âOne should not prevent or prohibit the Churchâs closeness to people in every situation in which they might seek Godâs help through a simple blessing.â
Pope Francis has formally approved allowing priests to bless same-sex couples, with a new document released on Monday explaining a radical change in Vatican policy.
It insisted that people seeking Godâs love and mercy shouldnât be subject to âan exhaustive moral analysisâ to receive it.
âOne should not prevent or prohibit the Churchâs closeness to people in every situation in which they might seek Godâs help through a simple blessing,â the document from the Vaticanâs doctrine office said.
However, the shift in policy doesnât change the churchâs position on marriage, CBS News reported.
The new document elaborated on a letter Francis sent to two conservative cardinals that was published in October. In that preliminary response, Francis suggested such blessings could be offered under some circumstances if they didnât confuse the ritual with the sacrament of marriage.
The document repeated that rationale and elaborated on it, reaffirming that marriage is a lifelong sacrament between a man and a woman.
 It stressed that blessings should not be conferred at the same time as a civil union or even with the clothing and gestures that belong in a wedding.
But it said requests for such blessings should not be denied full stop. It offered an extensive definition of the term âblessingâ in Scripture to insist that people seeking a transcendent relationship with God and looking for his love and mercy should not be subject to âan exhaustive moral analysisâ as a precondition for receiving it.
âUltimately, a blessing offers people a means to increase their trust in God,â the document said. âThe request for a blessing, thus, expresses and nurtures openness to the transcendence, mercy, and closeness to God in a thousand concrete circumstances of life, which is no small thing in the world in which we live.
âIt is a seed of the Holy Spirit that must be nurtured, not hindered,â he added.
The Vatican holds that marriage is an indissoluble union between man and woman. As a result, it has long opposed same-sex marriage.
And in 2021, the Vaticanâs Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith said flat-out that the church couldnât bless the unions of two men or two women because âGod cannot bless sin.â
That document created an outcry, one it appeared even Francis was blindsided by even though he had technically approved its publication.
Soon after it was published, he removed the official responsible for it and set about laying the groundwork for a reversal.
In the new document, the Vatican said the church must shy away from âdoctrinal or disciplinary schemes, especially when they lead to a narcissistic and authoritarian elitism whereby instead of evangelising, one analyses and classifies others, and instead of opening the door to grace, one exhausts his or her energies in inspecting and verifying.â
It stressed that people in âirregularâ unions â gay or straight â are in a state of sin. But it said that if shouldnât deprive them of Godâs love or mercy.
âThus, when people ask for a blessing, an exhaustive moral analysis should not be placed as a precondition for conferring it,â the document said.
The Rev. James Martin, who advocates for greater welcome for LGBTQ+ Catholics, praised the new document as a âhuge step forwardâ and a âdramatic shiftâ from the Vaticanâs 2021 policy, according to the report.
The new document ârecognises the deep desire in many Catholic same-sex couples for Godâs presence and help in their committed relationships,â he said in an email.
âAlong with many Catholic priests, I will now be delighted to bless my friends in same-sex marriages,â he said.