“The freedom we must offer people in homosexual relationships lies in the truth of God’s Word,” he continued. “How dare we make them believe that it would be good and willful of God for them to remain in the prison of their sin?”
While bishops worldwide are divided over the declaration, many Catholic bishops across Africa have publicly rejected the controversial Fiducia Supplicans. Several bishops' conferences in Africa in recent weeks have called on priests not to give blessings to same-sex couples, while other bishops have instructed clergy in their diocese not to give blessings to same-sex couples.
In his address, Sarah encouraged “every bishop to do the same” as the bishops’ conferences in Cameroon, Chad and Nigeria.
Sarah noted that the statement “failed to correct these errors” of the church in Germany, where the controversy over the Synodal Way has caused divisions in the church.
In March 2023, the German Synodal Way, a collaboration between the German Bishops' Conference and the powerful lay lobby ZdK, approved the development of formalized ritual texts for same-sex blessings. The Vatican statement allows “spontaneous blessings,” but not liturgical ones.
But from Sarah's perspective, the Vatican's statement has made the situation even worse.