Austrian bishops consult with Vatican on priests’ rebellion

Austrian Catholic Church leaders were in Rome this week, for talks with Vatican officials about th

Austrian Catholic Church leaders were in Rome this week, for talks with Vatican officials about the “Call to Disobedience” promoted by dissident priests.

Cardinal Christoph Schönborn led the Austrian delegation to the Vatican. The Salzburger Nachrichten newspaper reported that the Austrian bishops wanted to consult with the Vatican on the protest campaign, which is organized by a group known as the Priests’ Initiative.

Msgr. Helmut Schüller, the leader of the Priests’ Initiative, announced earlier this week that he hopes to make his protest movement international. He claims that nearly 400 Austrian priests already support the call for radical changes in Church teaching and discipline. While there is evidently widespread dissent from Church teachings among the Austrian clergy, it is not clear how many priests are ready to adopt Msgr. Schüller’s rebellious approach.

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