What the Catholic Church actually says about Homosexuality

A friend of mine recently posted this about same sex marriage. It’s an old article and one we need to review closely. The author of this piece agrees that a same sex union cannot be called a marriage as it contradicts the very definition of it. But he points out several other things which are problematic in that they don't reflect what the Church actually teaches.

https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/18193

He has a problem with the Catholic Church calling these desires “disordered”. For context, I will lift from the Catechism of the Catholic Church the exact words used and what this really means.

CCC 2357-2359:

"Homosexuality refers to relations between men or between women who experience an exclusive or predominant sexual attraction toward persons of the same sex. It has taken a great variety of forms through the centuries and in different cultures. Its psychological genesis remains largely unexplained. Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered." They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.

"The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. They do not choose their homosexual condition; for most of them it is a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfill God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition.

"Homosexual persons are called to chastity. By the virtues of self-mastery that teach them inner freedom, at times by the support of disinterested friendship, by prayer and sacramental grace, they can and gradually and resolutely approach Christian perfection.”

Looking at what the Catechism says, we must clarify that it's the acts that are disordered. These acts would fall under the same category as pre-marital sex or having sex with someone else when you're married. All these are disordered.

Now, the author of the article then poses the question of how could God be the author of disorder? Disorder is the effect that sin has on the world. That's not to say people have disordered circumstances because of their own sin. It must be remembered that Jesus suffered the effects of sin even though He remained sinless.

Notice that the Catechism itself never says anything negative about the individual. That's because the individual may have attractions to people of the same sex but he will ultimately have the choice to act on his attractions. Just as anyone else could be attracted to someone of the opposite sex does not mean they have to act on it.

The author of the article then goes on to say that many people are gay and that even some priests and bishops are gay. Here, a distinction must be made. If by gay, they mean that some priests act on it and engage in sexual intercourse, then it would still be disordered (it actually doesn't matter whether it's a man or woman, it would still be disordered). But if by gay, he means that the priest or bishop is attracted to other men all the while still living a chaste lifestyle, then of course there's nothing wrong with that. He should, in fact, be someone everyone tries to emulate, gay or straight.

Bottom line is that the Church teaches that we must accept everyone (gay or straight, saint or sinner) with respect, compassion and sensitivity. Anyone who says otherwise isn't going contrary to the Gospel.

Should Catholics or Christians support gay marriage or civil unions? I would still say no. As to why, I'll save that for another time.