by Bernie English [email protected]
CATHOLIC Bishops have appealed to voters to “reflect deeply’ before changing laws to allow for same-sex marriage.
Their appeal came after well-known Limerick Augustinian priest, Fr Iggy O’Donovan, broke ranks to say that same-sex marriage should be allowed.
While there was no comment from the Diocese on Fr O’Donovan’s remarks, this week’s Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference stated in a press release that “marriage is of fundamental importance for children, mothers and fathers, and society – all of us need to reflect deeply before changing it”.
Earlier this week, Fr O’Donovan became the first priest to publicly admit he supports gay marriage. He said he is voting for the amendment and was critical of Bishop Kevin Doran’s comments on homosexuality.
He said that he supports gay marriage even as “an absolute believer in Catholic teaching on marriage”.
“I accept that there are people with different but deeply held views to me and I respect their views and I don’t think I have the right to impose my views on them”.
He said he came to his decision from years of pastoral work with young gay Catholics.
“As we learn more, it would be more unforgivable for us to get it wrong. We cannot support an amendment to the Constitution which redefines marriage and effectively places the union of two men, or two women, on a par with the marriage relationship between a husband and wife which is open to the procreation of children”, he said.
