German bishops to head to Rome after Vatican demands they scrap a vote on contentious lay council

By NICOLE WINFIELD and GEIR MOULSON
Associated Press

ROME (AP) — A delegation of German bishops is expected in Rome soon after the Vatican insisted they scrap a planned vote on a controversial proposal to let laypeople participate in a decision-making council alongside bishops. The aborted vote was the latest in years of efforts by the Holy See to rein in the German Church. It has embarked on a radical reform agenda that seeks to give the laity greater decision-making say on issues such as the role of women, sexual morality and priestly chastity in the church. Pope Francis has made clear the proposed German council was contrary to the sacramental structure of the church and that he personally had “interdicted” it.