VOA新闻杂志2023 教皇方济各允许牧师给同性伴侣赐福（在线收听）

教皇方济各允许牧师给同性伴侣赐福

Pope Francis officially approved letting Catholic clergy bless same-sex couples, the Vatican announced Monday.

梵蒂冈周一宣布，教皇方济各正式批准允许天主教神职人员给同性伴侣赐福。

The move is a complete change in church policy that aims to make the church more welcoming while continuing its ban on gay marriage.

此举是教会政策的一次彻底改变，目的是在继续禁止同性婚姻的同时使教会更加受欢迎。

Some have cheered the Vatican statement as a step to break down discrimination in the Catholic Church.

有些人为梵蒂冈的声明欢呼，认为这是消除天主教会歧视的一步。

But LGBTQ+ supporters say the policy means that the church still considers gay couples as less than heterosexual partners.

但支持性少数群体的人表示，这项政策意味着教会仍然认为同性恋伴侣不如异性恋伴侣。

The Vatican document expands on a letter that Francis sent to two conservative cardinals last October.

梵蒂冈的这份文件详述了去年10月方济各写给两名保守派红衣主教的一封信。

In that letter, Francis suggested such blessings could be offered if they were not seen or mistaken as marriage ceremonies.

在那封信中，方济各表示，如果不被视为或误解为结婚仪式，就可以赐福给同性伴侣。

The new document repeats that condition and reaffirms that marriage is a lifelong union between a man and a woman.

新文件重申了这一条件，并重申婚姻指的是男女之间的终身结合。

It stresses that the blessings must not be tied to any Catholic celebration or religious service and should not be performed at the same time as a marriage ceremony.

新文件强调，这种赐福不得与任何天主教庆祝活动或宗教仪式联系在一起，也不应与结婚仪式同时举行。

Also, the blessings cannot use ceremonial acts, clothing or movements that belong in a wedding.

此外，这种赐福不能使用婚礼中使用的仪式行为、服装或动作。

But it says requests for such blessings for same-sex couples should not be denied.

但新文件称，不应拒绝给同性伴侣赐福的请求。

"For, those seeking a blessing should not be required to have prior moral perfection," it said.

文件称：“因为，那些寻求祝福的人不应该被要求具备完善的道德”。

The document added, "There is no intention to legitimize anything, but rather to open one's life to God, to ask for his help to live better..."

这份文件还称：“我们无意使任何事情合法化，而是向上帝敞开自己的生命，请求他帮助我们过得更好……”

The Vatican holds that marriage is a union between man and woman.

梵蒂冈认为婚姻是男人和女人之间的结合。

As a result, it has long opposed same-sex marriage and considers homosexual acts to be "disordered."

因此，它长期以来一直反对同性婚姻，并认为同性恋行为是“混乱的”。

Nothing in the new document changes that teaching.

新文件并没有改变这一教义。

In the new document, the church says a blessing is about helping people increase their trust in God.

在新文件中，教会表示赐福是帮助人们增加对上帝的信任。

"It is a seed of the Holy Spirit that must be nurtured, not hindered," it said.

新文件称：“它是圣灵的种子，必须培育，而不是阻碍”。

It stresses that people in "irregular" unions of extramarital sex — gay or straight — are in a state of sin.

它强调，除正常婚姻之外“非正常”结合的人——无论是同性恋还是异性恋——都处于一种罪恶的状态。

But that should not keep them from God's love or mercy.

但这不应该使他们远离上帝的爱和怜悯。

"Even when a person's relationship with God is clouded by sin, he can always ask for a blessing, stretching out his hand to God," the document said.

这份文件写道：“即使当一个人与上帝的关系被罪恶笼罩时，他也可以向上帝伸出双手，祈求上帝赐福。”

The document is the latest attempt by the Pope to welcome gay Catholics.

这份文件是教皇欢迎同性恋天主教徒的最新尝试。

In 2013, he said, "Who am I to judge?" when asked about a gay clergy.

2013年，当被问及一位同性恋神职人员的情况时，他说，“我有什么资格评判他呢？”

Earlier this year, he told The Associated Press that "being homosexual is not a crime."

今年早些时候，他告诉美联社，“同性恋并不是犯罪。”

Ramón Gómez oversees human rights for the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation in Chile.

拉蒙·戈麦斯负责监督智利同性恋团结与解放组织的人权。

He said the statement was a step toward breaking down discrimination in the church and could help LGBTQ+ people in countries where even civil unions are not legal.

他说，这份声明是朝着消除教会歧视迈出的一步，可以帮助那些生活在甚至连民事结合都不合法的国家的性少数群体。

But he said the document "gives the signal that same-sex couples are inferior to heterosexual couples."

但他说，这份文件“发出了同性伴侣不如异性伴侣的信号”。

The Reverand James Martin supports welcoming LGBTQ+ Catholics.

詹姆斯·马丁牧师支持欢迎性少数群体天主教徒。

He praised the new document as a "huge step forward" and a change from the Vatican's 2021 policy.

他称赞这份新文件是“向前迈出的一大步”，是对梵蒂冈2021年政策的改革。

"Along with many Catholic priests, I will now be delighted to bless my friends in same-sex marriages," he said in an email.

他在一封电子邮件中说：“和许多天主教神父一样，我现在很高兴为结婚的同性朋友们赐福。”

In Germany, clergy have been blessing same-sex couples for years.

在德国，神职人员多年来一直在给同性伴侣赐福。

And the head of the German Bishops Conference welcomed the document.

德国主教会议主席对这份文件表示欢迎。

Bishop Georg Baetzing said, "This means that a blessing can be given to couples who do not have the opportunity to marry in church, for example due to divorce, and to same-sex couples."

主教Georg Baetzing说，“这意味着，神职人员可以给那些没有机会在教堂结婚的夫妇（比如离过婚的人和同性伴侣）赐福。”

In the United States, the Reverand John Oesterle, a Catholic priest in Pittsburgh, said many priests would probably not be open to offering such a blessing, but he welcomed Francis' action.

在美国，匹兹堡的天主教牧师约翰·奥斯特勒表示，许多牧师可能不会愿意赐福给这些人，但他对方济各的行动表示欢迎。

He said, "When I was growing up, the assumption was that God made everyone straight.

他说：“在我成长的过程中，人们认为上帝让每个人都是异性恋。

What we have learned is that is not true.

但我们所了解到的是，事实并非如此。

In accepting people as God made them, and if Jesus' primary teaching is we should love and serve one another in the community, I think that's what gives Pope Francis the openness to God's presence in those relationships."

接纳上帝创造的人，如果耶稣的主要教义是我们应该在社区中彼此相爱和服务彼此，我认为这就是教皇方济各对上帝创造的这些关系持开放态度的原因。”

Traditionalists, however, expressed shock and anger.

然而，传统主义者表达了震惊和愤怒。

Luigi Casalini of Messa in Latino (Latin Mass) blog wrote that the document did not follow the church's teachings.

Luigi Casalini在拉丁弥撒博客上写道，这份文件没有遵循教会的教义。

"The church is crumbling," he wrote.

他写道：“教堂正在崩塌”。

University of Notre Dame theologian Ulrich Lehner was also concerned.

圣母大学的神学家乌尔里希·莱纳也对此表示担忧。

Lehner called it: "The most unfortunate public announcement in decades."

莱纳称这是“几十年来最不幸的公开声明”。

He said it could lead to division in the church.

他说，这可能会导致教会分裂。