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Catholic Church Set To Approve Same-s*x Marriages

Published

2 years ago

October 4, 2023

Pope Francis has suggested he would be open to having the Catholic Church bless same-s*x unions.

In 2021, the Vatican decreed that the Catholic Church would not bless gay marriages because God “cannot bless sin”.

But late Monday, the Vatican published a letter by Pope Francis addressed to a group of cardinals who asked him for clarity on the issue.

Though the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PSN, chose to maintain a dignified silence on the issue, an official of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, CSN, who chose to remain anonymous, the Pope’s emphasis on ‘pastoral charity’ suggests a willingness to address the pastoral needs of same-s*x couples and extend understanding and support to them.

However, the Pontiff reiterated that the church only recognised marriage as a union between a man and a woman, but could open the door for blessings of individuals in same-s*x unions.

The pope said “pastoral charity” required patience and understanding, adding that priests should not become judges “who only deny, reject and exclude”.

He said a blessing requested was a plea for God’s help to live a better life, even in situations that were “not morally acceptable”.

The religious leader said priests should not only treat people as sinners because they might not fully be at fault for their situations.

Pope Francis suggested that blessing gay unions should not become an official rule but should be decided case by case “because the life of the church runs on channels beyond norms”.

He wrote: “The Church has a very clear understanding of marriage: an exclusive, stable, and indissoluble union between a man and a woman, naturally open to procreation.

“Only this union can be called marriage. Other forms of union realise it only in a partial and analogous way so they cannot be strictly called marriage.

“For this reason, the Church avoids any type of rite or sacramental that might contradict this conviction and suggest that something that is not marriage is recognised as marriage.

“However, in our relationships with people, we must not lose the pastoral charity, which should permeate all our decisions and attitudes.

“The defence of objective truth is not the only expression of this charity; it also includes kindness, patience, understanding, tenderness, and encouragement. Therefore, we cannot be judges who only deny, reject, and exclude.

“Pastoral prudence must adequately discern whether there are forms of blessing, requested by one or more persons, that do not convey a mistaken concept of marriage.

“For when a blessing is requested, it is expressing a plea to God for help, a supplication to live better. Although there are situations that are not morally acceptable from an objective point of view, the same pastoral charity requires us not to simply treat as sinners other people whose guilt or responsibility may be mitigated by various factors affecting subjective accountability.

“Decisions that may be part of pastoral prudence in certain circumstances should not necessarily become a norm. Not everything that is part of practical discernment in particular circumstances can be elevated to the level of a rule.

“Canon law should not and cannot cover everything, as the life of the Church flows through many channels other than normative ones.”

In 2020, Pope Francis called gay Catholics “children of God” and gave his endorsement to same-s*x civil unions.

Catholic secretariat aligns with Pope — Official

Reacting to the issue last night, an official from the CSN, who chose to remain anonymous due to the sensitivity of the matter, said: “The Pope’s emphasis on ‘pastoral charity’ suggests a willingness to address the pastoral needs of same-s*x couples and extend understanding and support to them.”

This, he noted, aligned with Pope Francis’s previous calls for a more merciful and inclusive church.

Despite the Pope’s compassionate stance, the official was quick to stress that this did not signify a change in the Church’s traditional teachings on homosexuality.

“Pope Francis also emphasized that the Catholic Church still considers same-s*x relationships ‘objectively sinful’ and does not recognize same-s*x marriage,” the CSN official clarified.

“The Pope’s role is to guide and interpret Church teachings, and any potential changes or developments in the Church’s stance on same-s*x relationships would require careful consideration and consultation within the broader framework of Catholic theology and doctrine.”

The Pope’s nuanced approach to the issue, as interpreted by the CSN, suggests a shift away from an exclusive focus on denial, rejection, and exclusion.

Related Topics:Catholic Church Pope Francis same sex

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92-year-old Convicted For 1967 Killing In UK’s Oldest Cases

Published

6 hours ago

June 30, 2025

Editor

A 92-year-old British man was convicted on Monday for a rape and murder committed nearly 60 years ago, in one of the UK’s longest-running cold cases.

Ryland Headley was found guilty by a UK court for raping and killing 75-year-old Louisa Dunne after breaking into her house in Bristol, southwest England in June 1967, when he was 34 years old.

It is “one of the oldest cold cases to ever be solved in the UK”, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which brings criminal prosecutions, said.

Local police reopened the case in 2023 and matched DNA from the victim’s skirt and other items from the original probe to Headley, who had also served a prison sentence for raping two elderly women in 1977.

He is due to be sentenced by a judge at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday.

During the initial investigation, police had found a left-hand palm print from Dunne’s home, where she was found dead from strangulation.

The palm print was compared to 19,000 men to no avail.

At the time, Headley was a railway worker who lived just outside the area in which men and boys were asked to give prints.

Reaching a dead-end, police sealed away forensic evidence for half a century. Both DNA testing and later Headley’s palm print resulted in matches.

When Headley was arrested at his home last November, he told detectives: “I don’t know what you are talking about. Very strange, very strange.”

“For 58 years, this appalling crime went unsolved and Ryland Headley, the man we now know is responsible, avoided justice,” said Charlotte Ream of the CPS.

Following the conviction, Dunne’s granddaughter Mary Dainton said her death had a “far-reaching impact throughout my family”.

“I was just 20-years-old when my grandmother died and I’m now almost the same age as she was when she was killed,” Dainton said outside court.

Police said they were now looking into other possible cold cases Headley could be linked to.

“Ryland Headley has now been convicted of three rapes of elderly women within their own addresses, and in the case of Louisa Dunne, her murder as well,” Dave Marchant of Avon and Somerset Police told the PA news agency.

“I think there’s every possibility that there are other offences out there – over the 60s, 70s, however long a time period – which Mr Headley could be culpable for.”

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Hope Dashed As Norwegian Company Apologizes For ‘Mistakenly Telling’ Thousands They Won Big On Lottery

Published

7 hours ago

June 30, 2025

Editor

A Norwegian lottery company on Monday apologised to 47,000 crestfallen gamblers who were mistakenly told they had won huge sums in a lottery, the firm blaming a currency conversion error.

State-owned gambling group Norsk Tipping said they had published incorrect prize amounts after a Eurojackpot draw on Friday because of an error converting from euro cents to Norwegian kroner.

The winnings had been multiplied by 100 instead of being divided by 100, the company said.

Among the disappointed was Ole Fredrik Sveen, who was on holiday in Greece when he received a message from Norsk Tipping that he had won 1.2 million kroner ($119,000).

“I thought: ‘Wow, is it finally my turn? Could it be true?’ I go onto the Norsk Tipping website, and there it says in black and white: ‘Congratulations, you have won!’,” Sveen told public broadcaster NRK on Monday.

In reality, he had won 125 kroner ($12).

On Monday, Sveen and the 47,000 others received apologies by text message from Norsk Tipping for the snafu.

“The apology was a poor consolation. They should have sent it out after the mistake, not today,” he said.

The Lottery Authority said Monday it had launched a review to determine if gambling laws had been broken, and Culture Minister Lubna Jaffery called the error “totally unacceptable”.

The firm’s chief executive Tonje Sagstuen resigned on Saturday after the scandal, leaving acting chief executive Vegar Strand to apologise on Monday.

Strand said his company’s state ownership made the mistake particularly problematic, noting that the firm was “entirely dependent on the trust of the population”.

“We have deeply disappointed our customers and take full responsibility for rectifying the situation. Such errors are serious for a company that is supposed to manage the trust of Norwegians,” Strand said.

“The work to rebuild trust again has the highest priority going forward.”

AFP

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Musk Renews Attack On Trump, Says ‘Big, Beautiful Bill Utterly Insane’

Published

8 hours ago

June 30, 2025

Editor

Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has renewed his public criticism of United States President Donald Trump, taking aim at the administration’s controversial “Big, Beautiful Bill,” which recently cleared a critical hurdle in the Senate, TIMES reported.

In a post on X on Saturday, Musk denounced the 940-page legislative package as economically harmful, claiming it would severely damage emerging industries while supporting outdated sectors.

“The latest Senate draft bill will destroy millions of jobs in America and cause immense strategic harm to our country,” he wrote to his more than 220 million followers.

He further described the legislation as “utterly insane and destructive.”

The senate narrowly voted 51–49 to advance the bill on Saturday night, following extended negotiations among Republicans. Vice President J.D Vance was present to cast a tie-breaking vote, though it was ultimately not required.

Musk, who once served as head of the Department of Government Efficiency under Trump, left the administration after a high-profile fallout and has since emerged as one of the bill’s fiercest opponents.

He described the measure as “political suicide” for Republicans and warned that it would raise the national debt ceiling by $5 trillion — the largest such increase in US history. “America is in the fast lane to debt slavery,” he added.

Responding in an interview aired Sunday on Fox News Sunday Morning Futures, Trump attempted to defuse the tension. “I haven’t spoken to him much, but I think Elon is a wonderful guy,” he said. Trump also suggested Musk’s frustration stemmed from disagreements over recent changes to electric vehicle mandates.

Musk’s opposition to the bill is not new. Earlier in June, he urged Americans to contact their representatives, calling the legislation a “massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill.”

Despite the bill’s advancement in the Senate, it faces continued resistance. Senate Democrats have slowed proceedings by demanding the entire bill be read aloud in protest.

“If Senate Republicans won’t tell the American people what’s in this bill, then Democrats are going to force this chamber to read it from start to finish,” said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer