Pope encouraged Malta bishop to speak out against gay adoption bill
Rome, 4 January 2014: Pope Francis was “shocked” by a bill in Malta that would allow
gay couples to adopt children, said a bishop from the small island nation, adding
that the Holy Father had encouraged him to speak up on the issue.
“We discussed
many aspects...and when I raised the issue that’s worrying me as a bishop [the same-sex
adoption bill] he encouraged me to speak out,” Auxiliary Bishop Charles Scicluna told
The Sunday Times of Malta.
The bishop spoke about the importance of strong
families in his Christmas homily. His concerns come after lawmakers in Malta introduced
a bill to allow same-sex civil unions and adoption of children.
Reports of
the Pope’s words to Bishop Scicluna led to surprise and criticism from some media
commenters, with Damian Thompson, blog editor of The Telegraph, questioning whether
Time Magazine would “take back its Person of the Year award” from the Holy Father.
Some
commenters and media outlets have portrayed the Pope as moving towards a change in
Church teaching on homosexuality, pointing to his comments in July, “If a person is
gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge them?”
Later, the Pontiff
cautioned against an excessive fixation on moral issues such as homosexuality by some
in the Church, saying that this view risked reducing the Gospel to a mere moral code.
These
comments were cited by American LGBT magazine The Advocate, which named Pope Francis
its Person of the Year for 2013.
However, the Pope has also said on several
occasions that he is a “son of the Church” who agrees with the moral teachings of
the Church.
He opposed legislation to legalize “gay marriage” in Argentina
in 2010, saying that it was “a destructive proposal to God's plan.”
Speaking
to NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Dec. 1, Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York explained
that Pope Francis is not – and cannot – change Church doctrine on moral issues.
Rather,
he said, the Holy Father is offering a shift in emphasis, calling Catholics to live
out Church teaching of loving and respecting all individuals while working to promote
the Gospel, including Catholic moral doctrine.Source: CNA