Pope Francis: Refusing to sign gay ‘marriage’ licenses is a human right
Pope Francis gave clear approval of Kim Davis’
stance against
issuing homosexual “marriage” licenses as he traveled back to Rome Monday,
calling it a “human right” for government officials to refuse to
conduct a duty that
violates their conscience.
On the flight home from his first visit to the U.S., the pope
was asked whether he supported individuals, including government officials, who
decline to obey certain laws, for instance issuing “marriage” licenses to
same-sex couples.
"Conscientious objection must enter into every juridical
structure because it is a right," the Holy Father said in response.
Religious liberty has been a hot-button
issue in recent
months in the United States as various small
businesses across the country have been targeted
with fines,prosecution and attack on social media for declining
to take part in
homosexual “weddings” based upon their owners’ religious and moral objection.
The headlines of late have been focused on the case of Rowan
County, KY Clerk Kim Davis, who went to
jail for
refusing to issue marriage licenses to any couples so as to avoid
discriminating against homosexual couples. She has asked for an accommodation
where her name and title would be removed from the licenses.
"I can't have in mind all cases that can exist about
conscientious objection,” Pope Francis told journalists on his flight, “but,
yes, I can say that conscientious objection is a right that is a part of every
human right."
"And if someone does not allow others to be a conscientious
objector,” the Holy Father said, “he denies a right."
The pope also said conscientious objection must be respected in
legal structures.
"Otherwise we would end up in a situation where we select
what is a right, saying: 'This right has merit, this one does not,'" he
stated.
The unambiguous comments from Pope Francis in support of
religious freedom come after other comparable statements he made, spoken and
symbolic, throughout his historic visit to the United States, making religious
liberty a recurring theme for the trip.
The pope first addressed religious liberty early in the visit
during the White House welcome ceremony, where he expressed
concern over the
current increasingly hostile climate toward religious freedom in the U.S.
“Mr. President, together with their fellow citizens, American
Catholics are committed to building a society which is truly tolerant and
inclusive, to safeguarding the rights of individuals and communities, and to
rejecting every form of unjust discrimination,” he said. “With countless other
people of good will, they are likewise concerned that efforts to build a just
and wisely ordered society respect their deepest concerns and the right to
religious liberty.”
The Holy Father also spoke of the importance for U.S. citizens
to remain vigilant and defend religious freedom, commending the U.S. Bishops
for their efforts to that end.
“That freedom reminds one of America’s most precious
possessions,” Pope Francis stated from the White House south lawn. “And, as my
brothers, the United States Bishops, have reminded us, all are called to be
vigilant, precisely as good citizens, to preserve and defend that freedom from
everything that would threaten or compromise it.”
President
Obama, whose
administration is not known as religious
liberty-friendly, from its
push to penalize small business owners who employ conscientious objection to
homosexual “marriage,” and for forcing employers to pay for birth control and
abortifacients via its HHS Contraception Mandate, was ready for the Holy Father
to address the subject.
Heading Pope Francis’ message off first during the ceremony with
his own remarks, Obama gave the idea that he supports religious freedom,
telling the pope that his presence gave a reminder that people are only truly
free if they can practice their faith freely, and that religious liberty is
cherished in the United States.
The president said to the pontiff, “We stand with you in defense
of religious freedom and interfaith dialogue, knowing that people everywhere
must be able to live out their faith free from fear and free from
intimidation.”
Pope Francis followed
up later that day by making an unscheduled stop to visit the Little Sisters of the
Poor, an international religious community of nuns that operate group
homes and provide daily care for the elderly poor in 30 U.S. cities. currently
targeted by the Obama Administration for refusing to compromise their Catholic
values by complying with the HHS Contraception Mandate
