Cardinal Müller warns bishops are driving traditional Catholics to SSPX, criticizes gay blessings, Vatican Muslim prayer room, and women’s ordination.
Newsroom (04/11/2025, Gaudium Press ) Cardinal Gerhard Müller, the former prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has accused certain bishops of alienating conservative Catholics, effectively driving them to isolate at home or seek refuge with the schismatic Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX).
In an exclusive interview with EWTN’s Raymond Arroyo, Müller recounted statements from bishops who, he said, told traditionalists unwilling to adopt the post-Vatican II liturgy: “Catholics who do not want the newer form of the liturgy can either remain at home or go to the Lefebvrians [FSSPX].”
The German cardinal, a prominent conservative theologian, urged a different path. “We must be very open, speak with the people in a good dialogue, in a synodal way, to speak together,” he said.
Müller insisted that the Latin Mass itself does not fracture the Church. Instead, he pinpointed the Vatican’s approval of blessings for homosexual couples as the true divider, arguing it “relativises the sacrament of marriage, which is a revealed truth.”
His critique extended to broader theological shifts under Pope Francis. Müller condemned the establishment of a Muslim prayer room inside the Vatican, calling it “self-relativisation.” “The Vatican is the seat of the Catholic Church, and permitting non-Catholic worship there amounts to self-relativisation,” he said. “This decision seems driven by a desire to appear ‘open’ rather than by theological reflection.”
He questioned the process behind the move: “I don’t know if a cardinal, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, or the Pope was asked. Muslims may see it as a symbolic victory — a sign of their perceived superiority being acknowledged.”
Rooting his defense in early Church tradition, Müller emphasized Catholic doctrine’s foundations in Greek and Roman philosophy, as interpreted by the Fathers. “They acknowledged that there was some truth in philosophy, but never in pagan Greek or Roman religions. They never accepted the old religions,” he said.
He warned against conflating faiths: “Different religions have different understandings of peace, liberty, and the dignity of the person. We cannot mix them. We are not Fratelli tutti (all brothers).”
On women’s ordination, Müller was unequivocal: “It goes against the Catholic faith that women could receive the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Only men can become bishops, priests or deacons.”
The cardinal’s remarks highlight deepening rifts in the Church since the Second Vatican Council, fueled by differing interpretations of its reforms. Key flashpoints include Fiducia Supplicans, the 2023 document permitting blessings for same-sex couples, and Traditionis Custodes, the 2021 motu proprio curtailing the traditional Latin Mass.
These policies have pitted defenders of doctrinal and liturgical continuity against advocates for a more pastoral, inclusive model.
Müller, 77, remains a leading voice for orthodoxy. In 2019, he defended protesters who tossed Amazonian Pachamama statues into the Tiber River during the Synod on the Amazon, stating: “The great mistake was to bring the idols into the church, not to put them out.”
He has repeatedly criticized Germany’s Synodal Way for pushing liberal reforms. In 2024, Müller celebrated a Traditional Latin Pontifical High Mass at the conclusion of France’s Chartres Pilgrimage, underscoring his commitment to pre-conciliar rites.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Catholic Herald
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