By: Lindsay Martin | Staff-Writer
*DISCLAIMER: Political Op-eds are independently written and do not reflect the views of the Mosaic Student Newspaper or Salve Regina.
On October 21, Francesco, a new documentary about Pope Francis, was released, in which he endorsed same-sex civil unions.
On October 27, Amy Coney Barrett, popular among religious conservatives, was sworn-in to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Let’s unpack the significance of this.
Since he was elected in March 2013, Pope Francis has developed a reputation of being more outspoken about modern-day issues—especially those that were once, or still are, considered prohibited in the Roman Catholic Church. While he has not altered church doctrine, he has significantly shifted the church’s tone towards homosexuality and same-sex couples.
“Homosexuals have a right to be a part of the family,” he says in the documentary, as reported by The New York Times. “They’re children of God and have a right in the family.”
This has certainly caused a stir in Catholic conservatives, many of whom have been wary of the Pope’s comparatively radical opinions in the past, including Providence’s very own Bishop Thomas Tobin. Despite this raucous opposition, Pope Francis still rejects same-sex marriage, as this goes against church doctrine. However, his support for civil unions, as well as his call to Catholics to welcome homosexual individuals, is something that no Pope has ever done before.
Although the Catholic Church does not reject homosexuality, just homosexual acts and same-sex marriage, Pope Francis’ remarks have undoubtedly opened the doors for homosexual Catholics. There is nothing in the Bible stating that homosexuality is a sin.
Amy Coney Barrett, President Donald Trump’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court, is a practicing Catholic and a member of the covenant community People of Praise. She became popular among religious conservatives during the 2017 hearing for her nomination for the U.S. Court of Appeals in the 7th Circuit. In these hearings, Justice Barrett repeatedly ascertained that it is inappropriate for a judge to allow their personal beliefs to influence their ruling. According to The Washington Post, Senator Dianne Feinstein, unconvinced of Justice Barrett’s own adherence to this, then famously said, in reference to Justice Barrett’s religious beliefs, “the dogma lives loudly within you, and that is a concern.”
This statement may have appealed to religious conservatives, but it has worried others, especially those in the LGBTQ community and its allies.
While Justice Barrett has insisted publicly that previous Supreme Court rulings must be maintained, she wrote an article in 2013 arguing that the Supreme Court has an obligation to revisit earlier precedents—and potentially overrule them.
Looks like Justice Barrett may be a little hypocritical.
This contradiction has aroused concern surrounding the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling, which, in 2013, legalized same-sex marriage.
Next week, the Supreme Court is set to begin hearing arguments in the Fulton v. City of Philadelphia case, which, according to NBC News, examines whether “faith-based child welfare agencies can refuse to work with same-sex couples” or other couples who may violate their religious beliefs.
Though same-sex couples still remain far from equal to heterosexual couples, a ruling in favor of the City of Philadelphia could set back all of the progress that has been made since Obergefell v. Hodges. And the possibility of this worries same-sex couples who, biologically, are unable to independently have children: with Justice Barrett’s confirmation, the Supreme Court is now 6-3 conservative majority.
Not only is the LGBTQ community worried about this potential ruling against their favor—due to what? a judge’s personal beliefs?—but now they are also worried that Justice Barrett may revisit landmark cases for their community, including, but not limited to, Obergefell v. Hodges, United States v. Windsor, and Lawrence v. Texas.
So, two big events happened within the last two weeks: Pope Francis’ support of same-sex civil unions and Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation to the Supreme Court.
The contradictions between these two events are glaring, but they also beg the question: if Justice Barrett is truly a devout Catholic who listens to the Pope, as all Catholics do, why have her actions driven much of the American population into a frenzy for their own civil rights? Shouldn’t all Catholics listen to the Pope?
Cover Image: “Pope Francis met with media” by Catholic Church (England and Wales) is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
“President Trump Nominates Judge Amy Coney Barrett for Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court” by The White House is marked with CC PDM 1.0
