Vatican says blessing same-sex couples
is not endorsement of homosexuality
Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Following a major shift in the Catholic church's stance toward same-sex unions, the Vatican released a statement clarifying the blessing of same-sex couples is not an endorsement of homosexuality.
The Vatican's Dicastery for Doctrine of the Faith released a statement Thursday that its December declaration, which allowed priests to bless same-sex couples, does not change the church's doctrine that marriage is exclusive to a man and a woman.
Does the Vatican actually understand what marriage is? I'm inclined to believe they don't.
The Vatican further expressed priests should understand the difference between pastoral blessings, such as prayers, and liturgical or ritual blessings, such as in a marriage ceremony.
A pastoral blessing does "not intend to justify anything that is not morally acceptable," but is "solely the response of a pastor towards two persons who ask for God's help," the Vatican said, while giving the example of two divorced people since remarried asking for a blessing of good health while on a pilgrimage.
"Does it make sense to deny these kinds of blessings to these two people who ask for them? Is it not more appropriate to support their faith, whether it be small or great, to assist them in their weaknesses with a divine blessing, and to channel that openness to transcendence which could lead them to be more faithful to the Gospel?" the Vatican argued.
"To assist them in their weaknesses with a divine blessing"! OMG. Their weaknesses are sin, and the Vatican is suggesting that God will assist them in their sins. What blasphemy!
To avoid confusion, the priest should never impart such a blessing in "concurrence with the ceremonies of a civil union," meaning the blessing should not be carried out with any clothing, gestures or words associated with a wedding, the Vatican said.
In other words, the appearance of a wedding. But the real wedding occurs with the intimacy between the two individuals, not the ceremony, nor the dress.
The Vatican said priests should judge the giving of such blessings on a case-by-case basis, adding such blessings would be "imprudent" in countries where the simple expression of homosexuality is criminalized, and giving pastoral blessings could expose gay people to violence.
The Dicastery for Doctrine of the Faith in December officially declared priests can bless same-sex couples, as well as divorced and remarried couples.
The measure at the time was described as "likely the most concrete pastoral shift on the church's stance toward gay couples in the church's 2,000-year history."
The sweeping declaration came months after the Catholic bishops of Belgium published their own guidelines that included prayer and blessings for same-sex couples.
The Church of England took the measure a step further by officially sanctioning blessings for same-sex couples in a liturgical context.
And the Catholic and Anglican churches are running head-long toward Sodom. How long can it be before the Lord says, "That's Enough!"
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Vatican, the deep divide: Pope Francis under
increasing pressure from conservatives
Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church, is facing increasingly strong opposition inside the Vatican. The conservative clan of the Roman Curia – the powerful governing body of the Holy See – accuses him of a laxist vision of Catholic doctrine, particularly regarding the status of homosexual couples and divorced people in the Church. Our Rome correspondent Natalia Mendoza reports from the Vatican’s corridors of power on this growing conflict between tradition and modernity.
After more than a decade as pontiff, Pope Francis finds himself facing a major challenge: maintaining the unity of the Catholic Church's 1.3 billion faithful worldwide. This task is made even more complex by hefty criticism of Francis's governance from conservative circles. The pope is critiqued in particular for an overly laxist doctrinal vision and a certain authoritarianism in Church management.
Since the death of his predecessor Benedict XVI at the end of 2022, pressure on Francis's pontificate has intensified. The pontiff's unprecedented and controversial decision on December 18 to authorise priests to bless homosexual couples under certain conditions is causing endless controversy. The "anti-Pope Francis" clan now seems more determined than ever to pursue its objective: push Francis out of office.
For now, the 87-year-old Argentinian pope is resisting and showing that he has no intention of stepping down, as long as his health allows him to continue leading the Church. But in the Vatican corridors, many now speak of a "lame-duck atmosphere".
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