Pope Francis took another step in his efforts to make the Catholic Church more welcoming to L.G.B.T.Q. people by allowing priests to bless relationships between same-sex couples, the Vatican announced on Monday (18).
The Vatican had long stated that it could not bless same-sex couples because it would undermine the Church’s doctrine that marriage is only between a man and a woman.
However, the new rule does not change “the traditional doctrine of the Church on marriage, because it does not allow any liturgical rite that could be confused with the sacrament of marriage,” says the statement issued by the Vatican.
The issue of blessing same-sex couples has exploded in recent years, especially in Germany, where priests regularly offer blessings despite resistance from the Vatican.
In the Catholic Church, a blessing is a prayer or appeal, usually made by a minister, asking God to look favorably upon the person or people being blessed.
Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, the prefect of the Church and author of the statement, which was signed by Pope Francis, emphasized that the new rule does not validate the status of same-sex couples in the eyes of the Catholic Church.
But the statement represents a softening of the Catholic Church’s tone, although not a change in position. In 2021, the Pope said that priests could not bless marriages between same-sex people because God cannot “bless sin.”
But in October of this year, he suggested that he was open to the possibility of the Church blessing same-sex couples.
Source: BBC and The New York Times