Worldwide, Begging for confidence has sparked mixed reactions, with some Catholic bishops expressing support and others expressing opposition. Some Catholic Church leaders have taken a middle-of-the-road approach: They welcome the reaffirmation of Church teaching on marriage between a man and a woman, but warn clergy to avoid appearing to condone homosexual behavior and celebrate a so-called “gay wedding”.
In Germany, where the Conference of Catholic Bishops has welcomed Begging for confidence and an influential Catholic lay group has moved forward with proposals for formalized blessings of same-sex couples, Cardinal Gerhard Müller has firmly rejected the latest DDF document.
In his response to Begging for confidence published on December 21the cardinal, who served as Prefect of today’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith between 2012 and 2017, says that any cleric who blesses same-sex couples commits a “sacrilegious and blasphemous act against the Creator’s plan and against death.” of Christ for us.”
“Blessing a reality that is contrary to creation is not only impossible, it is blasphemy,” says Cardinal Müller, adding: “God cannot send his grace to a relationship that is directly opposed to Him and that cannot be ordered towards Him. ..if this blessing were given, its only effect would be to confuse the people who receive or attend it.”