Enlarge image
Cardinal Woelki in the garden of the Archbishop's House in Cologne: In the crossfire
Photo: Rolf Vennenbernd / picture alliance / dpa
Shortly after half past twelve this Friday noon, Archbishop of Cologne Rainer Maria Woelki stepped into the garden of his residence in Cologne.
"Day together," he says, and first of all takes a look around.
"Where should I go?" He asks everyone.
A few seconds later he has found his place under a pine tree, in front of him are almost 20 journalists.
Last week he spoke to Pope Francis longer, says Woelki.
"In the conversation the Holy Father made it clear to me that he counts very much on me, that he counts on me." The Pope praised his determination in coming to terms with the sexual abuse.
But Woelki himself admits: "Of course I made mistakes in the processing, mistakes with a view to communication."
He had agreed with the Pope to let his episcopate rest for several months.
"I will take this time from around the middle of October until the beginning of the Easter penance period," that is, until March 2022.
For the time being, Woelki doesn't have a word to say
At the same time, the Vatican publishes its long-awaited dictum in the Woelki case.
It quickly becomes clear: a real decision looks different.
Writing from Rome is a both-and-also.
Pope Francis does not recall Archbishop Woelki from his post, but gives him several months to pause for thought.
He praises the cardinal for coming to terms with the abuse, but criticizes him for his poor crisis communication.
"This has contributed significantly to the fact that there was a crisis of confidence in the Archdiocese of Cologne," says the message from the Holy See.
It is "obvious that the archbishop and the archbishopric need a time of pause, renewal and reconciliation."
Woelki can still call himself archbishop, but for the time being has no more say in his diocese.
Until his return, Auxiliary Bishop Rolf Steinhäuser, who is considered moderate, is to lead the archdiocese administratively.
The struggle for interpretative sovereignty over the papal letter has already begun.
Cardinal Woelki insists on selling his dismissal, which has lasted several months, as a voluntary "time out".
For critical Cologne Catholics like Maria Mesrian, the communication from Rome is more evidence of a "dissent" between the Vatican and the Archbishop.
The co-founder of the reform movement Maria 2.0 speaks of a "prescribed reflection period" for Woelki.
Mesrian is also relieved about the Pope's decision: "I actually expected that he would leave Woelki in office." mild reviews.
The Pope's letter forms the - for the time being - last final chord to a historical crisis in the Archdiocese of Cologne, which has been almost apocalyptic for months.
The Zoff began in 2020 when Woelki did not publish an opinion on sexual violence for data protection reasons.
And it continued even after a new study in March.
But Woelki really did not avoid a dispute, whether it was about the small Catholic university community or his own staff.
Leading priests of the archdiocese describe him as imperious, unreflective and withdrawn.
A high-ranking Cologne cleric told SPIEGEL a few months ago: "As a manager, the cardinal is an absolute zero."
The Holy Father sent visitors to the cathedral city
Woelki saw himself increasingly in the crossfire.
He repeatedly referred to his efforts to come to terms with the sexual abuse.
Meanwhile, the Christians in his archdiocese were voting with their feet.
In the first half of 2021 alone, 9,000 of them left the church in Cologne - more than in all of 2020.
On the other side of the Alps, in the parallel world of the Vatican, there is little understanding among Roman church leaders for the problems of German Catholics who turn away from their church in the face of an outdated sexual morality, a misogynous worldview and an epochal abuse scandal. But after the Archdiocese of Cologne had almost imploded, the Holy See felt compelled to intervene.
At the beginning of June the Holy Father sent two Apostolic Visitators to the cathedral city. The two were supposed to get an idea of the situation on site and investigate possible mistakes Woelki made in dealing with cases of abuse. Pope Francis had "carefully taken note of the results of the Apostolic Visitation" and made them the basis of his decision, according to the papal letter from today.
The Bonn city dean Wolfgang Picken, one of the most influential clerics of the archdiocese, welcomed the letter from the Vatican.
The granted six-month break is an opportunity for Cardinal Woelki, said Picken.
After all, the past months of arguments and uncertainty had been exhausting for the archbishop as well.
“The archbishopric has been in a kind of limbo for a long time, especially since the announcement of the visitation.
Cologne's church hangs in the air. "
The President of the Central Committee of German Catholics, Thomas Sternberg, on the other hand, criticized the Pope's decision: “The instrument of a break is not enough.
It is completely unclear what can happen at the end of such a break, and it is not suitable for restoring lost trust. "
Woelki also seems to have hardly given any thought to how he will heal the many wounds in the archdiocese.
At the end of the press statement in the Archbishop's Garden, a reporter asked him how he wanted to regain the trust of the faithful after his break.
Woelki just smiles, spreads his arms and walks away.