Catholic Church cannot bless same-sex unions, Vatican rules: ‘God does not bless sin’
Elton John has accused the Vatican of hypocrisy after it invested "millions" in biopic Rocketman - a film celebrating his "happiness from my marriage"
Words: Jamie Tabberer; picture: Wiki
The Vatican has ruled that the Catholic Church cannot bless same-sex unions.
A new Pope Francis-approved decree from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) states “God does not bless sin”, according to reports.
The move follows the Pope appearing to endorse same-sex civil unions in an interview for the film Francesco last year.
“Cannot be considered licit”
The decree also states that such blessings “cannot be considered licit”, reports The Guardian.
It adds that “the Christian community and its pastors must welcome with respect and sensitivity persons with homosexual inclinations.”
It also states: “He blesses sinful man, so that he may recognise that he is part of his plan of love and allow him to be changed by him.”
The judgement was prompted by questions from pastors and parishes seeking to be more welcoming and inclusive of gay couples, and follows several inclusive statement from the Pope on gay issues over the years.
Soon after becoming Pope in 2013, for example, he famously said in response to a question about gay priests: “Who am I to judge?”
View this post on Instagram
Responding to the news on Instagram, ‘Your Song’ singer Elton John accused the Vatican of “hypocrisy”.
“How can the Vatican refuse to bless gay marriages because they ‘are sin’ yet happily make a profit from investing millions in ‘Rocketman'” he wrote.
“A film which celebrates my finding happiness from my marriage to David [Furnish]?? #hypocrisy. [sic]”
Read the Attitude April Style issue, out now to download and to order globally.
Subscribe in print and get your first three issues for just £1 each, or digitally for just over £1.50 per issue.
