On Monday, the Vatican announced that Pope Francis has formally approved letting Catholic priests bless same-sex couples. The decision represents a radical shift in policy aimed at making the church more inclusive while maintaining its strict ban on gay marriage. In the Pope’s announcement it added “it must not resemble marriage”.
Well, it’s a start.
TOPSHOT – Pope Francis waves as he leaves at the end of his weekly general audience on St. Peter’s Square on October 11, 2023. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP) (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)
While the decision to step back from ages-old discrimination is applauded in many parts of the world, in the United States, some conservative bishops have criticized the move for being too liberal.
But they aren’t alone in their criticism; so have some LGBTQ+ advocates. They reason that this announcement still appears to support the idea that gay couples remain inferior to heterosexual partnerships.
As issued, the document from the Vatican’s doctrine office reiterates portions of a message the Pope sent to two conservative cardinals in the United States in October. In it, he suggested that Catholic clergy could offer blessings under some circumstances if the blessings weren’t confused with the ritual of marriage and didn’t include the trappings of weddings.
While some might say that that decision amounts to having your cake and eating it too, it is another step in a long process through which Pope Francis has continued, slowly over years, to move the church toward a more accepting and compassionate attitude to invite all to the church.
The formal announcement included a broad definition of the term “blessing” in Scripture. It went on to insist that people seeking God and looking for his love and mercy shouldn’t be held up to an impossible moral standard to receive it.
“For, those seeking a blessing should not be required to have prior moral perfection,” it said.
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