Don’t expect the media to pick this one up. From Vatican Radio:
The head of the Holy See Press Office, Father Federico Lombardi, SJ, has issued a statement clarifying passages of the book Light of the World, in which Pope Benedict discusses AIDS and condom use.
The statement says Pope Benedict states that AIDS cannot be solved only by the distribution of condoms, and, in fact, concentrating on condoms just trivializes sexuality, which loses its meaning as an expression of love and becomes like a drug.
At the same time, the Pope considered an exceptional situation in which the exercise of sexuality represents a real risk to the lives of others. In this case, the Pope does not morally justify the exercise of disordered sexuality, but believes that the use of condoms to reduce the risk of infection is a “first step on the road to a more human sexuality”, rather than not to use it and risking the lives of others.
Father Lombardi’s statement clarifies Pope Benedict XVI has not reformed or changed the Church’s teaching, but by putting it in perspective reaffirms the value and dignity of human sexuality as an expression of love and responsibility.
Another helpful article: Pope Benedict advocates right sexuality, not condom use, in fight against HIV
Interesting: Time Magazine actually got it right!
My previous post: Benedict, Condoms and Context
MORE: The CNS Blog has the full English translation of Fr. Lombardi’s statement (h/t Thomas Peters – who has excellent commentary on this as well)
2 Comments on “Update: Head of Holy See Press Office Issues Statement”
What this exception to the rule suggests is that sexual morality is not always black and white. Benedict has chosen a case where transmission of new life (barring a real miracle) is already impossible, and where wearing a condom (i.e. not risking infection of a sexual partner) is more responsible than not. The Vatican insists that the general doctrine remains the same.
But what this exception suggests, I think, is that condoms are ok in some circumstances for gays because there is – duh – a moral distinction between fucking someone and knowingly infecting him with a serious disease and fucking someone while avoiding infecting him with a serious disease. Now, this might seem like the bleeding obvious to anyone with a shred of moral sense – but until now, the Vatican has never dealt with such nuances, and certainly not advocated any form of gay sex that might be more moral than other forms of gay sex.
This latter point is revolutionary, in fact, as the Vatican’s rather panicked official response suggests.
Although strongly agreeing with Fr John also ; I find his ‘disagreement’ with His Holiness somewhat amphibolic and specious.