Vatican Lays Groundwork for Discussions on Family
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Version 0 of 1. ROME — A working paper released on Tuesday by the Vatican for a much-anticipated fall gathering of the world’s bishops laid the groundwork for fresh discussions on issues like the Roman Catholic Church’s ban on same-sex unions and the sacrament of communion for divorced Catholics who have remarried outside the church. In an apparent attempt to reach out to such congregants without departing from church doctrine, it suggests that divorced and civilly remarried Catholics follow a path of pastoral counseling and penance, under the guidance of a prelate. But the path to receiving communion, the document states, “requires further discussion” to address various issues, like spiritual communion and whether the couple can commit to remain chaste in marriage as a condition of receiving the sacrament. The path to communion “is achieved in stages through continual conversion,” it says. The document builds on many of the positions adopted at the last global assembly of bishops, held at the Vatican in October, which broached a number of hot-button issues. It notes, for example, that the church should provide special pastoral care for gays and their families, but goes no further toward accepting their unions. The document also analyzes why fewer people are getting married today, and urges the church not to condemn people who have made this choice but instead to embrace “its most fragile children.” Vatican officials said on Tuesday that the document was a starting point for discussion, and not the final word. “These are merely points of discussion, and the pope wants open, frank, bold and courageous discussion,” said the Rev. Thomas Rosica, a Vatican spokesman. The 78-page working paper — or “Instrumentum Laboris” in Latin — also reflects the views of hundreds of bishops, “dioceses, parishes, ecclesial associations, grass-roots groups of faithful, civil movements and organizations” who responded to a series of questions drafted to deepen the preparation for the coming synod, as the meetings are known, said Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, general secretary of the Synod of Bishops, at a press presentation of the document on Tuesday. The months since last October’s synod have been “a valuable opportunity for listening to what the spirit says to the church in the plurality of her components,” he said. A coalition of organizations that focus on social justice and pastoral care for gay people and their families, known as the Global Network of Rainbow Catholics, said it was disappointed by the working document, which it said did not “reflect the rich discussions which have taken place, internationally and at all levels in the church, on the welcome, respect and value which should be afforded to lesbian and gay people in the Catholic community.” The challenges facing the family will be at the heart of the next synod, which will take place at the Vatican from Oct. 4 to 25. But in modern society, where the traditional household is less and less the norm, the church has been increasingly pressed to address issues like divorce, the role of gay people in a church that views homosexual acts as sinful, and cohabitation outside marriage. The synod will conclude with a set of propositions that will be submitted to Pope Francis, who will have the final say and issue a document known as an apostolic exhortation, offering guidelines to the faithful. |