Catholic Church and Gay Marriage in France

Why do virgin men in funny robes like to preach to the rest of us about sex?

By Hos

France is a country where secularism is a national value. Unlike in the US, the separation of Church (which in France would be the Catholic Church) and the State is not in dispute. Or it wasn’t until recently.

That may be about to change with the election of new president Francois Hollande, who defeated conservative incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy last May. Hollande’s electoral promise to legalize gay marriage has once again angered the “holy mother church”, and they are taking a stand on matters of politics, for the first time since World War II.

On August 15, the Day of Assumption of Mary, all churchesnationwide are holding a prayer service concerning this matter. This was the idea of the head of France’s Conference of Catholic Bishops, His Eminence Andre Vingt-Trois. (Above, left.) (I hope the title suites his ego.)

The faithful will pray “that common sense overcomes personal desires of those who have been elected recently, and for them to have the strength to follow their conscience”. They will also pray that “the youth and children will no longer be object of the desires and conflicts of adults and can benefit from the love of a father and a mother”.

(Leftist parties have criticized the move, saying that the church “has no democratic legitimacy to get involved in a political debate”. Seriously, can you imagine ANY politician in the US say something like that?) 

The French people though, have other ideas, it seems. Support for gay marriage in France is 64%. Among those under 35, it is 79%, while among those 65 and older, it is 44%, mirroring similar trends in the US.