The Pope’s ‘shockg’ statement on gay marriage is g an uproar among Catholics – The Hill

Contents:

• THE POPE’S ‘SHOCKG’ STATEMENT ON GAY MARRIAGE IS G AN UPROAR AMONG CATHOLICS
• GAY MARRIAGE: THEOLOGIL AND MORAL ARGUMENTS
• COURT SIS WH CATHOLIC SCHOOL THAT LET EMPLOYEE GO OVER HER GAY MARRIAGE
• CATHOLIC VIEWS ON GAY MARRIAGE
• CATHOLICS ON GAY MARRIAGE
• GERMAN CATHOLIC PRITS DEFY ROME TO OFFER BLSGS TO GAY COUPL
• GAY MARRIAGE

THE POPE’S ‘SHOCKG’ STATEMENT ON GAY MARRIAGE IS G AN UPROAR AMONG CATHOLICS

Pope Francis ma news recently by voicg his support for same-sex civil unns – legal arrangements that give gay and lbian upl many of the same rights as married oppose-sex upl. The statement stck many observers as a shift for the Vatin – which 2003 me out agast any “legal regnn of homosexual unns” – even as Francis did not change his long-standg opposn to gay marriage. Around the world, Catholics vary their support for same-sex marriage and their acceptance of homosexualy general, acrdg to Pew Rearch Center surveys nducted recent years.

In the wake of Pope Francis’ recent ment about same-sex civil unns, Pew Rearch Center nducted this analysis to better unrstand what Catholics around the world thk about legal regnn for same-sex upl and homosexualy general. The term “homosexualy, ” while sometim nsired anachronistic the current era, is the most applible and easily translatable term to e when askg this qutn across societi and languag and has been ed other cross-natnal studi, cludg the World Valu Survey. In Swzerland and Italy – which allow civil unns but not marriage for gay upl – 76% and 57% of Catholics, rpectively, said 2017 that they support gay marriage.

Other untri around the world where most Catholics said society should be acceptg of homosexualy clud Spa (91%), Atralia (81%), the Philipp (80%) and South Ai (62%).

GAY MARRIAGE: THEOLOGIL AND MORAL ARGUMENTS

In Eastern Europe, acceptance was weaker, wh roughly half or fewer of Catholics sayg that homosexualy should be accepted by society Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Lhuania. In some of the other surveyed untri, cludg Ai and the Middle East, large majori of Catholics said homosexualy should not be accepted by society. In Argenta, Brazil, Germany, Mexi and the Philipp, Catholics are somewhat more likely than non-Catholics to say that homosexualy should be accepted by society.

The Catholic Church teach that “homosexual acts are trsilly disorred” and lls on gay people to practice “chasty, ” though also lls on Catholics to treat gay men and women wh “rpect, passn and sensivy. The Vatin's msage ced Francis' own words om 2016, when he wrote, "there are absolutely no grounds for nsirg homosexual unns to be any way siar or even remotely analogo to God's plan for marriage and fay. Pope Francis has been viewed wh ut optimism by LGBTQ groups bee of remarks like his statement, wily published 2020, that homosexuals are "part of the fay" and that same-sex and other nontradnal upl need a "civil unn law.

Followg Pope Francis’s announcement clarg support for civil unn laws for same-sex upl, which breaks wh tradnal Catholic valu that oppose homosexual relatnships, the lear has garnered both cricism and support om people all over the world. Most recently, NBC reports that retired Philippe Bishop Arturo Bast mented that he “had very ser doubts about the moral rrectns” of the Pope’s stance on legalizg gay relatnships.

COURT SIS WH CATHOLIC SCHOOL THAT LET EMPLOYEE GO OVER HER GAY MARRIAGE

While the lear of the Catholic Church exprsed his support for gay civil unns, other branch of the church rema adamant the tradnal Catholic valu. A majory of Catholics have nsistently approved of gay marriage Gallup pollg sce 2011, wh an average 59% approvg om 2011-2015, risg to an average 69% sce 2016. A small majory (56%) of Catholics who report attendg church weekly support gay marriage, pared wh two three Catholics who attend church nearly weekly or monthly (67%).

From a global perspective, Francis' new stance on civil unns uld potentially be more fluential untri where gay rights are ls accepted and LGBT cizens n be legally discrimated agast. Statistics suggt, however, that gays and lbians are not creasg number, if we accept the bt rearch data of Edward Lmann, who puts the number at about 5% of the populatn1.

What has grown is a much greater acceptance of gays and lbians our culture, as well as the social and enomic eedom for gays and lbians to emerge om the closet that has nfed them for so many generatns.

CATHOLIC VIEWS ON GAY MARRIAGE

The recent addn of same sex mment ceremoni the Sunday New York Tim weddg and engagement announcements and the populary of shows as "Will and Grace" and "Queer Eye…" dite a shift our culture's attu toward gays and lbians.

My tent was two-fold: first to ve stunts to dialogue wh people different om themselv; send, to work to elimate, whatever small way I uld, homophobic attus on our mp and our muny. My purpose today is not to support or fend gay and lbian marriag—ed, many gays and lbians do not want to marry—but simply suggt a theologil approach that might open up the possibily for greater Christian acceptance of, and eccliastil approval for, same sex unns.

CATHOLICS ON GAY MARRIAGE

A person is born gay and lbian and grows up this way; is not a matter of cisn, one possibily among others for the mature dividual.

GERMAN CATHOLIC PRITS DEFY ROME TO OFFER BLSGS TO GAY COUPL

"Consiratns Regardg Proposals to Give Legal Regnn to Unns Between Homosexual Persons" (CDF): nnot promote any form of civil regnn of same-sex unns, formally or materially.

Catholic sistence: one n uphold the digny of homosexual people while not upholdg their right-to-marry; no unjt discrimatn towards homosexuals is acceptable; they mt be treated wh rpect, and their rights fend.

” His public support for gay marriage followed Joe Bin’s remarks a few days prr, which the Catholic vice-print said that he had a change of heart over the years and felt pelled to support same-sex marriage. ”But while Catholic bishops have been clear their opposn to gay marriage, some lay Catholic theologians are disagreeg, and que publicly:Yet while many non-Catholic Amerins may take the polil posn put forward by the bishops as the fal word Amerin Catholic life, progrsive Catholic thkers and theologians say is time for the church to step back om polil arguments about same-sex marriage, and rensir s own the theologians who say the bishops are the wrong is Pl Lakeland, a profsor of relign and director of the Center for Catholic Studi at Fairfield Universy, a Catholic universy Connecticut.

GAY MARRIAGE

As wh the public as a whole, the more visible gay and lbian people are fai, schools, and the workplace, the more likely Catholics are to support laws that they see as extendg civil rights to a group of historilly margalized people. However, to receive this gift, we mt reject s, cludg homosexual behavr—that is, acts tend to aroe or stimulate a sexual rponse regardg a person of the same sex. People tempted by homosexual sir, like people tempted by improper heterosexual sir, are not sng until they act upon those sir some manner.

Throughout history, Jewish and Christian scholars have regnized that one of the chief ss volved God’s stctn of Sodom was s people’s homosexual behavr. Although hospaly is a s, is clearly the homosexual behavr of the Sodom that is sgled out for special cricism the acunt of their cy’s stctn.