“Unfortunately, there are no more appointments available for the selected service in the coming weeks.”
This is the message many people in Münster who have decided to leave the church are faced with.
Anyone who is unhappy with their membership of a party or association often needs only an email, or perhaps a letter, to end it. But anyone who no longer wishes to be part of the Catholic or Protestant Church has to be lucky enough to get an available appointment at the local court (Amtsgericht) and also pay a fee.
The Volt council group Münster is therefore putting the following question to the city:
Can the city of Münster organise a church leaving day, and is it allowed to do so?
Tim Pasch, spokesperson for the Volt council group, explains:
“A fundamental change to the procedure for leaving the church (options to leave online or at least in writing) would of course be preferable, but cannot be implemented by the city of Münster. That is why we need a day of action for leaving the church, offering people an additional opportunity to formally leave a religious community they turned their backs on long ago.”
Helene Goldbeck adds:
“As appointments at the local court are limited and many people cannot afford to hire a notary privately, the city of Münster should offer its citizens this service in some form.”
You can find the question here:
