{"id":56357,"date":"2024-01-10T22:09:47","date_gmt":"2024-01-10T22:09:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order"},"modified":"2024-01-10T22:25:08","modified_gmt":"2024-01-10T22:25:08","slug":"malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order","title":{"rendered":"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Malawi. <\/strong><\/span>Malawi Catholic Bishops have come rebuffing Pope Francis\u2019s order on blessing same-sex unions. The bishops through the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM) have hinted that will not offer blessings of \u201cany kind and for same-sex unions of any kind\u201d in the country. This is contrary to Pope Francis\u2019 approval for the same.<\/p>\n

In a statement jointly issued on Tuesday, December 19, 2023, signed by the bishops led by ECM president Archbishop George Desmond Tambala of the Archdiocese of Lilongwe, the local bishops said their decision is meant \u201cto avoid creating confusion among the faithful\u201d.<\/p>\n

Through a doctrinal declaration that the Vatican released on Sunday, the Pope approved same-sex could be \u201cblessed, but without any type of ritualisation or offering the impression of a marriage\u201d.<\/p>\n

But the Vatican declaration said when a couple in an irregular situation or a same-sex couple asks for a blessing, it \u201cshould never be imparted in concurrence with the ceremonies of a civil union\u201d.<\/p>\n

However, ECM said the declaration has led to \u201cerroneous\u201d interpretations, generating interest, fears and worries among Catholics and people that are up to the church for moral, spiritual and doctrinal guidance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe declaration is not about the blessing of same-sex unions and sacramental endorsement of the same as married couples, no.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a document prompted by questions to the congregation of the Doctrine of Faith regarding whether or not the blessings of God through His Ministers can be extended to everybody regardless of their state… not on the blessing of same-sex unions,\u201d reads ECM statement in part.<\/p>\n

ECM added that the declaration that the Pope approved was in the context of ordinary blessings whose recipients can be any people, objects of worship and devotion, sacred images, places of work and fruits.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe teaching of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church on Marriage remains the one indicated in paragraph an exclusive, stable and indissoluble union between a man and a woman, naturally open to the generation of children,\u201d says ECM statement.<\/p>\n

In the Vatican declaration, the church also stressed marriage does not change and that blessing such couples does not signify approval of the union of marriage.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ordained minister could ask that the individuals have peace, health, a spirit of patience, dialogue, and mutual assistance, but also God\u2019s light and strength to be able to fulfill his will completely,\u201d the declaration reads.<\/p>\n

On July 13, 2023, religious leaders in Lilongwe, including Archbishop Tambala led thousands of people in a march against legalising homosexuality in Malawi.<\/p>\n

In his speech when submitting a petition to Parliament, the archbishop said: \u201cWe will continue monitoring to make sure that what we have submitted here is adhered to.\u201d<\/p>\n

But Minister of Information and Digitisation Moses Kunkuyu at the time assured the public that there was no discussion at any level of the government to change the existing law that bars same-sex marriages in the country.<\/p>\n

The protest followed a constitutional referral matter of 2021 involving a Dutch national Jan Willem Akatar and a transgender woman Jana Gonani who were challenging the banning of same sex marriages in the country. There are over 1.3 billion Catholics and according to ECM, 25 percent of Malawi\u2019s population is Catholic.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Malawi<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Malawi. Malawi Catholic Bishops have come rebuffing Pope Francis\u2019s order on blessing same-sex unions. The bishops through the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM) have hinted that will not offer blessings of \u201cany kind and for same-sex unions of any kind\u201d in the country. This is contrary to Pope Francis\u2019 approval for the same. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":56355,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,4,25],"tags":[233,371,234],"class_list":["post-56357","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-culture-and-art","category-featured","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-malawi","tag-malawi"],"yoast_head":"\nMalawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order - Malawi<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Malawi Catholic Bishops have come rebuffing Pope Francis\u2019s order on blessing same-sex unions. The bishops through the Ep ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Malawi Catholic Bishops have come rebuffing Pope Francis\u2019s order on blessing same-sex unions. The bishops through the Ep ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Malawi\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-01-10T22:09:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-01-10T22:25:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-01-10T22:09:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-01-10T22:25:08+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order\"},\"wordCount\":551,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Malawi\",\"Malawi\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"culture and art\",\"Featured\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order\",\"name\":\"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order - Malawi\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-01-10T22:09:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-01-10T22:25:08+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"Malawi Catholic Bishops have come rebuffing Pope Francis\u2019s order on blessing same-sex unions. The bishops through the Ep ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg\",\"width\":1280,\"height\":720,\"caption\":\"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/\",\"name\":\"Malawi\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order - Malawi","description":"Malawi Catholic Bishops have come rebuffing Pope Francis\u2019s order on blessing same-sex unions. The bishops through the Ep ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order","og_description":"Malawi Catholic Bishops have come rebuffing Pope Francis\u2019s order on blessing same-sex unions. The bishops through the Ep ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order","og_site_name":"Malawi","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2024-01-10T22:09:47+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-01-10T22:25:08+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1280,"height":720,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order","datePublished":"2024-01-10T22:09:47+00:00","dateModified":"2024-01-10T22:25:08+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order"},"wordCount":551,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg","keywords":["Africa Press","Africa Press-Malawi","Malawi"],"articleSection":["all news","culture and art","Featured"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order","name":"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order - Malawi","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg","datePublished":"2024-01-10T22:09:47+00:00","dateModified":"2024-01-10T22:25:08+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"Malawi Catholic Bishops have come rebuffing Pope Francis\u2019s order on blessing same-sex unions. The bishops through the Ep ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/malawi\/sites\/36\/2024\/01\/sm_1704912736.969839.jpg","width":1280,"height":720,"caption":"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/all-news\/malawi-catholic-bishops-say-no-to-same-sex-couples-blessings-order#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Malawi Catholic Bishops say \u201cNO\u201d to Same-sex couple\u2019s Blessings order"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/","name":"Malawi","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56357","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56357"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56357\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56357"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56357"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/malawi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56357"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}