the German Church? “In Germany we are in a situation of economic stagnation, with 5 million unemployed. This is causing a decline in tax revenue and hence of the proceeds of taxes paid to the Churches. The State has also changed its tax system. But whereas the State recovers revenue in other ways, for example through direct taxation, the Church does not. The demographic trend is also having a negative impact, because few children are being born; those who retire exit from the tax system; and there are increasingly less young people who are in work and who therefore pay taxes. For all these reasons we have had a very significant reduction in our income. In future, the Church, also the Protestant Church, will have to make do with less money. In recent years the dioceses that have been financially imprudent have suffered a very dangerous crisis. Now we need to reorganize the whole pastoral ministry. Parishes and structures are too big”. What does this new situation teach and what will be its consequences? “We were used to a situation of constantly growing prosperity, with large numbers of personnel working directly for the Church. But now something will have to change. We must accustom ourselves to a different situation. But the pastoral ministry of the Lord does not depend on money… We must learn that responsibility and mission are not just the task of employees, parish priests and pastoral assistants, but of all the faithful. In this way we will rediscover the role of voluntary service in the catechism and in parish groups. It will be a renewal of the faith, an evangelization that is already taking place. We are profiting from jubilees in the dioceses to begin a missionary movement for spiritual renewal in all our churches and parishes. Faith is a question not just of quantity but also of quality. In this new phase God wishes to teach us that it is He who creates faith through grace. And this is something that can neither be bought nor programmed”. Germany is a land of emigration and immigration, with 200 parishes for Germans abroad, but also with over 10% of its population foreign in origin. How is society reacting? “We have many refugees, economic migrants and a large number of clandestine immigrants without rights. In the first phase we had a need for manpower because there was an economic boom in Germany, as in the rest of Europe. We thought it was a transitory period, but that was a mistake because many of these immigrants failed to return home. In the second phase of migration, immigrants from Eastern Europe arrived. We now live in a globalized world; migration is a permanent phenomenon that will last. It is a new situation for which we are not yet prepared”. And the Church? “Perhaps we must rediscover the essence of the migrant Church, which even in its origins was a multicultural Church, but to which we are not yet accustomed. We still live in separate communities, even if in the same parish. Communication could be improved. There are parishes in which first communions and important feast days are celebrated together, in two languages. In some dioceses the parish priest and the foreign missionary are simultaneously responsible for the two communities and use the same church premises, and may even adopt a common calendar. In this way there’s a mutual enrichment that hitherto always remained hidden. In all the countries of Europe the integration of immigrants is still a task for the future. We are used to living in separated communities. It’s something new to say ‘we are one Church with all the languages and all the cultures’. Meanwhile we have created a Catholic forum to try to improve the situation of migrants”. Now Germany is waiting for the new Pope in Cologne… “We are sure the new Pope will come to Cologne. The successor of John Paul II cannot fail to come; it’s a question of inheritance. I think that a new feeling will grow also among the young. They loved John Paul II because he took them seriously; he exhorted them to find the aim of their own life in God and in Jesus Christ. There is a deep longing among people for meaning of life and a life lived to the full”.