June 29, 2015, 4:33 p.m. – THE CATHOLIC Bishops’
Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) stood firm on the Church’s teachings on
marriage following the legalization of same-sex unions in the United States.
Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas, CBCP
president, said on Saturday that the Church would continue to stand by the
teachings that declare marriage as an “indissoluble bond of man and woman.”
“Marriage is a permanent union of man and woman, in the
complementarity of the sexes and the mutual fulfillment that the union of a man
and a woman bring into the loftiness of the matrimonial bond,” said Villegas in
a statement released after the US Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage is
a right in all 50 states of the country.
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church,
homosexual acts are against natural law. Still, homosexuals must be treated with
“respect, compassion, and sensitivity,” according to the Catechism.
“Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard
should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God’s will in their
lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord’s
Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.”
Villegas said the Church was committed to pastoral care for
homosexuals.
“I reiterate our commitment to the pastoral solicitude of
all, and no bishop, priest, deacon, religious or lay leader actively serving
the Church will ever demand to know of a person his or her orientation before
serving the person, as The Lord Jesus commands all his disciples to serve. All
will continue to find welcome in the Church,” he said. Danielle Ann F. Gabriel
