The Vatican’s General Secretariat of the Synod published the testimonies of two men in civil marriages with other men who describe from personal experience the tensions and wounds that have marked their lives of faith within the Church. Source: EWTN News.
It is the first time a Vatican text has given voice to this group in such detail. One testimony is from a man in Portugal who said he suffered a deep wound when a spiritual director suggested he could have been married to a woman to “find peace” and “use my gifts,” minimising the affective dimension of marriage.
The man said the suggestion was painful because “it was a suggestion to harm a woman by robbing her of the chance to be completely loved and desired, all to fulfil a social expectation.” From that point, he said, he began excluding his relationship and affective life from his prayer.
The synod also published the testimony of a United States Catholic man in a civil marriage with another man, an immigrant, and active in parish life. “My sexuality isn’t a perversion, disorder, or cross; it’s a gift from God,” he wrote. “I have a happy, healthy marriage and am flourishing as an openly gay Catholic.”
Both testimonies are written in English and are published on the synod website as annexes to the final report of Study Group 9, titled “Theological Criteria and Synodal Methodologies for Shared Discernment of Emerging Doctrinal, Pastoral, and Ethical Issues.”
The 32-page report, published first in Italian and presented in English as a working translation, is not a definitive doctrinal proposal. Rather, it outlines a methodological shift and will now be presented to Pope Leo XIV for study.
Drawing from the testimonies, the synod study group says the first account describes “the devastating effects of reparative therapies aimed at recovering heterosexuality” and “contradictory advice” such as suggestions to marry a woman in order to “find peace”.
The report proposes a new approach based on listening and dialogue for addressing “emerging doctrinal, pastoral, and ethical issues,” including the experience of “people of faith with same-sex attractions”.
The synod also published the final report of another study group, Study Group 7, on criteria for selecting candidates for bishop.
That report says bishops should be evaluated not only for moral integrity, doctrinal orthodoxy, pastoral sensitivity, leadership ability, and capacity to administer Church goods but also for “synodal competencies.”
FULL STORY
Synod report condemns ‘devastating effects’ of conversion therapies for homosexual persons (By Victoria Cardiel, EWTN News)
REALTED COVERAGE
Synod releases final reports on selection of bishops, emerging issues (Vatican News)
