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Pope condemns gay marriages as fake and anarchic
By PoP Benedict (Agencies)
Updated: 2005-06-07 18:35 ROME - Pope Benedict, in his
first clear pronouncement on gay marriages since his election, on Monday
condemned same-sex unions as fake and expressions of "anarchic freedom" that
threatened the future of the family.
The Pope, who was elected in April, also condemned divorce, artificial birth
control, trial marriages and free-style unions, saying all of these practices
were dangerous for the family.
"Today's various forms of dissolution of marriage, free unions, trial
marriages as well as the pseudo-matrimonies between people of the same sex are
instead expressions of anarchic freedom which falsely tries to pass itself off
as the true liberation of man," he said.
The Pope spoke to families at Rome's St. John's Cathedral on an issue that
has become highly controversial around the world, particularly in Europe and the
United States.
In April, parliament in traditionally Catholic Spain gave initial approval to
a law legalizing gay marriage. It is widely expected to be approved by the
Senate and to become law.
Gay marriages are already legal in several European countries.
However, just last week, California's Assembly killed off a bill that would
have allowed gay marriage in the most populous U.S. state. U.S. President Bush
favors a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriages.
The Pope, who as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger headed the Vatican's doctrinal
department for more than two decades, said "pseudo freedoms" such as gay
marriages were based on what he called the "banalisation of the human body" and
of man himself.
Aurelio Mancuso, president of Arcigay, Italy's largest gay rights group, hit
back at the Pope. "Ratzinger pretends not to understand that gay unions are no
threat to heterosexual marriages," he said in a statement.
FAMILY'S VITAL ROLE
The Pope, who read his 14-page speech in a steady, professorial manner while
seated at a writing table, spoke of the family's vital role for the future of
society.
"Matrimony and the family are not, in reality, a casual sociological
construction or the fruit of specific historic and economic situations," he
said.
In a clear reference to contraception, the Pope said couples went against the
nature of love itself when they "systematically shut off" the possibility of
"the gift of life."
The 78-year-old Pope's wide-ranging speech, interrupted by applause several
times, touched on themes such as human sexuality and freedom. It clearly showed
his background as one of the Roman Catholic Church's leading theologians.
"The greatest expression of freedom is not the search for pleasure," he said,
adding that society seemed to want to tear down the moral goalposts he said were
needed for its future.
"Today, a particularly insidious obstacle to (moral) education is the
overwhelming presence in our society and culture of a type of relativism that
recognizes nothing as definitive...," he said.
Ratzinger has already backed a controversial campaign by bishops who have
urged voters to boycott an emotionally-charged referendum in Italy this weekend
that would lift bans on embryo research.
The Pope's words on Monday were no surprise. In an address to fellow
cardinals before the start of the conclave that elected him in April, he
denounced what he called an "anything goes" mentality that marked modern times.
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