Pope Francis, the head of the 1.4 billion-strong Roman Catholic Church, has allowed priests to bless same-sex couples, causing a stir among the community. Members of the Catholic community in Mumbai said that the ruling by the church headquarters in Vatican City is in line with its efforts to embrace diversity, though the decree does not mean that the church recognises same-sex unions as an equivalent of heterosexual marriages.
“For the community this is normal. This is my understanding because the church is making known its stand that it is not against gay relationships and that partners in such relationships should not be looked at as criminals,” said Joseph Dias of the Catholic Secular Forum.
Pope Fracis' reformist approach
Pope Francis has been a reformer of sorts. Under his papacy, the church has made some unprecedented changes, with women invitees voting for the first time, alongside bishops, at the ‘Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops', an important meeting in October 2023 at Vatican City.
Community members pointed out that there are now altar girls, and women reading at masses. There is also greater participation of women in parish councils. Last month, the Pope told the International Theological Commission, an advisory body, that ‘masculinisation of the church’ was a great sin, pointing out that only five of the 28 members of the group were women. Though these reforms are nowhere close to changes in other Christian denominations, like the Anglican Church, where women can now be ordained as bishops, the changes are unparalleled.
'Who are we to judge?'
According to Dolphy D’Souza of Bombay Catholic Sabha, Pope Francis’ message has been ‘Who are we to judge?”. “He has always believed in an inclusive touch. He does not just speak; he follows it up with action,” said D’Souza, relating how the Pope has converted the ritual of washing the feet on Maundy Thursday, a day before Good Friday, into an inclusive act. “Earlier only the feet of men could be washed, but he (Pope Francis) broke that tradition and went to a prison and washed the feet of female inmates.”
This gesture of acceptance towards same-sex does not mean that the blessing can be made part of regular rituals or liturgies. Dias said that Pope Francis’ message was that there should not be discrimination against homosexuals while maintaining the religious sanctity of marriages. “Blessing is an expression of goodwill; it does not have a religious connotation.
Within the church, there has been opposition to any attempts to ‘normalise’ same-sex relationships. Earlier this month, after a meeting of the Kerala Bishops Council, the delegates said that they opposed any promotion of homosexuality, same-sex marriages, and living-in relations. “It will turn upside down time-tested traditional social concepts and will have wide ramifications, including chaos in society, the body said after the meeting.
Ex-MLA writes to CM seeking extension of midnight mass
Former Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA), Krishna Hegde, has written to the state chief minister, asking the government to extend the time for the Christmas Eve mass by one hour. The Noise Pollution (Regulations and Control) Rules, 2000 prohibit the use of loudspeakers and public address systems between 10 pm and 6 am, but the Bombay High Court has allowed relaxation of the rules on 15 days in a year, including Christmas Eve. On these days, loudspeakers can be used for two extra hours - between 10 pm and 12 pm.
Hegde said that the rules have forced churches to start masses earlier at 10 pm on December 24 so that they can be completed by midnight. He said that an exemption should be made this year and the community should be given time till 1 am on December 25.
