An LGBT choir sings outside the Pastoral Congress at the World Meeting of Families in Dublin Aug. 23, 2018. (Credit: Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters via CNS.)
Posted on 04/16/2021 3:04:10 PM PDT by ebb tide
An LGBT choir sings outside the Pastoral Congress at the World Meeting of Families in Dublin Aug. 23, 2018. (Credit: Clodagh Kilcoyne/Reuters via CNS.)
ROME – 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.
Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck of Essen said that the priests in his diocese will face no canonical consequence if they decide to bless gay and lesbian couples next month as part of the event called “Love wins, blessing service for lovers.”
However, the website organizing the campaign has no public blessings registered in his diocese to take place on May 10 or “around that date,” as the website reads.
His comments came in an interview with WDR earlier this week, and follow his comments on Easter, when he argued that there are “many blessings for gay couples” in Germany. He also said that the Catholic Church is not supposed to reject gay people but “find ways for homosexuals to be able to live together.”
Overbeck’s stance is in direct opposition to a statement released by the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) March 15 with papal approval.
The document, technically an answer to a question posed to the CDF, argues that the Church cannot do so because “God does not bless sin.”
The Vatican never said who posed the original question.
RELATED: Vatican rules out Church blessings for same-sex unions
The response caused division both among the faithful and the hierarchy, particularly in Germany, which is currently undergoing a synodal path to try to address the Church’s response to clerical sexual abuse, while at the same time reviewing Church teaching on human sexuality, priestly celibacy and the ban on ordaining women into the priesthood.
Among the German high-ranking prelates who support the CDF’s response are Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, Archbishop of Cologne; Bishop Stephan Burger of Freiburg; and Bishop Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg.
“Love wins. Love is a blessing,” says the website for May 10th blessing of same-sex couples. “People who love each other are blessed. On May 10th, 2021, we invite you to various places in Germany to blessing services. We don’t want to exclude anyone. We celebrate the diversity of people’s different life plans and love stories and ask for God’s blessings. Without any secrecy. On this page you will find the services that take place and you can register for a service and send us a blessing.”
Organizers also ask that on that day, Catholics in Germany use “creative symbols to make visible how many people in the Church perceive the colorful diversity of different life plans and love stories of people as an enrichment and a blessing.”
He has apparently been so pleased with the results in Germany, he's since forced both the Italian and Irish bishops to hold their own "Sin-Nods".
Here in the U.S., Bergoglio's Biden bishops will need no forcing to follow suit.
“It is not to be excluded that I will enter history as the one who split the Catholic Church.” Pope Francis.
Being nice to faggots will really help save people’s souls and fill up those pews.
Whenever Rome and the Germans are mentioned together I think of the start of Gladiator...
Now those were men...
But with different philosophies just like now...
Frankie you will be forgotten right after you enter the worm food cafe...
Why do these people want God’s blessing when they clearly care nothing about following God’s laws? It’s for appearance only, so they can fool everyone including themselves.
Google “Norm MacDonald gay pride parents”.
(Warning: Not for work or children)
“It is not to be excluded that I will enter history as the Pope who received the first Atomic Wedgie.”
I won’t say “lighten up, Francis” since I worry that he’s already too light in the loafers.
They should do it on May 1, since communism is what they worship.
Not Christian. Not at all
What the hell is wrong with the German people? First they are mislead by Martin Luther, then Adolf Hitler. Now they are ready to condone sexual perversion and bless it. For people with such techinal minds, they sure are short on common sense.
God help us.
I have a different take: Whenever Rome and the Germans are mentioned together I think of facism and the Axis powers ...
For WWII Rome (Italy) and the Germans to me is the 2nd Pearl Harbor...The Raid on Bari Dec 2, 1943 by 100+ German Stukas...100s of Americans, Canadians, British, New Zealanders, Australians died on the pier there...My uncle among them...
Martin wouldn’t have stood for this. Your Frank however apparently does.
A priest can no more bless a gay union than I can turn lead into gold.
We can never forget that people like your uncle gave their life for our freedom. One similarity that the attach on Bari has with Pearl Harbor is that the Allies assumed the Axis lacked air strike ability in that part of the Mediterranean and consequently failed to provide adequate air defense. This lack of judgement resulted in negligible air defenses at Bari, which helped contribute to its destruction.
A priest should reflect Christ. When Jesus was confronted with a woman caught in adultery, what was His response?
"Neither do I condemn thee: go thy way; from henceforth sin no more." - John 8:11
A question for the adulterous woman of Jesus' day and the homosexual today is this - does that person recognize that they are guilty of sinful behavior? Salvation and forgiveness are available to those who recognize they are sinners in need of salvation/deliverance/forgiveness and who subsequently repent of their sin...... "go and sin no more." - Jesus
Hallelujah!
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