Much has been made in the news recently about the Church’s conferral of blessings. A report appeared not too long ago saying that the Church would not withhold blessings of unwed mothers. This was no news to me. Since when, I thought, has the Church refused to bless a woman who was an unwed mother, unless perhaps her request was connected with some kind of messaging that denied the Church’s teaching on marriage and family?
Now even bigger news has arisen as a result of the “Declaration” of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) “On the Pastoral Meaning of Blessings” regarding “the possibility of blessing couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples without officially validating their status or changing in any way the Church’s perennial teaching on marriage.”
That perennial teaching is summarized in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which, as Pope St. John Paul noted, “was the result of the collaboration of the whole Episcopate of the Catholic Church, who generously accepted my invitation to share responsibility for an enterprise that directly concerns the life of the Church…The achievement of this Catechism thus reflects the collegial nature of the Episcopate; it testifies to the Church’s catholicity” (Apostolic Letter Laetamur Magnopere).
Of homosexual acts the Catechism says that “under no circumstance can they be approved,” but at the same time homosexual persons “must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided” (No. 2357ff). I take this to mean that persons, including those whose lives are not in conformity with what the Church believes and teaches, are not to be shunned when they approach a minister of the Church for a blessing.
But what kind of blessing? The new DDF Declaration speaks of a spontaneous, non-ritualized blessing that is neither liturgical nor even semi-liturgical, indeed one that is “spontaneous,” in the context, for example, of a visit to a shrine, a meeting with a priest, a prayer recited in a group, or during a pilgrimage.” Much like the blessing requested by an unwed mother, it can be conferred as a response to a spontaneous and personal request, not some kind of planned “event.”
Sadly but predictably, there will be some who seek to misuse the Declaration to promote the acceptance by the Church of so-called “gay marriage.” For that reason it is important to emphasize that the blessing described by the DDF is being conferred on persons, and not on a relationship that is not in conformity with what the Church believes and teaches about human sexuality and marriage. Lest this be misconstrued, it would be both accurate and prudent to direct a word of blessing individually to each person (I bless you N. and I bless you N.) even as they jointly make the request for a blessing. This is reflected in the following text of the DDF Declaration: “…one should not prevent or prohibit the Church’s closeness to people in every situation in which they might seek God’s help through a simple blessing. In a brief prayer preceding this spontaneous blessing, the ordained minister could ask that the individuals (emphasis added) have peace, health, a spirit of patience, dialogue, and mutual assistance—but also God’s light and strength to be able to fulfill his will completely” (no. 38).
Most Reverend Leonard P. Blair
Archbishop of Hartford
December 21, 2023