Are Catholics "Homophobic"?

The popular press would have it that Catholics, who oppose Homosexual "marriage", are homophobic. The term, homophobic, conjures up images of hatred or fear or both. Nothing could be further from the truth. Most of us Catholics are anguished over the mistreatment of people afflicted with attraction to the same sex. Look at the teaching of the church as laid out in the Catechism of the Catholic Church in paragraphs 2357-2359. One must absolutely distinguish between homosexual acts and being homosexual (i.e. sexually attracted to people of the same sex.) There is a huge difference.

2357. The first paragraph declares that homosexual acts, such as sodomy, are disordered. They are intrinsically wrong.
2358. The second goes on to state that people thus afflicted ”… must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided."
2359. The third paragraph concludes this sequence by stating that "Homosexual persons are called to chastity."

The key here is "chastity". We cannot and must not condone homosexual acts. All of us are called to a life of chastity by God. Chastity, in this context, means the use of our sexual faculty only in the condition of a marriage between a man and woman and performed in a way open to the creation of new life, as ordained by God. By sanctioning "marriage" between two people of the same sex we would approve the implied homosexual acts. This would be a great scandal. More importantly such an arrangement denigrates the sacrament of marriage, instituted by Christ, which was ordained by God for the procreation of the human race. This is our difficulty with homosexual "marriage" and other scandalous, public acts.

Don"t let yourself be labeled "homophobic" if, as you must, you cherish all people, those afflicted with same sex attraction and those not so afflicted, while denouncing homosexual acts and the scandal which arises from public approval of them. Stand firm in your faith and don"t let yourself be bullied.

You will be accused, "Are you saying that "two people of the same sex cannot be loving, caring partners and parents of children"? NO! What we ARE saying is that there are relationships which are NOT permissible in a responsible use of the God-given reproductive faculty. An adulterous relationship is wrong! A relationship based on prostitution, which denigrates or "uses" one of the persons, is wrong! Similarly, a homosexual relationship is wrong and should never have been entered into. That relationship presumes a conduct which includes acts which are a misuse of our procreative faculty. Simply put, it should never have gotten to that stage! There are resources for gay and lesbian Catholics which are dedicated to helping them lead a chaste life. For example, see the Courage web site. This organization was featured in an article in the Catholic Spirit.

Lastly, this is summed up very compactly by "Love the sinner, hate the sin."

See the Catechism of the Catholic Church