Homosexual couples will also be able to be blessed in the Catholic Church in the future: In a statement, the Vatican allows the blessing of “couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples.” But there are conditions.
The Vatican will now allow same-sex couples to be blessed. The faith authority published a policy statement allowing Catholic clergy to bless unmarried and homosexual couples.
The text entitled “Fiducia supplicans” (German: The pleading trust) emphasizes that confusion with a marriage must be ruled out. The Catholic teaching that sexual union is only permitted within a marriage between a man and a woman remains unchanged. The blessing should also not take place in a religious service setting, because such a liturgical blessing would presuppose that the blessed connection corresponds to God’s plan in his creation.
The religious authority’s statement was published in several languages. It bears the signature of the Prefect of the Faith Authority, Cardinal Victor Fernandez, and was expressly approved by Pope Francis.
Understanding of blessing “expanded and enriched”
In the authority’s text, Fernandez emphasizes that the church has “broadened and enriched” its understanding of what a blessing is in light of Pope Francis’ pastoral ideals. With this evolved understanding of blessing, it is possible to “bless couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples without officially convalidating their status or changing in any way the Church’s consistent teaching on marriage.”
As recently as February 2021, the Vatican religious authority announced that blessings for homosexual couples were not possible in the Catholic Church. According to current Catholic teaching, it is not a sin to have homosexual feelings. However, same-sex intimate acts are “intrinsically not okay”. The expression of sexuality is reserved for marriage, which can only be concluded between a man and a woman.
Bätzing welcomes Vatican decision
The chairman of the German Bishops’ Conference, Georg Bätzing, welcomed the Vatican’s decision:
The practice of the church recognizes a variety of forms of blessing. It is good that this treasure for the diversity of life models is now being raised.
Bätzing said he was grateful for the pastoral perspective the published Vatican document takes. It means that a blessing can be given to couples who do not have the opportunity to have a church wedding due to a divorce, for example, and to same-sex couples. He also welcomed the fact that the document clearly distinguishes between marriage and blessing and emphasizes the need “not to blur this distinction.” Marriage is “a permanent and indissoluble bond between a man and a woman, open to offspring.”
The Federal Government’s Queer Commissioner, Sven Lehmann, described the Vatican’s decision as a “long overdue signal”. “This means that all those in Germany who want to bless same-sex couples will receive support,” said the Green politician. “There is no first and second class love. There is only love.” However, a church distinction between regular and irregular partnerships, as made by the Vatican, is still discriminatory.
The first signs already in autumn
Francis had already made it clear in a letter in the fall that he did not fundamentally reject blessings for homosexual couples. It was said at the time that anyone who asked for a blessing was trusting in God to ask for God’s help in order to be able to live better. One must therefore assess whether there can be forms of blessing without conveying a false idea of marriage.
In Germany, blessing ceremonies for homosexual couples are already practiced in many communities, but they take place in a gray area under canon law. The approval of blessing ceremonies for same-sex couples was a main demand for the German Synodal Path reform process and was decided by the Synodal Assembly in March.
Elisabeth Pongratz, ARD Rome, tagesschau, December 18, 2023 3:49 p.m