German Prelate’s Half-Measures Expose Synodal Apostasy
The website EWTN News (January 27, 2026) reports that Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne declared the German Synodal Way “concluded” for himself while refusing to attend its sixth assembly. The article details Woelki’s skepticism toward establishing a permanent synodal conference and his insistence on answering to “ordination vows” and unity with “Pope Leo.” Archbishop Georg Gänswein is quoted denouncing the Synodal Way as leading “away from the faith.” Both prelates criticize the process while paradoxically maintaining communion with the modernist structures that birthed this heresy.
Sacrilegious Usurpation of Ecclesial Authority
The very notion of a “synodal conference” where “27 diocesan bishops, 27 members of the ZdK [Central Committee of German Catholics], and another 27 members yet to be elected deliberate and decide together” constitutes an open rebellion against the divine constitution of the Church. Pope Pius VI condemned such democratization in Auctorem Fidei (1794), anathematizing those who would subject hierarchical authority to “the judgment of the political community.” The Syllabus of Errors explicitly rejects the heresy that “the Church is not a true and perfect society, entirely free” (Proposition 19).
Woelki’s complaint about the synodal process lacking evangelization focus ignores the heretical foundation of the entire endeavor. As Pius XI declared in Quas Primas: “When men have once shaken off the authority of God… there is no recognition of that sublime and supreme dominion of Christ the King.” The German Synodal Way’s resolutions—blessing sodomy, promoting female “ordination,” and embracing transgender ideology—manifest what Leo XIII called “the conspiracy of evil men” seeking to overthrow Christ’s reign (Humanum Genus).
Contradictory Submission to Modernist Structures
Woelki’s appeal to “ordination vows” rings hollow when he simultaneously pledges allegiance to “Pope Leo”—the antipope occupying the Vatican. The Defense of Sedevacantism document proves through Bellarmine and canon law that manifest heretics automatically lose office. By recognizing a false pontiff who promotes the very errors condemned in Lamentabili Sane (e.g., denial of dogmatic immutability, Proposition 64), Woelki exposes his own material complicity in apostasy.
Gänswein’s criticism of the Synodal Way as leading “away from the faith” ignores his own participation in the conciliar revolution. As Benedict XVI’s secretary, he helped normalize the hermeneutic of rupture now consuming Germany. The Syllabus condemns the notion that “the Roman Pontiff can, and ought to, reconcile himself, and come to terms with progress, liberalism and modern civilization” (Proposition 80)—precisely the error underpinning both Vatican II and the Synodal Way.
Omission of Supernatural Realities
The article’s focus on structural debates conceals the Synodal Way’s ontological rebellion. Not once does Woelki mention the four last things, the necessity of grace, or the Church’s mission to save souls from hell. This naturalistic reduction echoes the modernist heresy condemned by St. Pius X: “For modernists… revelation is… man’s acquiring consciousness of his relation with God” (Pascendi, 6).
The reported resolutions—blessing mortal sins and undermining holy orders—directly attack ex opere operato sacramental efficacy. As the Council of Trent teaches (Session VII, Canon 6), those who claim sacraments are merely symbolic “let him be anathema.” Yet the article treats these doctrinal betrayals as mere “controversial resolutions” rather than acts of spiritual treason.
False Binary Between “Reformers” and “Traditionalists”
The media narrative pits Woelki and Gänswein as “conservatives” against radical synodalists. This false dichotomy ignores that both sides operate within the same modernist paradigm. Woelki boasts of implementing “reforms in Cologne,” tacitly accepting Vatican II’s rupture with tradition. Gänswein, despite criticizing Germany’s excesses, remains a nuncio for the antipope—thereby legitimizing the very structure enabling these heresies.
True Catholic resistance follows the example of St. Athanasius, who refused communion with Arian bishops regardless of their claims to authority. As the Syllabus affirms, “the Roman Pontiffs and ecumenical councils have not exceeded the limits of their power” (Proposition 23). The German crisis proves Pius X’s warning: “The enemies of the Church are to be found not only among those who oppose her… but also among those who… pervert the Church’s meaning and scope” (Pascendi, 3).
Source:
German cardinal: ‘For me the Synodal Way is over’ (ewtnnews.com)
Date: 27.01.2026