US EditionPope Leo signals no plan to go beyond blessings for same-sex couples
He said the Church will keep informal blessings only and warned that formal rites for same-sex couples could deepen divisions.
- On Thursday, April 23, 2026, Pope Leo XIV signaled he will not formalize Church blessings for same-sex couples beyond his predecessor's approach, warning that new steps could trigger disunity within Catholicism.
- Former Pope Francis, who led the Church for 12 years before his 2025 death, permitted informal, case-by-case blessings that sparked widespread debate among bishops in Africa who refused implementation.
- The Catholic Church teaches that sexual relationships outside heterosexual marriage are sinful, though Pope Leo XIV emphasized that unity should not revolve solely around sexual ethics and did not criticize German Cardinal Reinhard Marx's formalization plan.
- "We tend to think that when the Church is talking about morality, that the only issue of morality is sexual," Leo said, arguing that justice, equality, and freedom are more important priorities.
- Balancing views in the 1.4-billion-member Church remains a priority for the Holy See, with Pope Leo warning that pushing beyond current guidelines on same-sex blessings today would likely cause more disunity than unity.
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71 Articles
EXCLUSIVE: Pope Leo XIV’s former classmate theologian blasts Pope’s downplaying sexual sin
Pope Leo XIV has just made it official: Informal blessings for same-sex couples can continue. But formal structures? No. And as for sexual sin? It may not be the priority. Justice and freedom, the Pope suggests, could take precedence over morality. Professor William Thomas knows Pope Leo. They were classmates. And he is not staying silent. In this exclusive interview, Thomas blasts the Pontiff’s remarks as a continuation of the doctrinal ambigui…
Pope Leo XIV signals no new ground for LGBTQ+ Catholics
Pope Leo XIV signaled Thursday that he supports the Vatican’s existing position allowing informal blessings for same-sex couples, while rejecting efforts to formalize those blessings in ways that resemble marriage rites.In his first direct public comments on the issue, the first U.S.-born pope said the Vatican had already warned German bishops not to go beyond what Pope Francis permitted in 2023, when Francis approved spontaneous pastoral blessi…
German bishops are pushing ahead - and the Pope is slowing down. Once again, there is a headwind for Catholic reform attempts from the Vatican.
German bishops are pushing ahead - and the Pope is slowing down. Once again, there is a headwind for Catholic reform attempts from the Vatican.
The Vatican contradicts the German Church in the blessing of homosexual couples. Pope Leo XIV draws clear boundaries.
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