Former President Mary McAleese, who is also a Doctor of Canon Law, has welcomed comments from Pope Francis about blessings for same sex couples, but has pointed out that his stance is a “complete contradiction” of what he said previously.
Speaking on RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland, she said: “it's a complete contradiction of what the Pope himself said through a document that was issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in 2021.
“At that time, they were trying to stop blessings of gay couples, gay married couples, you might remember that the German Synod had decided that this was something that they planned to do.
"And the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, with the Pope's full approval, slammed that door firmly shut, said it was not possible.
“So what you had then was really a remarkable reaction from priests and bishops and laity in the Synod sort of taking place, a synodal journey that's taken place for the last two years, there has been virtual unanimity among the faithful, including priests and bishops, many bishops, that this was simply not acceptable.
"And then we had the remarkable thing that happened in Belgium last year when Bishop Bonney issued a new liturgy precisely for gay couples, gay married couples who wanted a blessing in the Catholic Church.
"So this is Francis losing the old tin ear and listening to the voice, the very strong voice that has come from right around the world and will certainly be heard. Well, it will be heard inside the Vatican, it will not be heard outside because you know there's going to be a closed session and secret session, but it will be heard undoubtedly."
Prof McAleese acknowledged that this was not a change to the Catholic definition of marriage. “What it is, and in fairness to the priests and bishops who have already been offering these blessings, they are not saying that these are an extension of Catholic marriage.
"They are saying these are simply what they are - a blessing of an existing loving relationship and that they don't in any way impact on the church's teaching.
“This was a very strong point made by the Belgians who developed the liturgy. They said, look, this doesn't offend Catholic teaching at all. There's no ceremony.
"There's no big church ceremony. There's nothing that equates to Catholic marriage. All that this is, is a recognition that people who have a loving relationship and who believe in a God are entitled to ask for a blessing.
“You might remember back in 2021, the document from the congregation, The Doctrine of the Faith, actually went as far as saying that Catholic married gay couples were not capable, their words, not mine, were not capable of receiving or expressing God's grace.
"Well, that provoked an absolute outrage among priests and certain bishops and the faithful, including even bishops here in Ireland.
"And I have to say that part of the change in attitude from Pope Francis has been greatly helped, I think, by the work that was done here in Ireland, in the Irish version of the Irish part of the Synod by Ursula Halligan’s LGBTI focus group, and they're the group that put a report together and thank you to the Bishop of Elphin Kevin Doran, who asked them to do it. And their document really went viral. Just went viral.”
When asked if she thought that Pope Francis would now lead by example and bless same sex couples, Prof McAeese said that was what would be expected. “I mean, that's what we would expect, is it not? From the man who is, after all, the leader who led us once in the wrong direction and now has the courage to lead in another direction?
"I'd like to think so. But in any event, whether he does or whether he doesn't, and in some sense it doesn't really matter because, frankly, these blessings are happening every day of the week.”
The forthcoming Synod had started out as the Pope’s Synod, he had tried to shape the agenda away from issues that were contentious or difficult, she said.
“But in fact, what has happened is that all over the world, on five continents, remarkably with great consensus right around the world, people have said, no, this is our first opportunity to put on the table the things that we've been discussing, the things that we are worried about, women and the church, the exclusion of women, the exclusion of LGBTQ people, the problem with vocations and the compulsory celibacy, the access to the sacraments, particularly communion of people who are divorced and remarried.
"All of these things are now on the Synod agenda in Rome.”
People, not the Pope, can take credit for what is on the agenda for the Synod, she added.
