The pope's spokesman confirmed today that the Vatican opposes laws criminalizing homosexuality, according to Catholic News Service. Most would be glad to hear it, but why now?
The Vatican was pressed to make the statement after Archbishop Celestino Migliore, the Vatican's apostolic nuncio to the United Nations, said the Vatican would not sign a U.N. document calling for the worldwide decriminalization of homosexuality, which is still a capital crime in many places. Migliore suggested such a declaration might be used against countries who do not allow same-sex marriage.
The statement blew up in the media, of course, and pro-gay Catholic groups including Dignity/USA and Call to Action held news conferences and protests in several U.S. cities denouncing the Vatican's unwillingness to sign, as did groups in Italy.
I admit I liked the response of an anonymous Rome-based priest in a Time article on the subject: "When you're always trying to look for new ways to make your point, you lose credibility. Better sometimes to keep quiet."
Too right.
