Germany’s Dying Church: No Ordination in the Big Osnabrück Diocese

For the first time in more than 100 years there is no priestly ordination in the big German diocese of Osnabrück (555,000 Catholics). Nevertheless , the rector of the seminary, Father Ulrich Beckwermert, does “not make a big thing out of it,” “domradio.de” reports. The diocese is led by very liberal bishop Franz-Josef Bode.

The downtrend concerns all the German dioceses. In 1962 Germany saw 557 priestly ordinations. In 2015 they were 58.

Because of a Church tax system, the German Church earns every year more than 5 billion Euros (5.4 billion U.S. Dollars). This money gives it a big influence upon the Vatican.

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