Vatican further clarifies ‘blessing’ rules, says prayer for same-sex couples is not ‘blasphemous’

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The Vatican insisted Thursday that its new guidelines for blessing same-sex couples cannot be considered heretical or blasphemous, its second clarification on the issue in as many weeks.

In a press release, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a set of clarifications to its recent declaration allowing priests to bless individuals in same-sex couples and other relationships.

Such blessings “are just simple pastoral channels that help people give expression to their faith, even if they are great sinners” and do not mean a priest is “approving that type of union,” the Catholic Church’s doctrinal office said.

“These types of blessings are not an endorsement of the life led by those who request them,” the doctrinal office said. “Even less are they an absolution, as these gestures are far from being a sacrament or a rite. They are simple expressions of pastoral closeness.”

The Dec. 18 declaration, “Fiducia Supplians,” has come under criticism by some conservative bishops and has been celebrated by LGBTQ advocates among the church’s 1.3 billion members.

The Vatican said Thursday it is proper for bishops to require a priest perform such blessings in private. It said “the blessing must not take place in a prominent place within a sacred building, or in front of an altar, as this also would create confusion.”

Instead, priests should offer those seeking a blessing a brief statement asking God to grant them peace, health and to be freed “from everything that contradicts” the Gospel message.

Defending a blessing for divorced and remarried individuals and others in “irregular situations,” the doctrinal office argued for grace in such dealings.

“We are talking about something that lasts about 10 or 15 seconds,” the press release said. “Does it make sense to deny these kinds of blessings to these two people who ask for them? Is it not more appropriate to support their faith, whether it be small or great, to assist them in their weaknesses with a divine blessing, and to channel that openness to transcendence which could lead them to be more faithful to the Gospel?”

The doctrinal office conceded that the declaration “may require more or less time for their application depending on local contexts and the discernment of each diocesan Bishop with his Diocese.”

Thursday’s statement comes one week after Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, told a Spanish newspaper there is an “opt-out” provision for bishops who don’t agree with the change.

Cardinal Fernández told the Spanish newspaper ABC “it’s proper for each local bishop to make that discernment” about permitting such blessings in their diocese. Bishops in Malawi and Zambia are among those who’ve been reported as rejecting the proposed blessings.