Vatican official decries Irish vote
Approval of same-sex marriage is defeat for Christian principles and humanity, he said.
VATICAN CITY - Last week's referendum legalizing same-sex marriage in Ireland "is not only a defeat for Christian principles, but also a bit of a defeat for humanity," according to a top Vatican official.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin - the secretary of state, who is the Vatican's second-in-command after Pope Francis - made the comments late Tuesday at an awards ceremony. Vatican Radio published them the next day.
"These results make me very sad. Of course, as the archbishop of Dublin has said, the Church must take into consideration this reality, but in the sense that, in my opinion, it must redouble its commitment and make an effort to evangelize," Parolin also said.
Ireland, a traditionally Catholic country where homosexual acts were illegal until 1993, conducted a public vote Friday on gay marriage in which the "yes" camp won 62.1 percent to 37.9 percent. The results emboldened gay-rights calls elsewhere in Europe.
"We sincerely regret that some representatives of the Catholic Church fail to acknowledge that equality . . . does not go against Christian values at all," Evelyne Paradis, executive director of ILGA-Europe, said.
"Throughout the [Irish] campaign, several practicing Catholics have come out in support of marriage equality saying that being a Christian is about loving all equally," said Paridis, whose organization lobbies for gay rights.
On Wednesday, the head of the Italian Bishops' Conference, Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, said the church was not opposed to recognizing gay people's "individual rights," but said their unions could not be given rights similar to those enjoyed by married couples.
The Catholic Church has always seen homosexuality as a sin, and there is no suggestion its stance may change.