The Vatican Secretariat of State provides the context for the observation on the civil union

The Vatican secretary of state asked papal representatives to share with the bishops some clarifications on Pope Francis' comments on civil unions in a recently published documentary, according to the apostolic nuncio to Mexico.

The clarifications explain that the pope's comments do not concern Catholic doctrine regarding the nature of marriage as a union between a man and a woman, but with provisions of civil law.

“Some statements, contained in the documentary 'Francisco' by screenwriter Evgeny Afineevsky, have provoked, in recent days, different reactions and interpretations. Some useful ideas are then offered, with the desire to present an adequate understanding of the words of the Holy Father ”, Archbishop Franco Coppolo, Apostolic Nuncio, posted on Facebook on 30 October.

The nuncio told ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language journalistic partner, that the content of his post was provided by the Vatican Secretariat of State to the apostolic nunciatures, to be shared with the bishops.

The post explained that in a 2019 interview, which aired unedited portions in the recent documentary, the pope commented at different times on two distinct themes: that children should not be ostracized by their families because of their orientation. sexual unions, and on civil unions, in the midst of discussion of a 2010 same-sex marriage bill in the Argentine legislature, which Pope Francis, who was then archbishop of Buenos Aires, opposed.

The interview question that prompted the remark on civil unions was "inherent in a local law ten years ago in Argentina on" equal marriages of same-sex couples "and the then archbishop of Buenos Aires's opposition to this. about it. In this regard, Pope Francis stated that 'it is an incongruity to speak of same-sex marriage', adding that, in the same context, he had spoken of the right of these people to have some legal coverage: 'what we must do is a civil union law ; have the right to be legally covered. I defended him '”, Coppolo wrote on Facebook.

“The Holy Father expressed himself thus during an interview in 2014: 'Marriage is between a man and a woman. The secular states want to justify civil unions to regulate different situations of coexistence, motivated by the request to regulate the economic aspects between people, such as the guarantee of health care. These are coexistence agreements of a different nature, of which I could not give a list of the different forms. You need to see the various cases and evaluate them in their variety, ”the post added.

"It is therefore evident that Pope Francis referred to certain provisions of the State, certainly not to the doctrine of the Church, which has been reaffirmed several times over the years", reads the statement.

The statement by the Secretariat of State is consistent with recent public statements by two Argentine bishops: Archbishop Hector Aguer and Archbishop Victor Manuel Fernandez, emeritus and current archbishops of La Plata, Argentina, and with further reports on the context of the observations of the pope.

On 21 October Fernandez posted on Facebook that before becoming pope, then Cardinal Bergoglio "always recognized that, without calling it 'marriage', there are actually very close unions between people of the same sex, which in themselves do not imply sexual relations, but a very intense and stable alliance. "

“They know each other well, they have shared the same roof for many years, they take care of each other, they sacrifice for each other. Then it may happen that they prefer that in an extreme case or in an illness they do not consult their relatives, but that person who knows their intentions thoroughly. And for the same reason they prefer it to be that person who inherits all their possessions, etc. "

"This can be contemplated by the law and is called 'civil union' [unión civil] or 'law of civil cohabitation' [ley de convivencia civil], not marriage".

“What the Pope said on this subject is what he also maintained when he was archbishop of Buenos Aires,” added Fernández.

"For him, the expression 'marriage' has a precise meaning and applies only to a stable union between a man and a woman who are open to communicating life ... there is a word, 'marriage', which applies only to that reality. Any other similar union requires another name ”, explained the archbishop.

Last week, Aguer told ACI Prensa that in 2010, "Cardinal Bergoglio, then archbishop of Buenos Aires, proposed in a plenary assembly of the Argentine bishops' conference to uphold the legality of civil unions of homosexuals by the state , as a possible alternative to what has been called - and is called - 'equality in marriage' ”.

“At that time, the argument against him was that it was not a purely political or sociological question, but that it involved moral judgment; consequently, the sanction of civil laws contrary to the natural order cannot be promoted. It has also been noted that this teaching has been repeatedly stated in the documents of the Second Vatican Council. The plenary of the Argentine bishops rejected that proposal and voted against, ”Aguer said.

America Magazine published on October 24 the apparent context of the pope's remark on civil unions.

During a discussion about the pope's opposition to a proposed same-sex marriage when he was archbishop in Argentina, Alazraki asked Pope Francis if he had adopted more liberal positions after becoming pope and, if so, whether it was attributable to the Holy Spirit.

Alazraki asked: “You have waged a whole battle for equal-sex marriages, of same-sex couples in Argentina. And then they say you got here, they elected you pope and you appeared much more liberal than you were in Argentina. Do you recognize yourself in this description that some people who knew you before make, and was it the grace of the Holy Spirit that gave you a boost? (laughs) "

According to America Magazine, the pope replied that: “The grace of the Holy Spirit certainly exists. I have always defended the doctrine. And it is curious that in the law on same-sex marriage…. It is an incongruity to speak of same-sex marriage. But what we need to have is a civil union law (ley de convivencia civil), so they have the right to be covered legally ”.

The last sentence was omitted when Alazraki's interview aired in 2019.

The statement by the Secretariat of State seems to confirm that the pope said "I defended myself", immediately after his other remarks on civil unions, a fact that had not been clarified previously.