The Vatican and Pope Francis have come under fire after declaring that the Catholic Church cannot bless the “sin” that is same-sex unions.
The statement was made by the Vatican’s orthodoxy office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in response to a question about whether the Catholic clergy can bless same-sex unions.
The reply, which was published in seven languages and approved by Pope Francis read: “Negative.”
In its explanation on same-sex unions, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith said God “cannot bless sin”.
“The presence in such relationships of positive elements, which are in themselves to be valued and appreciated, cannot justify these relationships and render them legitimate objects of an ecclesial blessing, since the positive elements exist within the context of a union not ordered to the Creator’s plan,” it said.
God “does not and cannot bless sin: He blesses sinful man, so that he may recognise that he is part of his plan of love and allow himself to be changed by him,” it added.
Recently the Catholic Church has been taking minor steps to be more inclusive of LGBTQ+ Catholics and some have remarked on the hypocrisy of this latest statement.
Fr Brian D’Arcy said this response is not in line with the teachings of the Catholic Church in 2021.
He said: “Hearing the news as it came out yesterday was very disappointing.
“And I thought rather harsh and out of kilter with the way the Church is going at the moment. It was really a hark back to former times.
“However, the CDF, they see it as their role to defend doctrine and dogma to the hilt. And while that is understandable, there is a greater awareness within the Church that that is not the Church’s only mission.”
Elton John highlighted the hypocrisy of the Vatican’s refusal to bless same-sex marriages pointing out the investment it made in his blockbuster biopic ‘Rocketman’.
On Instagram, Elton wrote:
“How can the Vatican refuse to bless gay marriages because they ‘are sin’, yet happily make a profit from investing millions in Rocketman – a film which celebrates my finding happiness from my marriage to David?? #hypocrisy.”
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