catholicsphere

Is that really what the Bishops approved at their Fall Conference yesterday? Well, no. However, that’s pretty much the way the MSM is reporting it.

As I posted earlier regarding the statements approved by the Bishops Conference, a document regarding the pastoral care of homosexuals was voted on and approved, in addition to guidelines for reception of Communion. (I will probably have more commentary on both of these in the near future.)

But here is a smattering of news reports to demonstrate my point:

San Jose Mercury News: Gay Catholic groups reject new guidelines
The nation’s Roman Catholic bishops adopted new guidelines for gay outreach Tuesday that are meant to be welcoming, while also telling gays to be celibate because the church considers their sexuality “disordered.”

LA Times: Gay Catholics welcomed, cautioned
Trying to narrow the gap between ministry and core beliefs, the nation’s Roman Catholic bishops on Tuesday affirmed the need to make parishes more welcoming to gays and lesbians, but said people who actively engage in homosexual activity should refrain from receiving Communion.

WashingtonPost.com 3 Christian Groups Move To Condemn Gay Sex
[This pits Christian churches against the "popular culture". It highlights a number of gay organizations and comments that condemn what the churches are saying. Offers very little of what the actual documents say, especially absent is anything that could be taken positively.]

NY Times: U.S. Bishops Adopt Guidelines on Gays
The guidelines welcome gay people, but they also affirm church teachings that “homosexual inclinations” are inherently disordered. While having such inclinations is not sinful, gay sexual activity is, according to the core teachings.

Bishop Arthur J. Serratelli of Paterson, N.J., chairman of the doctrine committee, which developed the guidelines, said on Monday that the committee did not consult with gay men and lesbians on the document.

While the teachings certainly are meant to be complementary, these news reports would make it seem as though homosexuals are being singled out to be barred from receiving the Eucharist. However, the document on receiving the Eucharist lays out many actions that constitute grave sin which requires the Sacrament of Reconciliation before receiving Communion. None of the items in that list, which basically mirrors the 10 Commandments and suggestions in an Examination of Conscience, specifically targets homosexual behavior. It is only by their disagreement with, and failure to adhere to Church teaching, that homosexuals as well as heterosexuals have excluded themselves from Communion, because they have taken themselves out of Communion with God and the Body of believers.

St. Paul warned the Corinthians that “whoever eats the
bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the
Lord” (1 Cor 11:27).

Later, I plan to comment on the guidelines for ministering to homosexual persons to explain, in a concise way, the reasoning behind homosexuality being among the sins that exclude one from Communion.

[tags]catholic, church, bishops, conference, homosexuality, sin, communion, apologetics, news[/tags]