The
fact that this is a political statement from the
Vatican
indicates that they have lost the theological debate and are now seeking to
influence the political debate. The Catholic Church feels its franchise is at
risk.
The Vatican’s call on
democratically elected MPs and Ministers to oppose recent and future same sex
law reform on
Domestic Partnerships and adoption
is not only vicious but may well be seditious.
Many Lesbians and Gay men of all
ages feel vulnerable and experience depression because of social
prejudice against homosexuality. The negative attitudes of most Churches (and
the Catholic Church in particular) and some ill-informed and bigoted sections of
society fuel and exacerbate these attitudes.
Relationships between some parents
and their gay children will be further damaged by the
Vatican’s anti family diatribe. Parents
who heed the
Vatican ruling will be torn between the
love of their children and their allegiance to
Rome. One outcome will be a reduction
in parental support and nurturing, increased youth homelessness and family
breakdown. Increased incidents of self harm are the likely dividend the
Vatican will reap.
Groups such as the Blackshirts, Nazis, Skinheads and other disaffected
gangs will find comfort in the
Vatican’s statements. They will be
inspired and encouraged by the statements which seem designed to incite hatred
and will cause an increase in homophobic assault, violence and vilification.
Whatever we may think of the
Catholic hierarchy, they are surely not stupid.
They cannot be unaware of the
physical and mental harm that such statements will cause.
The
Vatican is well aware that hateful
diatribes are likely to incite violence against Lesbians and Gay men. Therefore
they must have intended this outcome.
We are concerned at the impact of
their statements even if the
Vatican is not.
The
Victorian Gay and Lesbian Rights
Lobby
strongly condemns the moral depravity of the Catholic Church and
its agents of influence and It calls on ALL members of Australian Parliaments,
Church Ministers and parishioners, Parents and Community groups to speak out
against this hateful and violent edict from the Vatican.
The Catholic Church claims that it
provides moral leadership. The reality is that the Catholic Inquisition is back
as the purveyors of a discredited and morally bankrupt view that has no currency
in the 21st Century and in fact reads like an excerpt from a Nazi family
planning manual.
The Catholic Church burnt people at the stake for
denying the earth was flat.
The Catholic Church supported
slavery, and the burning of “witches”.
The Catholic Church condemned
Galileo for putting the sun at the centre.
The Catholic Church did not
denounce Hitler as morally depraved. Well, not when it mattered.
The Catholic Church shunted
pedophile priests from parish to parish and from school to school and had to be
dragged to court to face up to its legal responsibilities.
It’s about time the Catholic
Church looked at its own moral depravity.
Lesbians and gay men have human
rights, like anyone else. This includes the right to love and be loved, and to
have their love recognised, like anyone else. Galileo’s vindication took 400
years. We can’t wait.
The
Victorian Gay and Lesbian Rights
Lobby
supports the statement made by the Tasmanian Gay and Lesbian Rights Group and
refers interested journalists to the Tasmanian Anti Discrimination Act 1998,
Section 19
Inciting hatred
19. A person, by a public act,
must not incite hatred towards, serious contempt for, or severe ridicule of, a
person or a group of persons on the ground of -
(a) The race of the
person or any member of the group; or
(b) Any disability of the person
or any member of the group; or
(c) The sexual orientation or lawful
sexual activity of the person or any member of the group; or
(d) The
religious belief or affiliation or religious activity of the person or any
member of the group.
For comment or clarification phone
David McCarthy on 0412377099
"All human beings are born free and equal in
dignity and rights."
(Art. 1, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 10
December 1948)