| Pope calls for defence of marriage in ongoing campaign against gay unions at 17:49 on December 28, 2003, EST. |
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VATICAN CITY (AP) - Pope John Paul pressed his campaign against gay unions Sunday, calling for greater defence of the institution of marriage between man and woman and saying a "misunderstood" sense of rights was altering it. His comments came amid a Vatican's campaign to crack down on same-sex unions, which have won legal boosts in recent months following landmark court decisions in Canada, Massachusetts and elsewhere. In his weekly Sunday comments in St. Peter's Square, the pontiff said marriage - which the Vatican defines as a sacred union between man and woman - was a "human and divine" gift that should be defended by society. "In our times, a misunderstood sense of rights has sometimes disturbed the nature of the family institution and conjugal bond itself," he said. "It is necessary that at every level, the efforts of those who believe in the importance of the family based on matrimony unite." In July, the Vatican launched a global campaign against gay unions in a bid to stem the tide of widening legal recognition for same-sex marriages in Europe, North America and elsewhere. The Vatican's orthodoxy watchdog, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, issued a document saying Catholic politicians had a "moral duty" to oppose laws granting legal rights to gay couples, and that non-Catholics should follow their lead since the issue concerns "natural moral law." "To vote in favour of a law so harmful to the common good is gravely immoral," the document said, although it didn't specify penalties for Catholics who do. It was issued just a month after an appeals court in Ontario ruled that Canada's definition of marriage as between a man and a woman was unconstitutional. Based that ruling and a similar one in British Columbia, Canada is expected to introduce legislation legalizing gay marriage next year. In the United States, Vermont has a "civil union" law giving same-sex couples the rights of traditional marriages. And last month, the highest court in Massachusetts ruled that it was unconstitutional to bar gay couples from marriage and gave the state legislature 180 days to rewrite the state's marriage laws to provide benefits for gay couples. Some Republican legislators have called for a constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriages countrywide; U.S. President George W. Bush has declined to join their calls for now, but has said marriage is a union between man and woman. The pope reaffirmed the church's position on the institution Sunday, noting that Christmas was a time to remember the "holy family" of Mary, Joseph and Jesus. Marriage, he said, "concerns a human and divine reality that is defended and promoted as a fundamental good of society." He urged a common prayer "for all families, in particular those in material and spiritual difficulty." The pope has been a staunch promoter of the institution of marriage, as well as of the family. He strongly opposes abortion as well as artificial birth control, even for married couples. The Vatican's opposition to condoms recently came under renewed fire after a top cardinal, Alfonso Lopez Trujillo, said condoms don't protect against AIDS. The UN World Health Organization, among other groups, called his comments "dangerous" and "totally wrong." The Vatican maintains that chastity is the best method of HIV prevention. Even before the recent North American court rulings, the pope and top Vatican officials spoke out frequently about increasing legal recognition for gay couples in Europe, where the Vatican has been particularly concerned about its waning influence. In recent years, the Netherlands and Belgium extended marriage rights to all couples, no matter the partners' gender. Germany, France, Sweden and Denmark also have "civil union" laws. In January, the pope approved guidelines for Catholic politicians that said laws safeguarding marriage between man and woman must be promoted and that "in no way can other forms of cohabitation be placed on same level as marriage, nor can they receive legal recognition as such." NICOLE WINFIELD |
� The Canadian Press, 2003 |
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