A newly released final report from a Vatican-commissioned study group on May 5 has raised serious concerns among faithful Catholics by appearing to reframe same-sex relationships in ways that depart from longstanding Church doctrine on chastity and marriage.
According to the 32-page document titled “Theological criteria and synodal methodologies for shared discernment of emerging doctrinal, pastoral, and ethical issues,” produced by Study Group 9 of the Synod on Synodality, the group relies on personal testimonies from individuals with same-sex attraction to guide pastoral approaches.
The report frames the testimonies as “experiences of goodness” which constitute “successive stages of development in the individuals involved.” It notes the protagonist of the first testimony’s “discovery that sin, at its root, does not consist in the (same-sex) couple relationship” but in “a lack of faith in a God who desires our fulfilment,” following what it describes as “the devastating effects of reparative therapies aimed at recovering heterosexuality.”
According to LifeSiteNews, the document takes specific aim at Courage, the Catholic apostolate that supports those with same-sex attraction who seek to live chastely in accord with Church teaching. Citing a testimony that spoke of “problematic membership” in the group, the report characterizes Courage’s approach as “reparative therapy” and condemns it for having “the effect of separating faith and sexuality.”
The Study Group 9 report further presents the question of “marriage” in relation to same-sex relationships as open for discussion. Under the title “Possible pathways and questions for synodal discernment,” it states that “while listening to the Word of God lived in the Church,” it is “necessary to address with parrhesia the currently recurring question of whether one can speak of ‘marriage’ in relation to persons with same-sex attractions.”
The document asks whether homosexual “relationships” can be thought of as equal “to heterosexual conjugal union,” despite “the evident impossibility of procreation.” It continues: “Consequently, we must ask how the Christian community is called to interpret and address questions relating to the educational commitments toward children within family, ecclesial, and social life, in relation to the de facto unions between believers of the same sex.” According to the report, solutions to these questions “cannot be anticipated with pre-established formulas.”
Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod, stated that the report “offers concrete tools for addressing the most difficult questions without fleeing from complexity: listening to those concerned, reading reality, and bringing together different forms of knowledge.” He added, “It is the synodal method applied to the most demanding situations.”
This latest development from the Synod on Synodality has prompted renewed worry among many Catholics who uphold the Church’s traditional teaching on marriage and sexuality as defined in Scripture and the Catechism. The full report is available through Vatican channels.
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