Pope Francis approves Catholic blessings for same-sex couples, but not for marriage

https://www.npr.org/2023/12/18/ [login to see] /pope-francis-blessings-same-sex-couples
Pope Francis has granted his formal approval allowing Catholic priests to bless same-sex couples so long as they do not appear to endorse their marriage, marking the church's most permissive decree yet on the issue of same-sex couples.

The declaration, published Monday in a new document titled "Fiducia Supplicans: On the Pastoral Meaning of Blessings," marks a major departure for the Vatican, which only two years ago had said God "cannot bless sin" in a controversial 2021 decision about same-sex couples. Monday's document was approved by Pope Francis.

Still, the Vatican stressed that marriage remains exclusively between a man and a woman, and any priests granting a blessing to a same-sex couple must "avoid any form of confusion or scandal" that could suggest otherwise.