The Vatican approves non-liturgical blessings for homosexual couples, what does it mean?

2023-12-18 18:58:51

The Vatican officially authorized for the first time on Monday the blessing of same-sex couples and “in irregular situations” for the Catholic Church, however remaining firm in its opposition to homosexual marriage.

“This blessing will never be performed at the same time as, nor in connection with, civil union rites. Not even with the clothing, gestures or words typical of a marriage,” specifies the document of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, approved by Pope Francis.

There is “the possibility of blessing couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples, the form of which should not find any ritual fixation by the ecclesiastical authorities, so as not to cause confusion with the blessing of the sacrament of marriage,” the document adds. .

It is the first time that the Church opens the way so clearly to the blessing of same-sex couples, an issue that raises tensions within it due to strong opposition from the conservative wing, especially in the United States.

Despite not being recognized by the Holy See, some priests already blessed same-sex couples before, especially in Belgium and Germany.

This statement comes six weeks after the conclusion of the Synod for the Future of the Catholic Church, a global consultative meeting in which bishops, women and lay people debated social issues such as the acceptance of LGBT people and the divorced and remarried.

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In early October, five conservative cardinals publicly asked the pope to reaffirm Catholic doctrine on homosexual couples, but the Synod’s final document left this issue aside.

In 2021, the Vatican reiterated its view that homosexuality is a “sin” and confirmed that same-sex couples cannot receive the sacrament of marriage.

Since his election in 2013, the Argentine Jesuit, who insists on the importance of a Church “open to all,” has repeatedly drawn the ire of conservatives, notably by limiting the use of the traditional Latin mass in 2021.