Catholics in Russia pledge not to bless gay unions
The Conference of Catholic Bishops of Russia said that blessing same-sex unions is unacceptable.
The Apostolic Nuncio in Russia and the bishops of the Russian Catholic Church (RCC) commented on the "misunderstandings arising from the Fiducia Supplicans declaration" at the Plenary Meeting of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Russia (CCBR), as reported by the website of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese in Moscow.
The CCBR stated that "Catholic teaching on family and marriage remains unchanged."
"In the spirit of Gospel mercy and maternal love, the Church has not refused and does not refuse to offer prayers of intercession for individuals in various situations, seeking for them the grace of God necessary for conversion, strengthening in good intentions, and the beginning or continuation of the path of righteousness. To avoid temptation and confusion, the CCBR draws attention to the fact that blessings of any kind for couples persisting in relationships like cohabitation, remarriage, same-sex, deemed irregular from the perspective of Christian morality, are unacceptable," the statement said.
Earlier, the UOJ reported that in Uruguay, a Catholic priest blessed a gay couple after their "wedding".
