Pope Francis is treading a careful line. His declaration on Monday in “Fiducia Supplicans: On the Pastoral Meaning of Blessings” that priests may now bless same sex couples, although not their unions, marks a dramatic and welcome – if overdue – shift towards acknowledging the place of LGBTQ Catholics in the church. It also reaffirms doctrine on both homosexuality and on marriage as a union of men and women.
A 2021 Vatican ruling that came down hard against the blessing of same sex unions, argued that God “cannot bless sin”, stressing that the church could not bless human relationships that failed to conform with “God’s designs.”
Monday’s declaration echoes the less-judgmental stance that has been the hallmark of the Pope’s reforming papacy. “When people ask for a blessing, an exhaustive moral analysis should not be placed as a precondition for conferring it,” it says. “Those seeking a blessing should not be required to have prior moral perfection.”
But the blessing, it emphasises, is a pastoral gesture of inclusiveness that must not be given any liturgical character that could suggest a form of marriage.
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It comes days after Francis approved a decision to allow transgender people to be baptised, serve as godparents, and be witnesses at church weddings.
The latest move will disappoint conservative Catholics, notably in the US and Africa. They have been quick to emphasise doctrinal continuity. It comes, however, in the wake of the Pope’s move to discipline two of his most vocal conservative US critics. The sacking of Texas Bishop Joseph Strickland and the stripping of privileges from Cardinal Raymond Burke are signs of his determination to pursue a more inclusive church.
The ruling will be welcomed by Irish Catholics, who overwhelmingly endorse same sex marriage. Many will hope that, following the recent Synod, it is just one more step down a reforming path towards building a more inclusive and welcoming church.
