invoked on the man and woman united in the sacrament of Matrimony, while in fact “there are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God’s plan for marriage and family.” This is because they would constitute a certain imitation or analogue of the nuptial blessing. The presence in such relationships of positive elements, which are in themselves to be valued and appreciated, cannot justify these relationships and render them legitimate objects of an ecclesial blessing, since the positive elements exist within the context of a union not ordered to the Creator’s plan.įurthermore, since blessings on persons are in relationship with the sacraments, the blessing of homosexual unions cannot be considered licit. Therefore, only those realities which are in themselves ordered to serve those ends are congruent with the essence of the blessing imparted by the Church.įor this reason, it is not licit to impart a blessing on relationships, or partnerships, even stable, that involve sexual activity outside of marriage (i.e., outside the indissoluble union of a man and a woman open in itself to the transmission of life), as is the case of the unions between persons of the same sex. In addition, they “have been established as a kind of imitation of the sacraments, blessings are signs above all of spiritual effects that are achieved through the Church’s intercession.”Ĭonsequently, in order to conform with the nature of sacramentals, when a blessing is invoked on particular human relationships, in addition to the right intention of those who participate, it is necessary that what is blessed be objectively and positively ordered to receive and express grace, according to the designs of God inscribed in creation, and fully revealed by Christ the Lord. By them men are disposed to receive the chief effect of the sacraments, and various occasions of life are sanctified.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church specifies, then, that “sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church’s prayer, they prepare us to receive grace and dispose us to cooperate with it.”īlessings belong to the category of the sacramentals, whereby the Church “calls us to praise God, encourages us to implore his protection, and exhorts us to seek his mercy by our holiness of life”. Such projects are not infrequently motivated by a sincere desire to welcome and accompany homosexual persons, to whom are proposed paths of growth in faith, “so that those who manifest a homosexual orientation can receive the assistance they need to understand and fully carry out God’s will in their lives.” …Īmong the liturgical actions of the Church, the sacramentals have a singular importance: “These are sacred signs that resemble the sacraments: they signify effects, particularly of a spiritual kind, which are obtained through the Church’s intercession. In 2013, for example, Francis said: “If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge him?” More recently in 2020, Francis told a group of parents of LGBTQ children that “God loves your children as they are” and “the church loves your children as they are because they are children of God.In some ecclesial contexts, plans and proposals for blessings of unions of persons of the same sex are being advanced. While the Catholic Church has traditionally been opposed to gay marriage, Pope Francis has made a few statements over the years that seemed to contradict the church’s position on homosexuality. The Vatican has not commented on this display of the flag. Evangelist Franklin Graham, for example, called the display an “insult to the Catholic Church!” Embassy to the Holy See drew some criticism from conservative critics.
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“As we celebrate Pride Month this June, let us not only observe how far we have come in the struggle for the human rights of LGBTQI+ persons, but also acknowledge the challenges that remain.” The first showed the White House bathed in rainbow lights, and the second accompanied a statement from U.S.
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Embassy to the Holy See posted two other photographs featuring the flag’s rainbow colors on that day.