Same-sex sexuality is not a sin, no person should be denied priestly ordination because they are homosexual, says a paper approved by a clear majority.
Church sexual morals and the assessment of homosexuality were the focus of a discussion at the General Assembly of the Synodal Path of German Catholics on Saturday. In the first reading, there was a clear majority for a text that recognizes homosexuality as an equal identity. According to the text, no one should be denied the right to hold church offices or be ordained a priest because they are homosexual.
Lived out same-sex sexuality is not a sin and “should not be judged as bad in itself,” according to the paper. “Since the homosexual orientation is part of the identity of man as created by God, it is ethically fundamentally no different than any other sexual orientation.”
At a later synodal assembly, a binding vote on this must still be taken in the second reading. As with a text on conjugal love and sexuality, this means a reassessment by the magisterium, that is, a further development of Catholic teaching. Should the text be adopted, the Synodal Assembly recommends that the Pope undertake such a doctrinal reassessment. If the Pope were to do this, it would not only have an impact on Catholicism in Germany, but worldwide. For some delegates, the texts went too far, for others not far enough: Young delegates in particular demanded that a ban on discrimination should not only apply to homosexuals, but to all sexual and gender identities.
A lesbian religion teacher praised the text as the first “step towards a church without fear, a true inclusive church”. In the area of the sexuality of married couples, too, the majority of synod members spoke out in favor of changes to previous teaching, as set out, for example, in the Catechism, the Catholic faith manual. A line must be drawn, said the priest and philosopher Eberhard Tiefensee: “In no other area does the church go into such detail as in the bedroom.” Munich Cardinal Reinhard Marx emphasized: “The catechism is not the Koran. It is constantly being changed.”