Opinion Vatican chokes again

The proposed GPA bill that people are protesting against now is radical. It abolishes the requirement of donor anonymity. A homosexual man can give his sperm to a woman willing to lend her body for a fee,without involving herself in motherhood after the baby’s birth. The baby will be raised by two men,one pretending to be “mother.” This leads to a child having triple parentage,the father,mother and surrogate mother,and being the heir of all three parents.

Homosexuals can choose to avoid physical contact with the woman and go through a sperm bank,but they need a living uterus. If the woman later refuses to part with the baby they’ll get cheated. Lesbians have the advantage of no risk procreation. If they choose the anonymous sperm bank,the child will have a mother and another woman as “father.”

Historically,same-sex marriage was legalised in Netherlands in 2001. However,Denmark was the first country to introduce civil partnerships for gays in 1989,but without allowing church weddings. Since then 13 other countries have legally recognised gay marriage: Belgium (2003),Spain (2005),Canada (2005),South Africa (2006),Norway (2009),Sweden (2009),Portugal (2010),Iceland (2010),Argentina (2010),Denmark (2012),Uruguay (2013),New Zealand (2013),and France (2013).

That these Christian dominated countries have passed such legislation favouring homosexuality is sheer blasphemy for the Vatican. In a strongly-worded 12-page document in 2003,Pope John Paul II’s chief theological adviser,Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger,who’s since become Pope Benedict XVI,launched a global campaign against legalising gay marriage. The warning was that homosexual unions were immoral,unnatural and harmful. But the Catholics have not been able to stem this trend.

Choking now on the French law on gay marriage,L’Osservatore Romano,the Vatican’s newspaper,asked for a referendum,adding,“This is a divisive choice,more than something aimed at protecting every kind of relationship.” Spokesman Federico Lombardi said,“Marriage is between a man and a woman and everyone should know he/she has a father and a mother.” As per UNESCO,of the world’s 179 countries,89 recognise homosexuality,while in 7 countries homosexuality is a criminal offence with death penalty.

France’s first gay wedding in Montpellier amid tight security was covered on live television. This southern city’s mayor,Helene Mandroux,pronounced Vincent Autin and Bruno Boileau “united in marriage. “She said that as marriage was about “the same rights for everybody,” this law was “a stage in the modernisation of our country.” I agree about everyone having liberty,but watching two men kissing after signing the marriage contract was shockingly spectacular in a deep-rooted Catholic society like France. It may take another 20 years for third party spectators to not feel disturbed watching homosexual couples in public.

Essentially how much do heterosexual people appreciate or understand the fictitious man-woman relationship among homosexuals is still a question mark. As someone remarked,is it possible for two suns to meet? Their kissing looks like two trains from opposite sides joining,an absurd idea. If the whole world becomes homosexual,there would be no world left as no babies would be born. Perhaps it’s nothing more than procreation being ingrained in civilisation. That’s what makes us comfortable to accept men-women kissing in public,but not a same gender couple exhibiting their love interest for everyone to see. Is homosexuality an expression of individual satisfaction only,with no worry about continuance of society?

There are two types of homosexuals,those who exhibit their affection to shock the world and those who don’t. The many gay friends I have are not exhibitionists,so I have never seen or felt any kind of discomfort before. In fact the 1978 French comic film La Cage aux Folles is an all time favourite story of an endearing gay couple. The manager of a Saint-Tropez nightclub that features drag entertainment and his “female” star attraction there are a gay couple. The manager had a one-off experience with a woman who bore him a child. This boy was raised by the gay couple. When the boy wants to marry a girl whose parents were ultra conservative,the gay couple was in a dilemma because their lifestyle was so incredibly different. The film was much ahead of its time and actually established then what’s happening today.

Marriage confers firmer rights over inheritance in French law than civil pacts do. Same-sex partners were entitled only to civil pacts earlier. The paradox here is that heterosexual couples find marriage to be an unfashionable institution. One out of two marriages ends in divorce in France. So they prefer civil pacts because the “almost inevitable” divorce is very cumbersome.

A single man or woman can adopt a child in France. But as per opinion polls,only 50 per cent French people approve of gay adoption. Political parties are using gay marriage to return to power. The Catholic Church argues that same-sex marriage would cause psychological and social harm to children. The French just want to stop GPA now. Their protest slogans are saying,“All born of a father and mother” and “Paternity,maternity,equality.”

Shombit is an international consultant to top management on differentiating business strategy with execution excellence (www.shiningconsulting.com)