Pope Francis Reaffirms Catholic Church’s Stance Against Same-Sex Marriage

Pope Francis said the Catholic Church will unequivocally condemn same-sex marriage. This is stated in the commentary on this issue for a group of cardinals, which was translated from Spanish and published on October 2 by the editors Vatican News.

The Pontiff answered the questions (in Italian – “dubia”, literally – “doubts”) of five cardinals. He said the church still has a very clear understanding of marriage as a union between a man and a woman and avoids “any rites or sacraments that might be contrary to this belief.”

At the same time, Francis believes that the Vatican should not lose pastoral mercy, which is not limited to defending the truth.

“Defending objective truth is not the only manifestation of this mercy, it also includes kindness, patience, understanding, tenderness, encouragement. Therefore, we cannot be judges who only deny, reject and exclude,” he wrote, urging not to treat gay couples as “sinners”.

Context:

In 2020, the Corriere della Sera newspaper reported that Pope Francis came out in support of same-sex marriage in the documentary “Francis.” “Gays have the right to be a family. They are children of God and have the right to a family,” the pontiff said.

The Vatican later called Francis’s statement of support for same-sex marriage taken out of context.

Francis has previously said repeatedly that gay people deserve respect and should not be discriminated against. At the same time, he noted that he was concerned about homosexuality among priests.

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2023-10-04 20:10:58