Skip to main content

Catholic Church criticised for gay U-turn

Pro-gay groups slam the Vatican for backtracking on gays and divorcees, as Pope urges the church to accept 'change'.

Activists and human rights groups have lashed out at the Catholic Church's failure to open its doors to gay people, but praised Pope Francis for getting bishops to confront "taboos."

The spiritual leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics had called for the Church to take a more merciful approach to gays, unmarried mothers and remarried divorcees, but on Saturday, bishops failed to approve the section on ministering to gays, originally titled "welcoming homosexuals".

Gay activists were disappointed after hopes the left-leaning Pontiff would bring groundbreaking change at a conference of bishops.

The bishops failed to approve even a watered-down section on ministering to homosexuals that stripped away the welcoming tone of acceptance contained in the draft document.

The revised paragraph referred to homosexuality as one of the problems Catholic families have to confront.

"Once more, members of the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church have erred on the side of hypocrisy and fear," Lisbeth Melendez Rivera, from the prominent US gay group Human Rights Campaign told the AFP news agency.

But others saw pluses at the two-week assembly, known as a synod.

"Even if the text wasn't approved, and that is a shame, it will have effects. The debate will continue," Elisabeth Saint-Guily, the co-president of a Christian gay group in France said.

New challenges

Speaking at the ceremonial closing of the synod on Sunday, Pope Francis said the Church should not be afraid of change and new challenges.

"God is not afraid of new things. That is why he is continuously surprising us, opening our hearts and guiding us in unexpected ways," the pope said.

After an initial draft of the synod's final document was released on Monday, conservative bishops had vowed to row back on the upbeat tone, saying it would create confusion among the faithful and threatened to undermine the traditional family.

The fallout showed a deeply divided church on some of the most pressing issues facing Catholic families, and caused at least one head to roll.

Outspoken conservative American cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, currently head  of the Vatican's top canon law court, told Buzzfeed that he was being removed from his job to be made patron to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, an honorary post.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Toyota has made a SpongeBob SquarePants minivan

Who wants a red Ferrari when you could have a bright yellow SpongeBob SquarePants-themed set of wheels to impress your friends – and make fellow road users green with envy – with? If you love SpongeBob (or even if you don’t), this is the ultimate piece of fan merch you simply need to get your hands on. To celebrate the release of the SpongeBob movie in 2015, Nickelodeon and Toyota have teamed up to create the car-of-all-cars – the SpongeBob Toyota Sienna minivan. Currently on display at the 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show, it has SpongeBob’s classic bright yellow exterior, character-themed seats and the coolest wheel you’ve ever seen.
Post a Comment
Read more

Download: The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)

UPDATED          The Company of Thorin has reached Smaug’s lair; but can Bilbo and the Dwarves reclaim Erebor and the treasure? And, if so, can they hold on to it?             Having reclaimed their homeland from the Dragon Smaug, the Company has unwittingly unleashed a deadly force into the world. Enraged, Smaug rains his fiery wrath down upon the defenseless men, women and children of Lake-town. Obsessed above all else with his reclaimed treasure, Thorin sacrifices friendship and honor to hoard it as Bilbo’s frantic attempts to make him see reason drive the Hobbit towards a desperate and dangerous choice. But there are even greater dangers ahead. Unseen by any but the Wizard Gandalf, the great enemy Sauron has sent forth legions of Orcs in a stealth attack upon the Lonely Mountain. As darkness converges on their escalating conflict, the races of Dwarves, Elves and Men must decide – unite or be destroyed. Bilbo finds h...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Five Types Of Men Who Make Good Husbands

In my line of work, I meet a lot of great husbands and the wives who adore them. Over time, it’s not hard to pick up on a pattern among these men — especially when I chat with other wives about why they chose the men they’ve married and what qualities in their husbands have most shaped their marriages. For all those single women out there who often wonder what type of man they should marry or how they will know if he’s “The One” they’re meant to spend forever with, this list is 100 percent for you. It’s based on my own personal experience as a wife, those of the many wives I’ve encountered throughout my career as a Weddings and Relationships editor, and the observations I’ve made about the great husbands I’ve met or bumped into over the years. Not all of the answers are here, but I promise you, this list has some of the insight you seek. Read on, ladies, and take notes. 1. The Provider He puts family first, always. He’s a selfless man, who lives to please those he cares most about. He’...
Post a Comment
Read more