Asia Bibi appeals for the repeal of Pakistan's blasphemy laws
- Apr 21, 2021
Continuing to openly challenge the Vatican, several Catholic leaders in Germany are openly supporting the blessing of same-sex couples, with a massive blessing service scheduled for May 10, in direct opposition to Rome’s chief doctrinal office.
Two Catholic bishops, six Catholic priests, the lay president of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps and two Catholic organizations issued a statement April 1 calling for an end to violence against transgender individuals.
Austria’s Cardinal Christoph Schönborn has said he cannot deny same-sex couples a blessing if they request one and that he was “not happy” with the Vatican’s mid-March statement on same-sex unions.
More than 230 professors of Catholic theology in Germany and other countries where German is spoken have signed a statement protesting the Vatican’s recent pronouncement that priests cannot bless same-sex unions, adding to dissent over the document.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, who heads the Vatican’s office for family on Thursday said that no one can be excluded from the pastoral care and love of the Church, even if the Church can’t bless same sex unions.
A Belgian bishop has lashed out at the Vatican over its decree that the Catholic Church won’t bless same-sex unions since God “cannot bless sin.”
The Vatican’s edict that same-sex unions cannot be blessed because they are sinful was met Tuesday with criticism by rights activists and gay Catholics in parts of the Asia-Pacific region as inconsistent and out of step with contemporary community standards.
Although ministry to the LGBT Catholic community in the United States is common, in Brazil it still exists largely in the shadows.