Vatican says yes to blessings of same-sex unions

The Vatican on Monday issued its most definitive permission yet for Catholic priests to bless same-sex couples, as long as those benedictions are kept separate from marriage, a decree that fully reverses a 2021 ruling — and that may deepen division over the open-door papacy of Pope Francis.

The ruling by the powerful Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith expands on a far briefer statement of support for such blessings issued by Francis in September in response to questions raised by conservative clerics. The document on Monday, described as likely to be the most comprehensive on the issue to emerge from the Vatican on the question, repeats the assertion that such blessings should not suggest even the trappings of sacramental marriage — including traditional wedding vestments. But it explicitly gives permission to “ordained ministers” to conduct such blessings, asking them to use their own “prudent and fatherly discernment” to decide when doing so is appropriate.

Couples in “irregular situations” as well as “couples of the same sex” may receive priestly blessings, the Vatican said, so that these “human relationships may mature and grow in fidelity to the Gospel.”

“With its untiring wisdom and motherly care, the Church welcomes all who approach God with humble hearts, accompanying them with those spiritual aids that enable everyone to understand and realize God’s will fully in their existence,” the Vatican said.

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