From the German diocese of Rottenburg-Straccarda a subsidy on how to "bless love" even in homosexual couples
Reflections by Antonio De Caro*
Years ago the pastoral subsidy "Wir Lieben Uns - Welch Ein Segen!/We love each other - what a blessing! " of the German diocese of Rottenburg-Straccarda, would have been inconceivable. At the family and social level it was very difficult for homosexuals to live a stable relationship in a transparent way.
Moreover, within the roman Catholic Church They have weighed for a long time, and weigh the convictions and prejudices of Tradition and the Magisterium. Now, as we know, much has changed: also thanks to the institution of civil unions, many homosexual people live in light of their commitment of love and, thanks To pope Francis, the church is learning to welcome people and their love more and more.
La Tenda di Gionata often followed this debate, especially in the germanic world (Germany; Austria), as well as in Italian Synodal Path. The Synodal Path in Germany approved in the spring of 2023 the possibility of blessing homosexual unions (we Have dealt with it here, here and here), well before the Declaration Trust Supplicans, which gives the question an answer - in our opinion - ambiguous and weak, to the point of arousing the impression of a blessing denied.
The 16 pages of "Wir Lieben Uns - Welch Ein Segen!/We love each other - what a blessing! " that we translated, born in the diocese of Rottenburg-Straccarda, seems instead to report a fresh air of spring and hope. It has different prayers to use, adapting them, for the blessing of unions outside the wedding - therefore also for people of the same sex.
In the texts the liturgical passages in which the loving and powerful presence of God is clearly grasped (epiclese) in the name of the salvation that he has already given (anamnesis). For people who love each other to ask for the blessing of God, it is a need that spontaneously arises from faith, that is, from the awareness of the good that God has already given to the path made both individually and together.
Blessing means transferring the gift of himself that God makes to men within human relationships: the loving presence of God is an evolutionary guarantee that can increase the quality of love between people, and this always applies. In a Christian community, the homosexual unions would also be the eloquent sign of trust that even in them can concretely manifest the faithful benevolence of God for human beings.
In the blessing there are, circularly, a descending dimension (from God to humanity, see Nm 6.22-27) and an ascendant (from humanity towards God, see EF 1.3-14): it is therefore a Eucharistic gesture, mutual, which concerns and feeds the relationship between man and God. For Christians, then, the blessing recalls the gift of baptism, that is, the relationship with Christ, It makes good fruit for others.
A blessing aims to increase the strength of people, thanks to the relationship with God: therefore it reveals and makes it perceptible its presence, precisely as it creates distance from the curse, that is, from refusal and contempt.
The curse addresses the language of power and destruction, that is, it excludes and relegates people to a place where it is impossible to find God. Blessed, on the other hand, means attracting, outside the logic of hatred, friendship and protection of God. He gives the faithful the grace of the Holy Spirit so that they can experience his protection, his help and his strength especially in the difficulties they encounter together: if the faithful believe in this grace, It can be blessed.
Even homosexual Christians, like everyone else, have reason to ask God for salvation and happiness, while they praise him and thank him for the gift for having been created and redeemed. Well, within every love relationship, the partners are grateful to God because they recognize that they are already the sign that God has already blessed each* of the two thanks to the presence of the altr*.
If the union responds to a pact of love established in the consciences of the spouses, it is already, spiritually, blessed, since God has long loved and has welcomed these people with their concrete stories. The Church, a simple mediator of the grace that arises from the Easter mystery, does not have the power to prevent this flow, but the task of making it visible. The Christian community would benefit from it, since recognizing good in all forms of authentic love is a sign of gratitude for God's benevolence towards all human beings.
Through prayer, the community declares its joyful welcome and the willingness to support the love of the couple: signs and words can illuminate the idea of a love that grows and mature thanks to the strength of God.
This is the reason why these prayers of blessing have a prophetic value: their most concrete and tangible purpose, of course, is to ask God for the strength to continue to love each other constructively, fruitful and oblative.
But in reality these prayers - while trying to imitate grace - reveal the face of God, his identity and his values, exactly like people who love each other are an epiphany and a metaphor for the love of God who arouses, fortifies and feeds love between people. From each of the texts the portrait of God emerges who, the source of life and love, turns his gaze on us and accompanies our path; His blessing gives peace and grows the strength of the relationship; The light of God fertilizes the love of the couple and makes him fruitful, like patience and mutual help; In all the relationships of love and care is perceived the sound of God's harmony, which therefore inspires honors and blessing, precisely according to that model of Eucharistic circularity that we have outlined before.
La Tenda di Gionata therefore offers these texts in Italian translation not only so that they can be used for the actual blessings of couples outside the sacrament of marriage, but also as a starting point for reflection and prayer, as Psalms that tell the experiences of love between men and women and in them grasp the sweetness and energy of the God of Jesus Christ.
As in the Paulini hymns, every gesture of love is an eschatological pledge, because we believe that it is preserved in Christ to be perfected and become salvation for everyone.
Our hope is that the italian catholic Church Can Also be renewed by the poetic and spiritual depth of these texts and open up to increasingly authentic, joyful and consistent forms of welcome.
Italian Translation of "Wir Lieben Uns - Welch Ein sawn!/We love each other! What a blessing! " (PDF Files)
The original pastoral subsidy in german: "Wir lieben uns - welch ein Segen! (PDF Files)
* Antonio De Caro (Palermo 1970) collaborates withLa Tenda di GionataTo promote dialogue between homosexual condition and christian faith. has Already translated the following contributions from the german:Catholic theologians, biblists and liturgists confront each other on “The blessing of homosexual unions(2020), "Mit Dem Sene der Kircher? " The German Catholic Church and homosexual unions with a view to pastoral care(2019). On the subject he also published the following essays:Violence does not belong to God. Homosexual relationships and welcome in the Church(2021) eLook for his face. Theological reflections on homosexual love(2019).
