FREIBURG, Germany -- Retired Pope Benedict XVI has criticized representatives of the Catholic Church in his home country, Germany.

FRANKFURT, Germany (CNS) -- Germany's Third Ecumenical Convention concluded in Frankfurt May 16 with an open-air church service on the bank of the River Main. With the city's skyline of office towers providing the backdrop, some 400 people attended the service, including German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

COLOGNE, Germany -- The second expert report commissioned to investigate abuse in the Archdiocese of Cologne also incriminates church officials who are still alive and accuses them of mistakes in dealing with cases of sexualized violence, according to its author, Björn Gercke.

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis said he was dismayed by Catholic communities and groups that claim to be working to improve church life, but attempt to do so without prayer, the Eucharist and unity with the rest of the church.

WURZBURG, Germany -- The German bishops plan to seek talks with the Vatican about its instruction on parish reforms in the Catholic Church, and want lay Catholics to take part in the discussions, according to the German Catholic news agency KNA.

BONN, Germany -- Catholic and Protestant churches in Germany have responded differently to the federal government's decision not to lift the ban on public church services.

OXFORD, England -- German Catholics insisted their national "synodal way" reform consultation will have an impact on the church worldwide, as final preparations were completed for the consultation's first plenary in January.

VATICAN CITY (CNA) -- A member of the International Theological Commission has announced that she is no longer available to participate in the “binding synodal path” undertaken by the bishops’ conference of Germany.

MUNICH, Germany (CNA) -- The head of the German bishops’ conference told Vatican officials last week that addressing controversial theological topics during the German bishops’ proposed “binding synodal path” will be a service to the universal Church.

VATICAN CITY -- The German bishops' plans for a two-year process of consultation and deliberation on key issues facing the Catholic Church must conform to universal church law and must be approved by the pope, said the prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.

WARSAW, Poland -- Catholic bishops from Poland and Germany have warned that peace and unity are still needed in Europe, 80 years after the start of World War II.

The head of the German bishops conference formally apologized for sexual abuse in the church, saying it "has been denied, turned away from and covered up for far too long."

PADERBORN, Germany – According to a regional newspaper report, Archbishop Hans-Josef Becker of Paderborn has decided to allow Protestant spouses of Catholics living in his diocese to receive holy Communion "in individual cases."

WASHINGTON – The German bishops' conference said when the bishops meet in September, they will continue to examine the issue of Communion for Protestant spouses of Catholics.

Last month Pope Francis had Catholics worldwide scratching their heads after he seemed to suggest German bishops would have his blessing if they reached a group consensus to circumvent Church teaching and make it easier for some Protestants to receive Communion.