Vatican Opens Way for Transgender Godparents, Baptisms, and Marriage Witnesses

Dicastery for Doctrine answers more dubia…

Vatican Opens Way for Transgender Godparents, Baptisms, and Marriage Witnesses

Godfather or godmother? Vatican allows transgender godparents at baptisms…

Once again, breaking news out of Rome.

Once again, the so-called Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith has given answers to so-called dubia, which are questions (“doubts”) submitted to it concerning a point of doctrine or practice to be resolved.

Once again, the prefect, ‘Cardinal’ Victor Manuel Fernandez of ‘mouth-healing’ infamy, wrote the response and had it personally approved by ‘Pope’ Francis, whose signature appears at the end.

And once again, the text of the response is ambiguous and nuanced enough to where both proponents and opponents of transgender inclusion can quote the document in their favor. Cue the livestreams and recorded videos of various Novus Ordo apologists to tell you why it’s really an orthodox document.

But first, the facts.

The document issued by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith is a response to dubia submitted in July by ‘Bishop’ José Negri (b. 1959), the local ordinary of the diocese of Santo Amaro, Brazil. It has been released in Italian only and posted on the Vatican web site, together with Francis’ signature approving it:

• Risposte del Dicastero a S.E. Mons. Negri (Oct. 31, 2023)

An unofficial English translation has apparently been published by Mike Lewis of Where Peter Is. For some reason, however, it only appears on Michael Lofton’s web site so far:

• Dicastery Responses to H.E. Msgr. Negri (Oct. 31, 2023)

The precise dubia/questions the Fernandez document addresses are the following:

1. Can a transsexual [transgender] be baptized?
2. Can a transsexual be a godfather or godmother at a baptism?
3. Can a transsexual be a witness at a wedding?
4. Can two homo-affective persons be counted as parents of a child who is to be baptized and who was adopted or obtained by other methods, such as surrogacy?
5. Can a homo-affective person who is cohabiting be godparent to a baptized person?
6. Can a homo-affective person who is cohabiting be a witness at a wedding?

The only thing more frightening than these questions is the answers given by Fernandez.

The full official responses can be read in the document at the link given above. Below we will give an abridged version, that is, we will provide what the elaborate answers given by the Vatican ultimately amount to:

1. Yes, as long as there is no public scandal.
2. Basically yes, as long as no one is scandalized or confused by it.
3. Yes.
4. Would rather not say. Make your own decision.
5. Basically yes, but it will probably look better if someone else does it.
6. Yes.

This is sure to generate more outrage and debate, and we can expect the usual suspects to weigh in shortly: Gerhard Ludwig Müller, Raymond Burke, Carlo Maria Viganò, Joseph Strickland, and Athanasius Schneider will surely have something to say about it.

As this news about the Vatican response to the dubia of ‘Bp.’ Negri is still very new, not a lot of coverage can be found online yet. However, there are some posts we have already come across:

• DDF responds to transgender dubia (The Pillar)
• Vatican: Trans persons can be baptized as Catholics, serve as godparents (National Catholic Reporter)
• Pope Francis says ‘trans’ people can be godparents, homosexual ‘parents’ can have children baptized (Life Site)
• Trans people can be baptized, Vatican says in new doctrine document (America)

Perhaps the Vatican will eventually admit women to priestly ordination through the transgender backdoor?

No one knows, but with Francis’ recent call for a “paradigm shift” in theology, anything is possible. No doubt the ‘god of surprises’ is already chomping at the bit!

My godfather is what?!

Another issue yet to be resolved, perhaps by means of another set of dubia, is this: Will a ‘transgender woman’ be the godfather or the godmother at a Novus Ordo baptism? Or will provision be made for an asexual ‘Godparent 1’ and ‘Godparent 2’ solution?

We eagerly await the next Vatican response to dubia, approved by ‘Pope’ Francis.

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