‘We certainly follow what the law says,’ Cardinal Donald Wuerl said regarding the Supreme Court marriage ruling. ‘That doesn’t mean we change the word of God.’ (Photo by Tomasz Wachowski; courtesy Wikimedia Commons)
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the Archbishop of Washington, surprised at least some LGBT Catholic activists last week when he appeared to set a conciliatory tone in response to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage in all 50 states.
“The law of the land is the law of the land,” Wuerl said at a news conference called to announce Pope Francis’s schedule of activities during his visit to Washington in September.
“We certainly follow what the law says,” he told reporters. “That doesn’t mean we change the word of God. That doesn’t mean we change the Scriptures, or the Church’s millennia-long tradition of what marriage is.”
But he added, “Nobody is turned away because of their sexual identity, because of their race, because of their ethnic background. And are we not all struggling to live the gospel?”
As reported by WTOP News, Wurel told the news conference, which was held at St. Matthew’s Cathedral on Rhode Island Avenue, N.W., that while church teaching won’t change, Pope Francis has been more inclusive.
“He keeps saying, ‘Go out. Go out and meet people where they are. And in that encounter, walk with them, accompany them,’” Wuerl said. “I think that’s what the church is saying. We all need to walk together as we try to make our way closer to God.”
WTOP cited a recent Pew Research Center poll showing that 56 percent of U.S. Catholics support same-sex marriage compared to 55 percent of Protestants, who say they do not support same-sex marriage. According to the poll, 85 percent of “religiously unaffiliated people” support the right of gays to marry.
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It appears Cardinal Wuerl intentionally left out “sexual orientation” from his list of people who are not “turned away.”
So Cardinal Wuerl ought to stop implying anti-gay hate and tell us unambiguously, are single –OR– married gay Catholics turned away from Washington’s Catholic churches and from communion?
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But he added, “Nobody is turned away because of their sexual identity, because of their race, because of their ethnic background. And are we not all struggling to live the gospel?”
Part of the problem with ‘sexual orientation’ is that it is currently the policy of the Holy See to not use the term. So, that’s likely why he didn’t use it. We still have much work to do. O:) <3
Yes, they prefer to say “intrinsically disordered,” “gravely evil,” and “afflicted with same-sex attraction.”
I could not care less what this bigot has to say. Let me know when the bigoted dogma is eliminated.
And he presumptuously assumes that bigots are welcome to accompany us. As far as I’m concerned, they can rot in the hell they believe in.
R.C. prelates like Cardinal Wuerl despite their own personal views dare not deviate too far from the archaic and dogmatic party line of their church for fear of the Vatican Curia’s punishment. So sad but true. If more R.C. bishops stood up to the Vatican, things could change but most of these prelates are yes men
appointed by Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI for their unflinching orthodoxy.
That’s the homophobic tale you’re telling yourself, Jokie. You’re simply making excuses and trying to justify Wuerl’s lies, hypocrisy and anti-gay hate on behalf of an equally hateful Vatican. There are few things more openly contemptuous of millions of gay people than failing to recognize their very existence with terms of reasonable respect. What don’t you get about that?
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“Part of the problem with ‘sexual orientation’ is that it is currently the policy of the Holy See to not use the term. So, that’s likely why he didn’t use it. We still have much work to do.”