ROME (AP) — Pope Francis endorsed same-sex civil unions for the first time as pope while being interviewed for the feature-length documentary “Francesco,” which premiered Wednesday at the Rome Film Festival.
I am happy to see this sign of progress, and I know many Catholic LGBTQ people will be encouraged. But it’s not far enough.
It may be as far as he feels he can go.
Of course, I accept that in his context this is a major change and offers hope to a lot of people. Separate but equal, though, never seems to work out.
it’s enough for my ultra-conservative catholic brothers’ heads to explode; i’ll take it. for those catholics, maybe it will trigger a reflective moment for a change …
Our own society for the most part says yes, same-sex couples should be able to get married, and in many traditions they can. But as a society we came to this breakthrough very suddenly, and the Catholic Church tends not to operate that way.
I’d love a bolder statement from the pope. However, I realize there are powerful people in the Roman Catholic hierarchy who would probably disagree in the strongest possible way. I’m willing to wait and see what he does next.
The Catholic Church reserves marriage as being for the express purpose of procreation.
In fact, the inability to have kids can be used as a factor in annulment of a marriage.
Thus, it’s impossible to square church doctrine on marriage with a couple who cannot naturally procreate with one another.
Thus this really is as far as he can go and still be Catholic.
Well, I know certain facts about bears and popes and popes do tend to be Catholic.
ETA I’ll be serious, though, I think this is a gesture of love and acceptance, although I can’t speak for the people involved. I’ve just always had a palpable sense from this pope that seeing us all as God’s children is a thing he feels strongly.
The New Pope?
As far as being Pope can allow, this may be the coolest Pope ever.
Those people dislike Francis. They’ll just add it to their pile of grievances against him.
Hell it is difficult to be progressive at TPM, let alone at the Vatican, and he is the Pope.
I am proud of the man
Friends who are both gay and Catholic have expressed to me their sense of existing on the fringes of their church. They would like to feel more welcome, accepted for the path that biology charted for them. The unequal part has driven many, by friends’ accounts, away from their faith. As they say, the Catholic church has been losing attendance left, right, and down the middle.
The strict social stances on issues like homosexuality and same-sex marriage create a chasm between doctrine and prurient attitudes. It makes me wonder if something akin to another Vatican 2 may be at hand.
He’s the first one in my lifetime that I’ve felt was a real pope, and I’m including JPII in that.
This.
Wow. I would never have expected a pope to say this. Never. And here we are. It’s about time, but it’s not yet enough.
Maybe this really is the apocalypse. When you get right down to it, I suppose Trump could be the Anti-Christ, but I would have thought the Anti-Christ would’ve been a lot smarter. Could be that you need a really dumb motherfucker to send you back into the dark ages.
Having been raised in a devout Irish Roman Catholic family, I will say this is pretty huge. It represents the church implicitly recognizing the separation or church and state, religion and the secular, in an area it has previously treated…for the purposes of power and influence…as solely the province of the church. I may be a fallen catholic…an agnostic or an atheist as the mood takes me…but Pope Francis is a remarkable man, has been largely a good Pope and seems to be taking necessary steps to bring the church into the 21st century. This shouldn’t be downplayed and he deserves credit.
Really won’t ever forget that image.
Only to the extent that a strict interpretation of Catholic doctrine allows.
For example, his prayer intention for the month is for every Catholic to pray that lay women be given more roles of responsibility within the Church.
The stain-glass ceiling won’t crack a millimeter without more women in leadership roles at the Vatican.
Incrementalism works.