Morality without Confession? - On the Debate about the Churches as Civil Religious Moral
Agencies. Proceedings of the XVII. Consultation Church Leadership and Academic Theology] In
social discourse and medial perception church and theology are predominantly present when it
comes to the moral foundations of communal life. Regarding these topics they make public
statements publish social papers or memoranda. Recent examples are the debates on the
migration crisis euthanasia sexual ethics climate change and financial capitalism. In view
of this trend the churches should give less prominence to behavioural norms and advocate more
the individual capacity to form a personal judgement on ethical issues. It is a
self-misunderstanding when churches understand themselves as moral agencies. The contributions
in this volume want to answer questions like: What is the relationship between the truth claim
of the Gospel and the endeavour to convey social values? Is there the temptation for the
churches to compensate the loss of relevance of faith in the public space through activities in
the field of ethics? Do they run the risk of secularising themselves and levelling the
Christian message?
