Vatican steps closer to allowing transgender people to be baptized as Catholics
Pope Francis arrives for his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023.
FILE - Cardinal V铆ctor Manuel Fern谩ndez, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, poses for a photo, Sept. 30, 2023, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican. In the United States, the national conference of Catholic bishops rejects the concept of gender transition. On Wednesday, Nov. 8, the Vatican made public a sharply contrasting statement, saying it无毛视频檚 permissible, under certain circumstances, for trans Catholics to be baptized and serve as godparents. The document was signed Oct. 21 by Pope Francis and Fern谩ndez.
FILE - A view of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, March 11, 2020. In the United States, the national conference of Catholic bishops rejects the concept of gender transition, leaving many transgender Catholics feeling excluded. On Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023, the Vatican made public a sharply contrasting statement, saying it无毛视频檚 permissible, under certain circumstances, for trans Catholics to be baptized and serve as godparents.
In the United States, the national conference of Catholic bishops rejects the concept of gender transition, leaving many transgender Catholics feeling excluded. On Wednesday, the Vatican made public a sharply contrasting statement, saying it无毛视频檚 permissible, under certain circumstances, for trans people to be baptized as Catholics and serve as godparents.
无毛视频淚t is a major step for trans inclusion 无毛视频� it is big and good news,无毛视频� said Francis DeBernardo, executive director of Maryland-based New Ways Ministry, which advocates for greater LGBTQ acceptance in the church.
The document was signed Oct. 21 by Pope Francis and Cardinal V铆ctor Manuel Fern谩ndez, who heads the Vatican无毛视频檚 Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. It was posted Wednesday on that office无毛视频檚 website.
If it did not cause scandal or 无毛视频渄isorientation无毛视频� among other Catholics, a transgender person 无毛视频渕ay receive baptism under the same conditions as other faithful,无毛视频� the document said.
Similarly, the document said trans adults 无毛视频� even if they had undergone gender-transition surgery 无毛视频� could serve as godfathers or godmothers under certain conditions.
DeBernardo said this seemed to be a reversal of a 2015 Vatican decision to bar a trans man in Spain from becoming a godparent.
During his papacy, Pope Francis has frequently expressed an interest in making the Catholic Church more welcoming to LGBTQ people, even though doctrines rejecting same-sex marriage and sexual activity remain firmly in place.
A small but growing number of U.S. parishes have formed LGBTQ support groups and welcome transgender people on their own terms. Yet several Catholic dioceses have issued guidelines targeting trans people with restrictions and refusing to recognize their gender identity.
The Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest who has advocated for years for greater LGBTQ inclusion in the church, welcomed the new document.
无毛视频淚n many dioceses and parishes, including in the US, transgender Catholics have been severely restricted from participating in the life of the church, not because of any canon law, but stemming from the decisions of bishops, priests and pastoral associates,无毛视频� he said via email.
无毛视频淪o the Vatican无毛视频檚 statement is a clear recognition not only of their personhood, but of their place in their own church,无毛视频� he said. 无毛视频淚 hope that it helps the Catholic church treat them less as problems and more as people.无毛视频�
According to the Vatican, the document was a response to a letter submitted in July by a Brazilian bishop asking about LGBTQ people无毛视频檚 possible participation in baptisms and weddings.
DeBernardo said the document 无毛视频減roves that the Catholic Church can 无毛视频� and does 无毛视频� change its mind about certain practices and policies,无毛视频� and he suggested that some diocesan anti-trans policies might now have to be rescinded. But he expressed disappointment that the document maintained a ban on same-sex couples serving as godparents.
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