Roman Catholic bishops on Saturday failed to reach consensus on opening the Church's doors to remarried divorcees and gays after a special synod on the family, in a blow to Pope Francis. Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said participants had approved a "re-balanced" final report that took into account the concerns of the most conservative members.
In a final vote on Saturday after two weeks of heated debate, three paragraphs touching on the hot-button issues of a more welcome stance towards gays and divorcees did not receive the two-thirds majority needed. The vote closed a synod of bishops from around the world which has seen conservatives clash publicly with liberals over a drive spearheaded by the pope to soften the Church's approach to sinners. Francis, 77, has called for the Church to take a more merciful approach to unwed mothers, remarried divorcees and gays, famously saying of homosexuals, "Who am I to judge?" Ahead of the vote, the cardinals overwhelmingly approved a message to the world's 1.2 billion Catholics stressing the value of "unique and indissoluble conjugal love" but without touching directly on non-traditional unions.
A preliminary report on Monday, widely reported in Italian media, made waves around the world by suggesting the Church should reach out to homosexuals, who have "gifts and qualities to offer the Christian community", outraging traditionalists who had to be reminded by the Vatican that it was a work in progress. In the media glare, the synod took on the proportions of a referendum on the pope's audacious line, while observers said the early reports may have backfired on progressives seeking to steal the march on conservatives. A fresh report Thursday summed up the reactions of 10 working groups of bishops, which mixed declarations of respect for homosexuals with fierce insistence that any opening up to sinners would imply the Church condoned their behaviour.
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