Vatican Says Same-Sex Blessings Not ‘Heretical’ Following Pushback
Three weeks after announcing that Catholic priests could bless individuals in same-sex relationships, the Vatican published a clarification on Thursday following backlash — and even widespread confusion in many cases — from prelates across the world.
The Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith said in a news release that it wanted to “help clarify” the many reactions to Fiducia Supplicans, a decree issued on Dec. 18. In it, the Vatican urged a “full and calm reading” of the entire document to better understand “its meaning and purpose.”
The original decree had been signed by Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernandez, who serves as the prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.
READ: What Catholics Are Saying About Pope’s Decision To Bless Same-Sex Couples
The Dec. 18 document, the Vatican said, was “clear and definitive” in regards to Catholic doctrine regarding church teaching on marriage and sexuality. Again, the Vatican said any blessings are for individuals — not the union — and must not be “liturgical or ritualized.”
“Evidently, there is no room to distance ourselves doctrinally from this declaration or to consider it heretical, contrary to the tradition of the church or blasphemous,” the latest statement added.
The clarification, in the form of a five-page document, also came a day after Cardinal Fernandez, a longtime theological adviser to Pope Francis, described Fiducia Supplicans as a “clear answer” to plans by German bishops to formalize liturgical blessings for same-sex couples — a move forbidden by the decree issued last month.
“It is not the answer that people in two or three countries would like to have,” Fernandez said in a Jan. 3 interview with the German newspaper Die Tagespost. “Rather, it is a pastoral response that everyone could accept, albeit with difficulty.”
Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernandez serves as the pope’s theological czar. (Photo courtesy of the Vatican)
Original document unleashes confusion
The 5,000-word declaration elaborated on a letter the pontiff had sent to cardinals last October. In that letter, Pope Francis had said such blessings could be offered under some circumstances if they didn’t confuse the ritual with the sacrament of marriage.
That document again repeated those conditions and reaffirmed that marriage is a lifelong sacrament between a man and a woman.
That didn’t stop bishops and priests across the world — especially in Africa and Asia — from coming out against blessing what the Vatican had called “irregular couples,” saying they would refuse to bless such them if asked.
The document said priests could decide who to bless on a case-by-case basis — but added that it “should not prevent or prohibit the church's closeness to people in every situation in which they might seek God's help through a simple blessing.”
The Rev. Michael O’Connor, pastor of Our Lady of the Gulf parish in Bay St. Louis, Miss., said headlines in the media had generated “a lot of confusion” regarding Catholic teaching.
“The blessing is not an approval of any kind of same-sex relationship at … but it’s supposed to be an aid to conversation. That is not going to be reported to you by The New York Times, OK?”
Pushback from Africa
Many conferences of Catholic bishops throughout Africa, where in many countries anti-homosexuality laws are enforced, have refused to implement the decree.
"If there are laws that condemn the mere act of declaring oneself as a homosexual with prison and in some cases with torture and even death, it goes without saying that a blessing would be imprudent," the Vatican’s latest statement said.
At the same time, Ukraine’s Greek Catholic Church became the first eastern communion to explicitly say the decision did not apply outside the Latin rite. The same was true of traditional Catholic clergyman across North America and Europe.
“I’m happy to see the African bishops speak up, against the compromise that’s happening in the Western church,” said the Rev. Mark Goring, a Catholic priest based in Canada who is also an author and YouTuber. “And, to me, this is excellent dialogue. … If I were to grade this, I would give [Cardinal Fernandez] an A-plus.”
Last month, the Church of England officially sanctioned same-sex blessings — although the church still forbids weddings for gay couples.
The latest Vatican statement on Thursday tried to quell any dissent — arguing that it isn’t a political move but rather part of the pontiff’s focus on pastoral care.
“Consequently, leaving polemics aside,” the statement said, “the text requires an effort to reflect serenely, with the heart of shepherds, free from all ideology.”
Clemente Lisi is the executive editor of Religion Unplugged. He previously served as deputy head of news at the New York Daily News and a longtime reporter at The New York Post. Follow him on Twitter @ClementeLisi.