On February 25th at 12.30 p.m. on ORF 2
Vienna (OTS) – Sandra Szabo will present the following articles in the ORF religious magazine “Orientation” on Sunday, February 25, 2024, at 12:30 p.m. on ORF 2:
Synodal path: Conflict over the German reform process is coming to a head
The conflict between the German bishops and the Vatican over the synodal path, the internal church reform process, is coming to a head. At the meeting of the German Bishops’ Conference this week, a joint governing body with laypeople was supposed to be voted on, which the Vatican prohibited at short notice. Cardinal Schönborn supports Rome’s concerns, while the Central Committee of German Catholics is outraged by the rebuke from the Vatican. ORF Germany correspondent Andreas Jölli summarizes the latest escalation.
In a discussion, Vatican expert Ludwig Ring-Eifel analyzes possible ways out of the current stalemate.
Religious Confidence: Survival in Everyday Ukrainian Wartime
Everyday war life has become a sad routine in the Ukrainian capital Kiev. Two years ago, Russia launched its major invasion. The war has so far caused tens of thousands of deaths, millions of refugees and hundreds of billions in damage. Kiev is far from the front, but people have to flee to safety from bomb attacks every day. As part of the ORF focus “2 Years of Ukraine War” (details below https://presse.ORF.at) the “orientation” visited people from the small Jewish community who do not want to surrender and are fighting with religious confidence for a free Ukraine. A contribution by Luca Faccio and Marcus Marschalek.
EU election: Church concerns about populism
The Eisenstadt Diocesan Bishop Ägidius Zsifkovics is responsible for European issues in the Austrian Bishops’ Conference. In the run-up to the EU elections on June 9th, he visited Brussels with journalists. The program included visits to EU institutions and meetings with church representatives. Around 350 million people are entitled to vote in the 27 EU member states. Zsifkovics advocates taking part in the elections at all and “not leaving Europe to the margins”. A report from Brussels by Sandra Szabo.
Man of the middle: Obituary for former Archbishop Alois Kothgasser
The former Archbishop of Salzburg Alois Kothgasser died on Thursday evening at the age of 86. He was Bishop of Innsbruck for five years before being elected Archbishop of Salzburg in 2002. He took over the archdiocese in a difficult situation. After the conflict-filled administration of his predecessor Georg Eder, he brought calm to the Catholic Church in Salzburg by positioning himself as a man of the middle. Sandra Szabo with an obituary.