Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
Politics and Religion
On the Pope’s Endorsement of Same-Sex Civil Unions

On the Pope’s Endorsement of Same-Sex Civil Unions

Last updated on: October 23, 2020 at 6:00 am by Gene Veith

0 Comments

On the Pope’s Endorsement of Same-Sex Civil Unions 2020-10-22T17:12:57-04:00 Gene Veith

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Pope Francis is being quoted as endorsing same-sex civil unions. Though this stops short of advocating same-sex sacramental marriages, this would amount to a seismic shift in Catholic moral teachings.

In a recently released documentary about Pope Francis entitled Francesco by the Russian-American filmmaker Evgeny Afineevsky, the pontiff says this:

“Homosexuals have a right to be a part of the family. They’re children of God and have a right to a family. Nobody should be thrown out, or be made miserable because of it. . . .What we have to create is a civil union law. That way they are legally covered.”

To be sure, such an off-the-cuff statement–like a number of other controversial statements Pope Francis has made to journalists–does not constitute an official church teaching, much less an ex cathedra proclamation that claims the authority of papal infallibility.

And questions have arisen about the editing of the quotation. The footage appears to be taken from a 2019 interview with the Mexican broadcaster Televisa. But, for whatever reason, the statement about civil unions was edited out, both when the interview was run in Mexico and when the Vatican itself released its own version. Then again, Afineevsky, who is himself gay, himself edited out what the Pope says next: “That does not mean approving of homosexual acts, not in the least.”

So what is the pope endorsing? Celibate civil unions? Is the idea that romantic attachments could be given a legal sanction that would constitute a family apart from sexual activity? That would be an interesting innovation–a new kind of family entirely–though such a novel institution would raise questions of its own. (For example, could priests and nuns form these kinds of families, as long as they refrain from sex? Does this option underestimate the strength of the sexual drive?)

In general, as they are currently constituted, civil unions and civil marriages are a distinction without much of a difference. Pretty much the only difference is that people can walk out of a civil union without going through a divorce. Thus, in some jurisdictions, heterosexual couples have been getting civil unions instead of civil weddings, so that if things don’t work out, they can leave the relationship without the legal and economic trauma of getting a divorce. (How would that accord with Catholic doctrine?)

As this Catholic apologist explains, the Catholic church does recognize civil marriages. Just as Protestants who convert to Catholicism do not have to get re-married, Catholics who were married by a justice of the peace are considered to be validly married. The apologist goes on to say that the church still cannot accept a same-sex marriage, though in accord with civil law, because, despite the name, it does not constitute an actual marriage, which in its essence must be between a man and a woman.

The Catholic church is concerned with “essences,” not just “names,” and this rejection of “nominalism” is foundational to Catholic thought. Another kind of nominalism would arise if the only difference between a “civil union” and a “civil marriage” is the name, as opposed to the essential relationship.

Also, Catholic ethics are grounded in “natural law,” not just in church dictates. The purpose of sex–biologically, naturally–is to engender children. Therefore, sex that is not ordered to that end–even in marriage, as in the use of contraceptives–is immoral. And this is why homosexual sex is intrinsically, as they say, “disordered.”

A civil union for homosexual couples would seem to bestow at least some level of moral approval to gay sex–though Pope Francis says it does not–and for a civil union to constitute a family (without children? with adopted children?) would seem to set aside everything that Catholic ethicists have taught about natural law. This too would shake the foundations of Catholicism.

But not as much as a pope making such changes. Conservative Catholics are highly committed to the church’s traditional teachings about sexual morality, and they are also highly committed to the authority of the papal office. For these to come into conflict is highly traumatic to the church’s most dedicated members.

Those of us who are not Catholics–believing that the Bible, not a human leader, makes the most reliable authority; believing that marriage, though an icon of Christ and the Church, is not a sacramental creation of the church but a temporal vocation that applies to all human beings, etc.– will look at these issues differently. But we are at least allies with Catholics–call it a kind of intersectionality of the morally marginalized–when it comes to sexual morality. We would join with our conservative Catholic friends in wishing that Pope Francis would speak more carefully and, if he is misconstrued, to explain his position more forthrightly.

Photo: Pope Francis, during his visit to Korea by Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service (Photographer name), CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Roman Catholic theology of marriage

same-sex civil unions

same-sex marriage

Previous Post

October 22, 2020

The Final Debate

Next Post

October 26, 2020 Which Should Weigh More, Character or Abortion Policy?

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"I am new to Cranach, but had a question for Dr. Veith about his book, ..."

Fritz Hinrichs

Netflix Narnia Update

"I think more, much more, needs to be said about Patriarchy and Christianity. He created ..."

DakotaLutheran

Netflix Narnia Update

"Well said Steve!"

Joe

Netflix Narnia Update

"I am pretty sure that Lewis would agree that the Aslan/Jesus connection is not allegory. ..."

Steve Bauer

Netflix Narnia Update

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category America Apologetics Art baseball Bible Blog Christ Church crime Culture Economics Education Ethics Family Food Football Government History Holidays Holy Week Humor International Islam Language Law Life Issues Literature Media Medicine Movies Music Nature News Personal Philosophy Politics psychology Reformation Religions Sacraments Science sex Social Science Sports technology television terrorism Theology Uncategorized Vocation war

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What animal did fed Elijah?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Sparrows Doves Eagles Ravens

Books by This Author Books by Gene Veith

See All Titles »