Catholic Church - Pope rejects criticism of blessings for homosexual couples
Pope Francis has rejected some harsh criticism from the conservative camp regarding his new guidelines on the blessing of same-sex couples. The Vatican's Office for the Doctrine of the Faith published a further statement on this in Rome.
It emphasizes once again that such blessings are in no way to be equated with a church blessing for a marriage between a man and a woman. The Vatican also wants to give the Catholic churches in the various regions of the world some leeway as to how and when the guidelines are applied.
Cardinal Müller: "Blasphemy"
As the head of more than 1.4 billion Catholics, Francis had surprisingly allowed Catholic priests to give their blessing to "couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples" shortly before Christmas - but only under strict conditions. From Germany, the declaration "Fiducia supplicans" (roughly: "imploring trust") was largely praised, even if many in the Catholic reform movement do not think the declaration goes far enough.
However, there was massive criticism from other countries - particularly from Africa, where homosexuality is still punishable in many places. Kenyan Bishop Paul Kariuki was angry that Francis had "opened a dangerous door". The local bishops' conferences in Uganda, Malawi, Nigeria, South Africa and Zambia also rejected the paper. The conservative German Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller even spoke of "blasphemy", of blasphemy against God.
Blessings only outside churches and only for a few seconds
The Office for the Doctrine of the Faith has now defended itself against such criticism. It said that the declaration offered "no framework for distancing oneself from it doctrinally or for regarding it as heretical, contrary to Church tradition or blasphemous". At the same time, however, the Vatican also emphasized that such blessings neither approve nor justify unions outside of marriage. In addition to same-sex couples, this also applies to relationships in which one or both partners have been divorced.
Just like the declaration itself, the explanations were also written by Cardinal Prefect Victor Manuel Fernández. The head of the Office for the Doctrine of the Faith, who, like the Pope, comes from Argentina, expressly referred to regional particularities. He said: "In some places there is nothing to prevent immediate application, while in others it seems necessary not to renew anything and to take as much time as necessary to read and interpret the declaration." The decision lies with the local bishop.
Once again, the Vatican emphasized the difference between weddings between a man and a woman and other forms of ritual blessing. This includes, in particular, that such blessings may only take place outside of churches and may only last a few seconds. The appropriate length of time is said to be "10 to 15 seconds". The following is given as an example of a blessing text: "Lord, look upon these children of yours. Give them health, work, peace and mutual help. Deliver them from all that is contrary to your gospel and grant them to live according to your will. Amen."
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Source: www.stern.de
