Pope Benedict XVI on Monday warned that
gay marriage threatens humanity, Reuters reported.
The pope told diplomats from nearly 180
countries accredited to the Vatican that children need proper
“settings” and that “pride of place goes to the family, based
on the marriage of a man and a woman.”
“This is not a simple social
convention, but rather the fundamental cell of every society.
Consequently, policies which undermine the family threaten human
dignity and the future of humanity itself,” he said.
“The family unit is fundamental for
the educational process and for the development both of individuals
and states; hence there is a need for policies which promote the
family and aid social cohesion and dialogue,” Benedict added.
The Holy Father has previously rallied
against the legalization of gay marriage in Europe and elsewhere.
(Related: Pope
Benedict anti-gay marriage speech cut short by freak storm.)
The Roman Catholic Church teaches that
gay sex is sinful, but a homosexual orientation is not necessarily
so.
The pope will elevate New York
Archbishop Timothy Dolan, an outspoken opponent of gay marriage, to
cardinal at a ceremony in Rome on February 18.