Pope Francis says homosexuals deserve legal protections for the families they make:
“Homosexuals have a right to be a part of the family. They are children of God and have a right to a family,” the pope said in an interview in the documentary Francesco, which premiered Wednesday at the Rome Film Festival. “What we have to create is a civil union law. That way they are legally covered” [Sylvia Poggioli, Tom Gjelten, and Alex Leff, “Pope Francis Calls for Same-Sex Union Law in New Documentary,” NPR, 2020.10.21].
America: The Jesuit Review checks the comment and the record and finds the Pope Francis’s comment was translated accurately and represents a shift from the Vatican’s past public comment on civil unions for homosexuals.
Who cares what the Pope says. The RCC is a world wide criminal organization and I’m glad I left it. Some of the worst human beings I know are practicing Catholics.
I have long thought that the government should never have been in the marriage business in the first place. Marriage should be reserved as a religious institution. Let churches, synagogues, mosques, or any other institution make what ever rules they want for their flock (much the same way that they decide confirmation or membership or even adulthood). But keep ANY association of that away from the government.
Just like the government has a separate definition of “adult” that is not linked to religious orders, the same should be true for recognized (civil) unions. ONLY a recognized government union should be the determination of legal rights — just like only the government determination of “adult” bestows rights. What religious orders do should be only tangential – not legally binding – to the government denotation.
I believe the Pope’s remarks go toward this goal: to recognize that the government and the church can be separate. Ironically, it seems a church leader can see the case for separation, but the GOP-Taliban moves evermore to combine government and church.
I respectfully disagree, O. I actually trust the Government before I ever would organized religion when it comes to marriage. Generally speaking, most religion is based on conservative old world traditions, oppression, shame and misogyny, whereas at least in Government there are a few women leaders fighting for women’s rights.
The RCC can’t even move towards women entering the priesthood which has been decades long over due. Why can’t Pope Francis ever speak on women’s rights to become a priest? Because of the long misogynistic history of male preference. Cry me a River. The RCC has lost total credibility in pretending it’s progressive. Their funny backwards rules just continue to drive good people away.
An example of the RCC and it’s bizarre rules is, my sister and I were not even allowed to give a Eulogy at my Catholic mother’s funeral mass. I still don’t quite understand why but to not allow family members give a eulogy at her Catholic funeral is just another turnoff and only confirms my decision on leaving the Church. The RCC needs to get over itself.
I get what O is saying and have long echoed that. Let the government create laws for civil unions for any two people. Those unions will bring with them all the attendant civil laws.
If people want a religious wedding/marriage and ceremonial stuff, they’re welcome to do so. It carries no legal distinction, similar to a baptism, which does not overrule a birth certificate.
Religious groups should have no authority over civil law. Keep the two separate.