The former Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Gerhard Müller, has joined in the controversy over Bavaria’s decision to hang crosses in the entranceways of all public buildings, from 1 June.
He could only support Bavaria’s decision to hang crosses in public buildings – “no matter whose initiative it was”, Cardinal Müller told the Regensburg branch of Bavarian radio on 4 May.
“I prefer politicians who hang up crosses to those who take them down”, he said but added that “of course” he did not want to “interfere” in the debate. “The cross is not only a religious symbol in the sense that it calls on people to profess their Christian faith. It is also a protest against wrongdoing and shows that we can live together in a spirit of reconciliation. That, I think, is something that everyone can accept,” he insisted.
“The cross is a fundamental symbol of our Bavarian identity and way of life,” the state’s leader Markus Soder said after the rule was passed.
The president of the German bishops’ conference, and Archbishop of Munich Cardinal Reinhard Marx, first accused Bavaria of “stirring up trouble and playing people off against one another” with its decision to put up crosses. However he has since sent out more conciliatory signals. It was a blessing that in Germany the state allowed the Churches to give witness to Jesus Christ, he said in Würzburg on 5 May.
According to the latest “infratest:dimap” poll, the majority of Bavarians welcome the cross decision with 56 per cent in favour and 38 per cent against it. In the other German states, however, according to an “Emnid” poll, 64 per cent are against crosses in public buildings and only 20 per cent in favour.
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