ANPThe Pope, early this month
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 17:35
Pope Francis agrees to priests blessing same-sex relationships. In a Vatican statement explaining this change of course, he said that people who want their relationship to be validated by God’s blessing should not be subjected to an “exhaustive” moral examination.
The statement emphasizes that this blessing is different from a church wedding, in which the partners must be husband and wife. The introduction of the blessing for same-sex partners does not mean that the Church approves of such relationships. The ceremony in which a priest blesses a couple is also not intended to resemble a wedding ceremony.
In the Catholic Church, divorce is not possible and neither is remarriage. Catholics who are legally divorced and subsequently remarry can have their union with their new life partner ratified with the same blessing.
“A blessing offers people a way to strengthen their trust in God,” the pope said in the letter announcing the decision. “A request to receive a blessing shows that one is opening oneself to the transcendence, grace and closeness of God and that is not a small thing in the world we live in. It is the seed of the Holy Spirit, which needs to be nourished and not opposed.”
Vatican Correspondent Andrea Vreede:
“Today’s declaration is a leap forward in accepting people who live in relationships other than traditional male-female marriage. But the decision did not come out of the blue.
In September 2022, the Flemish bishops introduced a liturgy with a blessing for gay couples. They say they announced this to the Vatican, but received no response. Their interpretation at the time was: whoever remains silent agrees.
And now the Vatican has spoken. In this statement, Pope Francis also refers to one of the questions he received in a letter from five very conservative cardinals last summer. Namely what he thinks about giving the blessing to gay couples. It is for that, but it is a different kind of blessing than that of a church wedding.
An answer that will undoubtedly not satisfy the traditionalist cardinals, along with the rest of the Church’s right flank.”
2023-12-18 16:35:35
#Pope #blessing #samesex #partners
