Bringing the Church into the late 20th Century, Pope Francis announced the Vatican will allow priests to bless relationships between same-sex couples, saying that while the couples are in “irregular” relationships living in a state of sin similar to unmarried heterosexual couples, they should be not be denied God’s presence in their lives and relationships, the Associated Press reports.
In a letter to two leading conservative priests who have vociferously challenged the Church’s increasing acceptance of gay Catholics, Francis said clergy should not avoid practicing “doctrinal or disciplinary schemes, especially when they lead to a narcissistic and authoritarian elitism whereby instead of evangelizing, one analyzes and classifies others, and instead of opening the door to grace, one exhausts his or her energies in inspecting and verifying.”
The directive appears to be Francis’s direct response to a 2021 directive issued by a Vatican liturgical committee–whose origins date back to the Inquisition–which said unequivocally, “God cannot bless sin,” which is how the Vatican characterizes any sexual contact outside marriage or any same-sex relationship. However, Francis will allow priests and deacons to bless same sex relationships as long as it is not done as part of a civil or other religious marriage ceremony and it does not include key sacramental elements or phrases implying the Church’s approval.