December 21, 2023
Pope Francis Blesses Same-Sex Couples, Marriage Is Still Off The Table
The Vatican continues to push for marriage to be exclusively between a man and woman.
In a historic decision, Pope Francis has granted permission for Catholic priests to bless same-sex couples as long as the priest doesn’t advocate for their marriage.
Published on Dec. 18, the declaration, titled “Fiducia Supplicans: On the Pastoral Meaning of Blessings,” is a major update from the Vatican since its groundbreaking 2021 decision declaring God “cannot bless sin.” The Vatican continues to push for marriage to be exclusively between a man and woman and stresses that priests who grant same-sex blessings must “avoid any form of confusion or scandal” that may suggest the opposite.
The declaration categorizes the distinction between “ritual and liturgical” blessings versus those that are informal.
“This Declaration remains firm on the traditional doctrine of the Church about marriage, not allowing any type of liturgical rite or blessing similar to a liturgical rite that can create confusion,” Prefect Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández wrote in the document introduction. “It is precisely in this context that one can understand the possibility of blessing couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples without officially validating their status or changing in any way the Church’s perennial teaching on marriage.”
Same-sex and other couples “in irregular situations,” such as divorce couples or couples who have reconciled without an annulment, can be granted blessings as long as they “do not claim a legitimation of their own status, but who beg that all that is true, good, and humanly valid in their lives and their relationships be enriched, healed, and elevated by the presence of the Holy Spirit,” according to the declaration.
Priests from around the world and advocates for LGBTQ+ rights celebrated the decision. Francis DeBernardo of New Ways Ministry, a supporter of Catholic community members, says the decision shouldn’t be downplayed. “The significance of this news cannot be overstated,” DeBernardo said.
“It is one thing to formally approve same-gender blessings, which he had already pastorally permitted, but to say that people should not be subjected to ‘an exhaustive moral analysis’ to receive God’s love and mercy is an even more significant step.”
Jesuit priest Rev. James Martin praised the new way of thinking on Twitter, calling it a “marked shift” from the 2021 decision. “The Vatican’s new declaration ‘Fiducia supplicans’ is a major step forward in the church’s ministry to LGBTQ people and recognizes the deep desire in many Catholic same-sex couples for God’s presence in their loving relationships,” he wrote. Martin continued his viewpoints via email, saying he “will now be delighted to bless my friends in same-sex marriages.”
But some traditionalists were outraged and disappointed, including blogger Luigi Casalini of Latin Mass, who wrote, “The church is crumbling,” and theologian Ulrich Lehner of the University of Notre Dame, who feels the decision will only lead to more confusion and division within the church.