Pope Francis Announces Support For Banning Same-Sex Marriage And Adoption

Pope Francis announces support for constitutional bans on same-sex marriage and adoption by same-sex couples in Slovakia.

In his general audience address Wednesday, Pope Francis I offered support for laws that would ban same-sex marriage, adoption by same-sex couples, and for allowing parents to remove children from sex-ed classes. Citizens in Slovakia will vote on the measures Saturday.

“I greet the pilgrims from Slovakia and, through them, I wish to express my appreciation to the entire Slovak church, encouraging everyone to continue their efforts in defense of the family, the vital cell of society,” Francis said, according to Buzzfeed.

In that same address, Pope Francis also spoke about the importance of fathers. “Every family needs a father,” the pontiff said.

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Joe Jervis reports “this weekend’s referendum is being pushed by the Alliance Defending Freedom, who filed a local amicus brief even though Slovakia had already approved a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage in June 2014, earning lavish praise from Brian Brown.” 

Buzzfeed notes the Catholic Church has offered a great deal of support for the anti-gay referendum.

Father Martin Kramara, spokesperson for the Catholic Church’s Conference of Slovak Bishops attempted to distance the Church somewhat from the referendum. “The referendum itself is an initiative of civil society; it’s not primarily of the church,” Kramara told Buzzfeed. 

“We would be very unhappy if [the referendum] generates any animosity against homosexually oriented people,” he added.

UPDATE: Pope Francis: Smacking A Child To Punish Them Can Be ‘Just’ And ‘Beautiful’

 

Image © Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk via Flickr and a CC license