Senior American islands have lashed out at Pope Francis for supporting the gay union, calling the comments “private views” that do not represent the teachings of the church.
The late American Cardinal Raymond Burke, patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and former Archbishop of St. Louis, Kentucky, accused the Pope of having “erroneous and confusing” words that “do not correspond to continuity.” Church ‘education.
Francis’s outspoken critic, Burke, was backed by Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence and Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston, who said the comment did not support “homosexual activity.”
It comes after Francis told the filmmakers that during this week’s 2019 interview, gay couples are ‘God’s children and have the right to be in one family’.
U.S. Cardinal Raymond Burke, patron of Malta’s sovereign military order and a frank critic of Francis, accused the pope of sowing “error and confusion” among Catholics.
Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston (left) and Bishop of Providence Thomas Tobin (right) also weighed in, saying the pope’s words should not be seen as “endorsing homosexuality.”
While serving as Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Francis came out in support of gay organizations, but has not spoken out publicly since becoming pope.
During a feature-length film called Francesco, whose commentary aired at the Rome Film Festival on Wednesday, many saw it as support for homosexuality.
Responding to these remarks, Cardinal Burke wrote: ‘Such proclamations cause confusion and error among Catholic believers, as they contradict the teachings of the Holy Scriptures and the Holy Tradition.
‘They cause surprise and confusion regarding the teachings of the Church among well-wishers who sincerely want to know what the Catholic Church teaches.
‘They impose on the clergy of the soul the duty of conscience to end in making proper and necessary clarifications.
He added: ‘The context and occasion of such declarations deprive them of any magisterial weight.
‘They are properly interpreted as simple private opinions of the person who created them.
‘These proclamations, in any case, do not bind the discretion of the faithful who are bound to obey the sacred commandments of the Holy Scriptures and the sacred tradition, and the teachings of the General Magistrate of the Church.’
Burke says all Christians are commanded to ‘hate sin, but love the sinner,’ and his comment does not support homophobia.
But, he adds: ‘To speak of a homosexual union, in the same sense as the union of a married couple, is misleading, because there can be no such union.’
Francis reiterated support for gay union for the first time as pope during a film released this week, saying gay couples are still ‘children of God’
Bishop Tobin was the first person to speak out against Francis, who he also accused of contradicting the teachings of the church.
Topin said, ‘The Pope’s statement is clearly a contradiction of the church’s long-running teaching about gay organizations.
‘The church cannot intentionally support the acceptance of immoral relationships.’
And Cardinal O’Malley added his voice to the disagreement on Thursday, saying Francis “emphatically and consistently teaches that marriage is a life between a man and a woman for a lifetime and that it is God’s plan to have and raise children.”
He added: “The Pope’s support for civil unions is not support for homosexuality …
‘The Holy Father has recognized that there may be compelling reasons in civil society to make laws that provide for civil unions that are not the same as the institution of marriage.
Pope Francis has seen civil unions as a way to provide protection and health care for couples in long-term, committed relationships, whether they be siblings or friends or partners. Such an arrangement is not always sexual in nature.
The Holy Father is very much aware of the suffering and culmination of homosexuals, gay people, and those rejected by family and society.
‘He is also very aware of parents and loved ones, who also suffer because any member of their family is bullied or backward for being different.
‘The demand for sexual morality is very challenging for anyone who wants to live a faithful disciple life.
‘We don’t serve the people well by making false claims that we can change the declog.
‘Our job is to show people that we love and care for them and together we can strive to be better people, more generous, more courageous and more faithful to what God calls us to do more.’
Elsewhere in the Philippines, Bishop Arturo Bastes said he had “very serious doubts” about the pope’s attitude.
Francis made these comments in 2019, in footage which was presented this week by filmmaker Evgeny Ge Finievsky (pictured) in a film about Pontiff.
But Francis Clooney, a Harvard professor at Divinity, said he did not expect many senior athletes to criticize the pope.
‘[There will be a backlash], But not as much as one might think, he told The Harvard Gazette.
‘This news is based on a documentary, and it is in view of what Francis has said before.
‘Critic critics should not be surprised by this, even if they are very upset.
‘Those who are against any compromise in this direction will see this as another sign that Francis has strayed from the error, that he is not adhering to the teachings of the Church.
‘And they will add this to the list of complaints about him, even if he is a pope and deserves his respect.’
Particularly offended by Francis’ words is the African Isht, who has spoken out against homosexuality for many years.
Guinea’s Cardinal Robert Sara declared in 2015 that “Western homosexual and abortion ideologies, and Islamic fundamentalism” are the “beasts” of Nazi and communist ideology.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Catholic Bishops’ Conference last year ruled that “lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) were dissatisfied sexual orientations that cannot be accepted as a normal way of life.”
However, the pope’s words also received praise from other quarters, including the UN’s Catholic head, Antonio Guterres.
“This is a clear demonstration of the fundamental principle, which is the principle of nondiscrimination,” Guterres said in New York.
And one of the things that has become very clear in the UN doctrine about this is that there is no discrimination even in questions of sexual orientation.
‘So this is the Pope’s decision, of course, from our point of view it is very welcome.’
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