People who work for the Catholic Church in Germany and live in a second marriage or in a same-sex partnership will in most cases no longer have to brace for their dismissal under new employment guidelines being discussed by the country's bishops.

BERLIN -- German bishops are concerned that a decision guaranteeing German health insurers will pay for pregnant women's blood tests to detect Down syndrome will lead to abortion.

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

BONN, Germany -- In the coronavirus year 2020, fewer Christians left the church in Germany than in previous years, two church organizations reported on Wednesday.

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.

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.

OTTAWA -- Getting the United Nations and the European Union to acknowledge the persecution of Christians is an ongoing challenge, but there are signs of progress, says Marcela Szymanski, a lobbyist for Aid to the Church in Need.

The German Catholic Church is "in deep distress," said Thomas Sternberg, president of the Central Committee of German Catholics, the coordinating body of official German Catholic lay organizations.

One of the most contentious debates involving Church figures of the 20th century involves the actions of Pope Pius XII during World War II. 

WASHINGTON – German Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising called for change in long-standing church tradition as the German bishops' conference prepares for a workshop debate to "review" the issue of celibacy for priests.

VATICAN – Carrying Pope Paul VI's pastoral staff and wearing the blood-stained belt of Archbishop Oscar Romero of San Salvador, Pope Francis formally recognized them, and five others, as saints of the Catholic Church.

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."

Cardinal Reinhard Marx, head of the German bishops' conference, admitted that mistakes were made in the German church's handling of sex abuse of minors and said he anticipates change in the church.