Grace & Peace!
I’ll also respond pro-actively to some possible objections you may have to this. “be able to exercise their rights” will probably be quoted since homosexual persons supposedly have the “right” to marry each other. As a Catholic, you should know this is false, but if not then this claim itself would need to be backed up with sources…which I guarantee will not be found within any Church documents.
I read an interesting article which touches on this (within the context of Obama coming our for same sex marriage and Cardinal Dolan’s statement in response)
here. You may find it interesting. Here are some salient points:
…]The institution of marriage has been transformed from a
social institution geared toward the bearing and rearing of children to an
individualistic institution geared toward personal happiness and fulfillment. Once homophobia started to fade away, and gay people were finally treated with the dignity they deserve, then same-sex marriage – defined in this way – is a completely natural progression.
In other words, we now define marriage in purely Lockean terms, as the unfettered ability of the fully independent individual to choose and exercise power, to be fully in control of his or her possessions and persons. Marriage, in this sense, becomes a natural right and any prohibition against marriage becomes an unjust act of coercion, especially since there is no apparent competition with the rights of others.
Of course, this is far removed from the
Catholic understanding of marriage. Here, any “right” to marriage cannot be distinguished from a corresponding “duty” to order the married life toward the good, including the good of society and the social order. It must be open to the bearing and rearing of children, and it must not create a false dichotomy between the unitive and procreative elements. Marriage is a sacred bond that cannot be dissolved, and for that reason requires a consent based on a deep understanding of the obligations that are being undertaken. As the Catechism summarizes, “unity, indissolubility, and openness to fertility are essential to marriage”. Marriage is not only a social bond – it is sacramental bond, giving it a superratural [sic] as well as natural dimension.
Here’s the problem – you would not know any of this from
Cardinal Dolan’s press release yesterday, in which he found the “redefinition of marriage” to be “deeply saddening”. …] He claims that the decision to recognize same-sex marriage constitutes a redefinition of marriage, without any acknowledgment that heterosexuals have done a good job redefining marriage themselves.
Some of the commentary to the article makes the observation that since the USCCB’s position against the health mandate was couched predominantly in the terms of the modern liberal state that the Church in America has no real leg to stand on when it tries to articulate a stance that is clearly opposed to the terms of the modern liberal state that it had so enthusiastically embraced previously. I.e., by buying into the wrong terms of debate over the health mandate, the Church loses all credibility when it attempts to argue against them and from it’s
own terms in the same sex marriage debate. With reference to the HHS debate, one poster writes: “What the bishops should have done is act like successors to the apostles, not acolytes of the Goddess of Liberty.”
It’s an interesting and troubling article with engaging subsequent commentary. I recommend it to you.
Under the Mercy,
Mark
All is Grace and Mercy! Deo Gratias!
