Catholic bishops have on Monday
released a document saying that
homosexuals had “gifts and qualities
to offer.” This is coming after a week
of discussions at an assembly of 200
bishops.
The document said the Church
should challenge itself to find “a
fraternal space” for homosexuals
without compromising Catholic
doctrine on family and matrimony.
Gay rights groups of the Roman
Catholic around the world have
commended the paper, saying it was
a good development; however,
Church conservatives called it a
betrayal of traditional family values.
The document known by its Latin
name “relatio” used less judgmental
and more compassionate language
than that seen in Vatican statements
prior to the 2013 election of Pope
Francis, however it did not indicate
any change in the Church’s
condemnation of homosexual acts or
gay marriage.
“Homosexuals have gifts and
qualities to offer the Christian
community: are we capable of
welcoming these people,
guaranteeing to them a further
space in our communities? Often,
they wish to encounter a Church
that offers them a welcoming home,”
said the document.
“Are our communities capable of
proving that, accepting and valuing
their sexual orientation, without
compromising Catholic doctrine on
the family and matrimony?” it asked.
New Ways Ministry, a leading US
Catholic gay rights group, called it a
“major step forward”, praising it for
being devoid of the “major gloom
and doom and apocalyptic horror”
that accompanied previous Vatican
pronouncements on gay people.
QUEST, a London-based Catholic gay
rights group also called parts of it a
“breakthrough” in that they
“acknowledge that such unions have
an intrinsic goodness and constitute
a valuable contribution to wider
society and the common good.”
However, John Smeaton, co-founder
of the conservative group Voice of
the Family, had this to say about the
Vatican’s apparent change in
direction.
“Those who are controlling the synod
have betrayed Catholic parents
worldwide,” he said, calling it “one
of the worst official documents
drafted in Church history.”
The Vatican document will be the
basis for discussion for the second
and final week of the bishops’
assembly, which is called synod.
A good number of the persons who
participated at the synod are of the
opinion the Church should tone
down its judgemental language
when referring to gay couples and
avoid phrases such as “intrinsically
disordered” when speaking of
homosexuals as this was the phrase
used by former Pope Benedict in a
document written before his
election, when he was still Cardinal
Joseph Ratzinger and head of the
Vatican’s doctrinal department.
This led to the tone down of
Monday’s document which was read
to the assembly in the presence of
Pope Francis.
It said that the 1.2 billion-member
Church should see the development
of its position on homosexuals as “an
important educational challenge” for
the global institution.
While the Church continued to
affirm that same-sex unions “cannot
be considered on the same level as
matrimony between man and
woman”, it should recognise that
there could be positive aspects to
relationships in same-sex couples.
“Without denying the moral
problems connected to homosexual
unions it has to be noted that there
are cases in which mutual aid to the
point of sacrifice constitutes a
precious support in the life of the
partners,” the document said.
The paper also said there were
“constructive elements” to
heterosexual couples who were
married only in civil services or who
were living together, but stressed
that Church marriages were “the
ideal”.
According to Pope Francis, the
church must be compassionate when
talking about homosexuality. In his
words last year, he said “If a person
is gay and seeks God and has good
will, who am I to judge?.”
www.dailypost.ng/2014/10/14/gifts-qualities-offer-church-vatican-says-gays-given-chance/

Hahaha!!!!Religion dey make me laugh......Always evolving to suit the wims of the changing public to remain relevant in the scheme of things..what then happened to the supposed "standard of God"?