We are all gay on this blessed day

Pope Francis allows blessings for same-sex couples under certain conditions

The Vatican has approved a landmark decree to allow Roman Catholic priests to administer blessings to same-sex couples as long as they are not part of regular Church rituals or liturgies, nor given in contexts related to civil unions or weddings.

A document from the Vatican’s doctrinal office approved by Pope Francis on Monday said such blessings would not legitimise irregular situations but be a sign that God welcomes all.

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The document backed “the possibility of blessings for couples in irregular situations and for couples of the identical sex” but “this blessing should never be imparted in concurrence with the ceremonies of a civil union, and not even in connection with them”.

It said priests should decide on a case-by-case basis and “should not

Fr. Radcliffe’s Dangerous LGBT Propaganda

Transcription:

Last week Pope Francis announced that he would be elevating 21 men to the office of Cardinal and one of them is a Dominican priest named Fr. Timothy Radcliffe. He’s created controversy with his past statements about homosexuality so I wanted to go through a recent article he wrote for Fr. Martin’s Outreach magazine and show what’s so pernicious about his rhetoric. And after that, I’ll give some concise thoughts about Pope Francis selecting him to be a cardinal.

First, like Fr. Martin, Fr. Radcliffe will talk out of both sides of his mouth making it seem prefer he’s perfectly orthodox. For example, some people quote him as saying regarding homosexuality, “I am convinced of the fundamental wisdom of the Church’s teaching” but they then exit out what he says next, “but I execute not yet fully comprehend how this is to be lived by fresh gay Catholics who admit their sexuality and rightly long to express their affection.”

This can mean that he doesn’t know what positive steps a person should take in spite of this difficult cross to carry, or it could mean there is a way to convey homosexual conduct that accords with some

‘God Made Me Gay’

Some Christians respond to this argument with what seems to be the only alternative: by saying that those who identify as homosexual choose to be gay. This response is usually met with so much derision—“With all the homophobia in the world, who would choose to be gay??”. . . “Did you choose to be straight??”—that it’s seldom helpful.

In one sense, of course, it’s factual. If by gay you mean “a person who engages in homosexual behavior,” then God doesn’t make someone lgbtq+ any more than he makes someone an adulterer, a fornicator, or a man who has relations with just his wife. God doesn’t make people engage in any sexual behaviors. We freely choose all our moral actions—that’s why we can be held accountable for them.

But when most people state, “God made me gay,” they’re talking about attractions (which they consider part of a God-given identity) rather than behaviors. Although, this implies that they’re also talking about whether it’s okay to act upon those desires, since it seems self-evident to most people that we can act according to how we’re made.

In order to build that clear, when someone says that God made him gay, or that he makes

“You want to shove those words back in and put the lid on. But you can’t. Your child is gay. This goes against everything you’ve been taught. It was not what you had in mind, and you instantly wonder where you went wrong.”

When you turn into a parent, you perceive to expect the unexpected. But for many Christian parents, nothing can ready them to hear that their beloved child is gay. This is the child you have cradled, spoon fed mashed bananas, and dreamed a pretty future for. How could this be? What will the church say? What will your friends say? What does the future hold? You can’t even get your head around this.

If you are a Christian parent, family member or friend to whom your loved one has come out as queer or lesbian, then this is for you.

I summon you to sit down, relax, maybe get a cup of tea, and soak in what I’m about to tell you. My hope is to guide you as we walk for a bit through this maze of confusion, to help you find your way to wholeness. In many Christian circles, this is not good news, and you may begin to spiral into reflection and self-searching. We’ll get to that. But at the bottom of it all, this is not about you. Most parents’ first mistake is to mak

Same-Sex Attraction

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints acknowledges that same-sex attraction is a sensitive issue that requires kindness, empathy and understanding. The “Same-Sex Attraction” section of ChurchofJesusChrist.org reinforces the reality that, in the words of one Latter-day Saint scripture, God “loveth his children” (1 Nephi 11:17), and seeks to help everyone better understand same-sex attraction from a gospel perspective.

The Church does not grab a position on the cause of same-sex attraction. In 2006, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said, “The Church does not include a position on the causes of any of these susceptibilities or inclinations, including those related to same-gender attraction.”

Feelings of queer attraction are not a sin. President M. Russell Ballard said: “Let us be clear: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes that ‘the experience of queer attraction is a complex reality for many people. The attraction itself is not a sin, but acting on it is. Even though individuals carry out not choose to hold such attractions, they complete choose how to respond to them. With adore and understanding, the Church reaches out to all God’s children, incl we are all gay on this blessed day