The Catholic Church cannot bless same-sex unions, the Vatican proclaimed Monday.
The Vatican’s orthodoxy office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, said the church “cannot bless sin,” in response to a question about whether Catholic clergy can bless gay unions. The two-page explanation page approved by Pope Francis said the answer was “negative.”
‘LEGALLY COVERED’: POPE FRANCIS SIGNALS SUPPORT FOR SAME-SEX CIVIL UNIONS
The letter explained that the church is welcoming and inclusive to gay couples but that they don’t support their unions.
“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,” it read. “For 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.”
“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,” the statement continued. “since the positive elements exist within the context of a union not ordered to the Creator’s plan.”
The pope has previously shared his support for providing gay couples with the same legal protections as heterosexual couples but said that is focused on the civil aspect of the debate and not the religious question.
In a documentary, Francesco, which premiered in Rome last October, Francis said same-sex couples need to be “legally covered.”
“Homosexuals have a right to be a part of the family,” the pope said in the documentary. “They’re children of God and have a right to a family. Nobody should be thrown out or be made miserable because of it.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“What we have to create is a civil union law,” he said, adding that in the past, he “stood up” for same-sex couples seeking civil unions, an apparent reference to his support for civil unions while archbishop of Buenos Aires. As Argentina moved toward legalizing gay marriage in 2010, Francis led the charge against the measure while in private pushed other cardinals to make a compromise on the issue.
