The update, along with the original post, are below the break.
UPDATE 19-Dec 10:09 pm CST: Michael J O'Loughlin at America rounded up some reactions to the new declaration. Perhaps it won't surprise us that my archbishop, Blase Cupich, sees it as a positive development, while the late Jimmy Mac's (I really miss him!) archbishop, Salvatore Cordileone, was less effusive. The USCCB issued this brief statement:
“The Declaration issued today by the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) articulated a distinction between liturgical (sacramental) blessings, and pastoral blessings, which may be given to persons who desire God’s loving grace in their lives. The Church’s teaching on marriage has not changed, and this declaration affirms that, while also making an effort to accompany people through the imparting of pastoral blessings because each of us needs God’s healing love and mercy in our lives.”
The article also includes some reactions from a married gay Catholic, a priest, and one or two conservative commentators.
As part of this update, let me add an opinion of my own. Most (perhaps all) of the media reports I've seen regarding this new declaration state or imply that it is priests who have been given this permission to bless couples in same-sex marriages and 'irregular' marriages. This media emphasis may give the impression (which is, in my view, erroneous) that it is only priests who have been given this permission.
My opinion is: this permission is not restricted to priests. The declaration itself consistently uses the term "ordained minister", which would include deacons, as being authorized to offer these informal, spontaneous blessings. And in my view, it is very much within the theological and pastoral framework presented in the declaration that all of us may impart blessings to one another. Thus: I could easily see the parents of a gay person who is in a same sex marriage offering a blessing to their son or daughter as well as to his/her partner. Not at the wedding ceremony, and not using some prescribed text, and not claiming that which the church itself doesn't claim. But what about blessing them at the reception? Or in their home after the wedding ceremony? Those settings seem within the spirit of this new document.
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Original post:
This news article from Gerard O'Connell at America just hit my inbox:
In a significant new development, Pope Francis has given permission to priests to offer blessings to couples in same-sex relationships and other irregular situations “without officially validating their status or changing in any way the Church’s perennial teaching on marriage.”
The Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith announced this in a declaration issued Dec. 18 by distinguishing clearly between “ritual and liturgical blessings” that are given in the reception of a sacrament and “blessings,” spontaneous ones, that are given outside this situation in a wider pastoral perspective that have long been part of popular piety.
In an introduction to the text, Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, explains that the declaration “offers a specific and innovative contribution to the pastoral meaning of blessings, permitting a broadening and enrichment of the classical understanding of blessings, which is closely linked to a liturgical perspective.” In other words, the new document, approved by the pope with his signature, distinguishes between different types of blessings and opens the way for blessings to be given to couples in irregular situations but insists that they are not formulated as rites and do not lead to confusion.
Today’s declaration goes beyond the document issued on Feb. 22, 2021, which prohibited blessings of same-sex couples because it looked at such blessings only as “ritual and liturgical blessings,” and not in the broader pastoral context of other types of blessing.
The English version of the new document is here: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2023/12/18/0901/01963.html#en I have not yet had time to read it thoroughly. I will do so as time permits.
I take this to mean that, if a same sex couple approached me after mass and asked for my blessing, I could say, "Of course. Give me a moment to unvest, and then let's step outside the building and I will do so."
I expect there will be much more to report about this.
Questions:
ReplyDelete1. Could you have done this kind of blessing without the Pope's permission?
2. What is the hoped-for benefit of such blessings? If it doesn't change dictrine/teaching, what does it do for the blessed?
3. I suppose the emphasis will be on gay couples, but sounds like this extends to unmarried heterosexual couples, too?
4. Could permission even extend to non-Catholic family members? My brother once expressed an interest in a blessing when he attended Mass with me. Father said no dice. Possibly he thought my brother expected to receive communion. Thinking ahead to Raber's eventual funeral Mass where nobody in his family would be allowed to receive (all Fundies, I'm lapsed, and The Boy is divorced). A blessing by the priest before the Mass would be nice.
Jean, I'm surprised the priest didn't just tell your brother he could come up in the Communion line with his hands crossed on his chest. That's the signal that the person wants a blessing but won't be receiving Communion.
DeleteLast week the instructions for EMHCs were handed out in our parish to those of us who are one. Always it is emphasized that we are laypeople and are NOT allowed to give that type of blessing, but we can say "God bless you" to the person coming up with their hands crossed. It always kind of sticks in my craw a little, since it is God who confers the blessing, and not us anyway.
Jean, re: your brother, I agree with Katherine: it's a common thing for people who don't receive communion but who come forward in the communion line to receive a blessing. Katherine, as far as I know (but I could be wrong), there is no officially-sanctioned blessing text for that situation. I just say "God bless you". I know there Eucharistic ministers who say more elaborate things.
Delete"1. Could you have done this kind of blessing without the Pope's permission?"
DeleteUm, probably? Here's my understanding of the context, with h/t to Christopher White's article in NCR:
https://www.ncronline.org/vatican/vatican-news/major-doctrinal-shift-vatican-officially-oks-catholic-blessings-gay-couples?utm_source=NCR+List&utm_campaign=44830f05ed-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_12_18_03_12&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6981ecb02e-44830f05ed-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D
In 2021, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF, and subsequently renamed by Francis the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith, or DDF - it was the DDF that issued the new declation we're discussing here today) issued a ruling that ministers of the church could not bless same-sex unions. It stated that God "cannot bless sin". That statement was widely panned, and there was some speculation that Francis has signed off on it without being fully aware of what he was approving.
The new doc we're discussing today doesn't really break new ground, insofar as (AFAIK), the church still can't bless same sex unions. But we can bless the couple:
"“In a brief prayer preceding this spontaneous blessing,” the document suggests, “the ordained minister could ask that the individuals have peace, health, a spirit of patience, dialogue, and mutual assistance—but also God’s light and strength to be able to fulfill his will completely.”" (This is from O'Connell's article in America).
In addition, White's article in NCR notes that some European bishops' conferences were charging ahead, so this document may have been intended to set some boundaries and standards:
"The new Vatican instructions could force a course correction to a number of Catholic bishops' conferences in Europe, where various guidelines have been drafted or published in recent months.
"In September, the Catholic bishops of Belgium published guidelines that included a prayer and blessing for same-sex unions, while distinguishing those blessings from sacramental marriage ceremonies.
"In March, Catholic bishops in Germany voted to approve plans for same-sex blessings, and in September, several priests in Cologne held a public blessing of gay couples in defiance of their diocese's conservative leader."
"2. What is the hoped-for benefit of such blessings? If it doesn't change doctrine/teaching, what does it do for the blessed?"
DeleteI think, if we view blessings as a form of supplicatory prayer, then the spiritual benefits would be whatever spiritual benefits flow from those types of prayers. We might recall that Jesus promises us that if we ask, we shall receive. Another spiritual benefit might be that asking for and receiving such a blessing strengthens the bond between the couple and the church.
I think that latter benefit is especially important, because I suspect the preceding, 2021 document was understood to mean that, for all practical purposes, a married gay couple had no place at all in the church.
"3. I suppose the emphasis will be on gay couples, but sounds like this extends to unmarried heterosexual couples, too?" Yes, and seemingly also to heterosexual couples who divorced from previous marriages and then remarried without getting the previous marriages annulled.
DeleteBtw, if the Boy is divorced but not remarried, his divorced doesn't bar him from communion. But I may have lost track of his marital status.
I used to make the sign of the cross with the Host in the air over the person until we got told that was verboten. I have heard my husband say something like, "May the blessing of almighty God fall upon you and remain forever" which I think is a more formal blessing style reserved to priests or deacons.
DeleteI recall the old days when Mass was in Latin that the priest used to say (in Latin) "May the body of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve your soul unto life everlasting" as he gave the Host to each communicant. That's a mouthful to say a whole bunch of times! Much easier to say "The Body of Christ".
Thanks for your explanations. We were told in RCIA than non-Catholics could get a blessing if they approached with their index fingers in a steeple over their lips, but had to be innate priest's line, not the EMs. (Most Eiscopal priests invite the unbaptized for a blessing in the arms crossed posture you describe.) So I was embarrassed when the priest got all hot about my brother. Glad I asked before Mass so he could skip Mass. Catholics are very poor at welcoming non-Catholics. We always seem to use problems.
DeleteThe Boy is not remarried, but wasn't married in the Church, which I understand was a sin for him as a Catholic. He asked not long ago if he could still take Communion, but I just told him he needed to consult a priest since he had been away for a long time.
*cause problems.
DeleteI expect the Church Ladies will rope us off in the "not to receive Communion" section like they do with non-Catholic family members at weddings and first communion.
Easier if I croak first, which seems the likeliest outcome. Visitation and rosary at the funeral home following cremation. Easy peasy. I'd be happy to be scattered in the river near the family farm Up North, but Father said that is verboten, and I don't want to ask Raber to do anything that runs against Church teaching. So I will need to make sure there's enough insurance $$ for an urn and burial plot.
It seems to me that this new instruction from the pope doesn't actually change anyone's status, but is a change in how we treat people, not "othering" them. Of course that is going to set some people's hair on fire, because they think "othering" people they consider sinners is in the Nicene Creed. Or something.
ReplyDeleteKatherine - I agree on both points!
DeleteFWIW - in Christopher White's NCR article, he notes that the document may represent "the most concrete pastoral shift on the church's stance toward gay couples in the church's centuries' long history." But the headline (which may not have been written by Christopher White) states, "In major doctrinal shift, Vatican officially OKs Catholic blessings for gay couples".
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think the headline writer is wrong, and Christopher White is correct in what he's written in the body of his article: this document should be understood as a pastoral course correction, rather than a doctrinal change. In fact, from what I can tell, the new document goes to great lengths to reinforce to readers that the church's doctrinal teachings on the possibility of same sex marriage haven't changed.
Could it be interpreted as blessing persons, rather than a situation or relationship? I know what I've heard priests say a bunch of times is, "God doesn't bless sin," Which I suppose is true but that's not what we're asking of him.
DeleteThat's how I understood it--bless people. Which made me wonder why there had to be an edict about it at all.
DeleteHardliners will refuse to bless anybody who is not in line with their idea of Catholic life. Activist clergy will go to a gay couple's home to bless them and make a ceremony of it. Nuts on both sides will continue to use gay blessing as a point of contention and a sign that Pope Francis is Evil Incarnate/the Great Reformer.
The Pope is, of course, neither, just calling people to be less self-righteous, which neither side gets.
In Dresden at the Christmas Market last night, bought spiced, hot wine from a transwoman. M didn't blink. Previously, her piano teacher switched from Joe to Allison. Still drove her motorcycle, though.
DeleteThey're still people. The Boy has stayed in the local music scene, and I've known so many gay and gender fluid kids and their families over the years it's not funny. It's sad to me that the Church sees them as problems to be handled only in the vestibule after vestments have been removed so the gay cooties don't rub off. Not much of a full throated blessing.
DeleteJean, you have a heart for those who feel marginalized in the church. In this, I think you are storing up treasure in heaven. It's an important spiritual example for me.
DeleteThis new declaration may give you hope. It should be taken as a rebuke to church ladies (of all genders) everywhere who would set virtue criteria to exclude from church membership any/all who don't conform to their desired models of human conduct or characteristics. In the spirit of Francis's proclamation that the church is not a museum for saints but rather a hospital for sinners, this new declaration insists that the church must not withhold blessings from those who request it; and no preconditions (such as regularizing a marriage) may be placed on the offering of such blessings.
Hi Stanley! Sounds like you are having a fun trip. Hope you will share some photos later.
DeleteJim, I always have hope that all clergy in charge of churches, synagogues, temples, mosques, sacred groves--whatever--will see their way to helping everybody love their creator by loving all creation.
DeleteBut so many people and clergy use sacred places as vaults for their own perceived purity, hideouts where they can escape the sinners, sanctuaries where they can worship an idealized version of themselves and leverage others into conformity with that ideal.
So I get why allowing blessings to those outside accepted norms poses problems for clergy. And maybe the backalley blessing you propose is a crack in the door that has been locked up tight in the past.
Meantime, I think anyone in the pews blesses the marginalized when they welcome them as fellow worshippers and recognize Christ in them. Anyone with an open heart can give that. I learned that from my Catholic friends.
Jim says: I take this to mean that, if a same sex couple approached me after mass and asked for my blessing, I could say, "Of course. Give me a moment to unvest, and then let's step outside the building and I will do so."
ReplyDeleteLittle bit too legalistic which is what Francis wants to avoid. If I did not know the couple very well, perhaps only knew from others that they were a gay couple. I would ask them if they had a few minutes where we could talk about their hopes for the relationship and their life in the parish. Taking off your vestments and finding a quiet place then becomes very natural. It could even be a quiet corner of the church. The conversation could be led very naturally to find their hopes, gifts, concerns, etc., that could easily be composed into a prayer just for them.
While a gay relationship may not be a marriage in the eyes of the church it is a household, and Christianity began with household churches which often included servants as well as family members.
ReplyDeleteI have long seen not only my parent’s house but also my own home as households even though I have had a life-long calling to the solitary life. The census bureau regards me as a single person household. More importantly my deep love for the life of the desert solitaries helped me to recognize them as households even when they lived alone in a cell. First is the great value that they placed on hospitality, receiving other people both lay persons and monks. Secondly the great value they place on their location. One monk described his cell as the cave in which Jesus was born, and the tomb from which he arose.
I was very conscious in choosing my current home that I was choosing a place of worship. It has become over time a theological and liturgical music library. When the internet first began, I knew that someday (actually shortly before the pandemic) a large computer screen would connect me with the world to celebrate the Hours.
Some years ago, the Bishop Conference published a paperback called Catholic Household Blessing and Prayers. So I looked up the Blessing for a Family or Household.
The leader begins The Grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ be with us all, now and forever. R. Amen
Reading from Colossians 3:12-26 Put on then as God’s chosen ones , holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, humility, patience, gentleness…as the Lord has forgiven so you also must forgive…be thankful…Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.. admonish each other singing psalms., hymns…
Blessing Prayer A is a obviously intended for a husband-wife family household, but Prayer B is very good for households that are not husband and wife.
"In good times and in bad, in sickness and in health
we belong to each other as we belong to You, God ever faithful.
By morning and by night may you name be ever on our lips, a blessing to all our days.
So may kindness be ever among us, a hunger for justice
and a songs of thankfulness in all that we do.
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen’
I think this would be perfectly appropriate for priests and deacons even with vestments and a stole in the case of our household or those of a gay couple. We are celebrating a household not a marital relationship.
That is a lovely prayer, Jack. I plan to use it often! I have been musing on the concept of "household" as I wind up a lifelong genealogy project. It is clear that households in my family were far more diverse before 1950, with extended family, hired hands, and needy neighbor kids often living in the same house. Not to mention stories of the family dogs and cats! The Dutch ancestors were the most generous householders and purveyors of hospitality. Lots of lessons in the generosity and grace it took to build a household of warmth and safety.
DeleteHi Jack. It's a very nice blessing, but I don't think it can be used to bless a gay couple, according to the Holy See's guidelines. For one thing, those blessings from the Book of Blessings are paraliturgies, and blessings of gay couples are supposed to take care not to resemble the church's liturgy. In addition, that language of good times and bad / sickness and health is too redolent of wedding vows.
DeleteIf I'm ever asked to give such a blessing, it will be brief and extemporaneous. I hope nobody will expect brilliance, but it will be from the heart.
In carefully reading the Declaration, it seems to have very little understanding of the sociological difference between households and families which Jean and I have.
DeleteWe should be able to bless households regardless of whether they consist of Ossie and Harriet in a sacramental marriage with two children, or a woman and a man in a civil marriage raising related children, or a woman and her mother raising her children, or two unrelated women living together, or two unrelated men living together, or even a single person living alone. (A single person living alone can provide a great deal of hospitality, and experience a great deal of love and care from others).
All of the above household situations may involve a wide variety and quality relationships and moral situations, e.g. from mutual love and assistance to neglect and abuse. Whether we use standard formulas or create our own, ask someone from a parish to preside or do it ourselves with friends, blessing implies that we are thanking God for the virtues of common life, asking for their growth, and salvation from all that might impede their growth.
Jack - I agree with you that the document doesn't really consider households. Its focus seems to be on marriages (same sex marriages and marriages between divorced-but-not-annulled parties). That said, the theological and pastoral framework for blessings the declaration presents should be able to be extended to all those different "cases" of households that you describe. I wouldn't have any problem blessing any of them.
DeleteJim says:
ReplyDelete"Thus: I could easily see the parents of a gay person who is in a same sex marriage offering a blessing to their son or daughter as well as to his/her partner. Not at the wedding ceremony, and not using some prescribed text, and not claiming that which the church itself doesn't claim. But what about blessing them at the reception? Or in their home after the wedding ceremony? Those settings seem within the spirit of this new document. "
The bishop's book: Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers makes it clear that we can bless each other, especially that parents can bless children. It gives examples of such during preparation for all the sacraments, including marriage.
And while we repeatedly speak of the importance of family life we neglect the importance of the household church, and the fact that we can celebrate blessings and the Hours as a household church. Yes, sometimes our religious education programs encourage children to take home prayer parish materials, but rarely are parents and grandparents seen as leaders of household churches who have an array of liturgical and para-liturgical resources available.
Essentially when people cease to go to church, we don't have much of a religious culture left at home. Francis comes from a Hispanic culture which has a vibrant home worship culture around altars dedicated to Mary. So, when Francis is talking about popular culture which is very attuned to asking for blessings, he is talking about that culture. So, if Francis steps into the house of a gay couple or civilly married husband and wife, who show him Mary's shrine, and ask for his blessing on the household, he is going to gladly give it, no questions asked.
Francis in a speech to the Vatican Pontifical Committee on Latin America, noted the importance of popular devotion in Latin America as an antidote to clericalism. Basically, laity as well as the clergy have access to Mary.