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05-01-2024
CATICAN CITY: In response to the disquiet among Catholic bishops, particularly in certain African countries, following the approval of blessings for same-sex couples last month, the Vatican issued a five-page statement on Thursday to assuage concerns.
The statement from the Vatican’s doctrinal office emphasized that the measure is neither “heretical” nor “blasphemous.”
The December 18 declaration, known as Fiducia Supplicans (Supplicating Trust), prompted varying degrees of dissent and confusion, prompting the need for further clarification. The Vatican’s doctrinal office acknowledged the complexity of the issue, particularly in countries where individuals receiving such blessings might face violence, imprisonment, or even death.
The statement underscored that the blessings should not be interpreted as an official endorsement of gay sex or a sacrament of marriage for same-sex couples. Catholic Bishops conferences in several countries had previously clarified this point after the initial declaration.
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, responsible for doctrinal matters, emphasized in its Thursday statement that the blessings should not be viewed as an approval of the entirety of individuals’ actions or lifestyles. It called for a comprehensive and calm reading of the original declaration while reiterating the non-heretical nature of the measure within the Church’s tradition.
The issuance of a lengthy clarification shortly after the initial declaration highlighted the widespread confusion it generated. The Vatican sought to quell any doctrinal concerns and emphasized the importance of understanding Fiducia Supplicans without doctrinal deviation or misinterpretation.
Pope Francis, leader of the world’s nearly 1.4 billion Roman Catholics, announced last week that priests are now allowed to bless the relationships of same-sex couples and others in what the church refers to as “irregular situations,” a change expected to generate mixed reactions among the religion’s widespread and diverse communities.
The announcement, in the form of a papal declaration titled “Fiducia Supplicans on the Pastoral Meaning of Blessings,” appears to overturn a 2021 ruling issued by the same office of the Vatican, which found that such blessings were impermissible because the church “cannot bless sin.”
The declaration makes clear that the church’s teaching that same-sex and other nontraditional relationships are barred from the sacrament of marriage is unchanged. The blessing of nontraditional relationships, the document says, does not rise to the level of what the church considers a sacrament, must be kept completely distinct from marriage ceremonies and cannot be considered a replacement for or alternative to the sacrament of marriage. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
