Bishop Chastises Leaders of ‘Atonement’ Prayer Service Opposing LGBTQ+ Pilgrims

A German bishop has criticized a “Prayer of Reparation” offered by a group of bishops in response to September’s LGBTQ+ Jubilee pilgrimage in Rome.  

Auxiliary Bishop Ludger Schepers, the German Bishops’ Conference’s (DBK) queer affairs officer, called the event by an international quartet of  bishops “shameful” and “a scandalous sign of ecclesiastical narrow-mindedness.”

Bishop Ludger Schepers

Earlier in October, four bishops who opposed  the LGBTQ+ Jubilee pilgrimage held the prayer event to “atone” for what they perceived as a “desecration” of St. Peter’s Basilica because of the presence of the LGBTQ+ pilgrims walking through the Holy Door. According to katholisch.de. The quartet of bishops– Dutch Auxiliary Bishop Rob Mutsaerts, Kazakh Auxiliary Bishop Athanasius Schneider, Swiss Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus Marian Eleganti and  U.S. Bishop Joseph Strickland, who was dismissed from ministry for strong, public criticism of Pope Francis–,  met in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to hold  a “Prayer of Reparation”which they offered  “for the abomination committed in the Eternal City—in this Jubilee Year and, sadly, with the approval of the authorities of the Holy See.”

According to Schepers, the bishops’ act of seeking forgiveness for the simple existence of queer Catholics demonstrates “not piety, but a fear of diversity—and thus a dangerous spiritual narrowness that betrays the Gospel.” He continued:

“There is no need for reparations for queer believers. True reparations lie ahead for the Church itself—for the wounds it has inflicted on queer people over decades. The Church cannot credibly speak of love as long as it rejects people who love. 

 “I dream of a church that finally understands: diversity is not a problem, but a gift. A church that no longer belittles anyone, but empowers them. A church that truly believes that God’s love is unconditional – for everyone, without exception. Because whoever excludes people excludes Christ himself.” 

The prayer–which has now been reproduced and shared online– accused the pilgrimage of “transforming the Church of Jesus, the Holy Door, and St. Peter’s Basilica into a stage for proclaiming homosexuality, sexual immorality, and the transgression of Your divine sixth commandment.” The bishops asked for forgiveness for clergy who “under the guise of pastoral care, withhold from people the eternal truth of Your commandments,” as well as “for all who commit blasphemy by claiming that You created homosexual feelings.”

In his condemnation of these church men, Bishop Schepers also accused them of  “open rejection of all those who yearn for a church that truly lives the Gospel.” 

In speaking to the German Catholic News Agency (KNA), Schepers argued that the bishops’ prayer was “not an act of faith, but an act of exclusion—an attempt to make queer people and their presence in the faith invisible.” The German bishop, who is an auxiliary in the diocese of Essen, and has been very vocal in support of LGBTQ+ people. remained firm in praise of the LGBTQ+ pilgrimage, noting that it was “not a protest, not a provocation, but a celebration of faith.” It demonstrated “the vibrant diversity of people in the Church” who prayed and journeyed together. “These pilgrims did not act against the Church—they are the Church,” he said. 

As Schepers points out, the bishops’ prayer highlights a dire situation that the Church faces: not the presence, prayer, and witness of queer people of faith, but rather attitudes of exclusion, narrow-mindedness, and self-righteousness. It is these attitudes and the harmful actions they produce that are truly in need of reparation. 

—Phoebe Carstens, New Ways Ministry, October 31, 2025