The teachings of the Catholic Church will remain inflexible despite the endless flow of opinions of the public on personal and social issues such as same-sex marriage, abortion and territorial disputes, and the declining population of the faithful.

“I think the Catholic Church is seen in two ways — whether popular or unpopular, cooler or not cooler. What the Catholic teaching is saying is it does not change with the times,” Papal Nuncio to the Philippines Charles John Brown said last Thursday in a meeting by the Rotary Club of Manila.

Rev. Brown stressed that the Catholic Church still believes that marriage is a union between a biologically defined man and a woman as indicated in its teachings.

However, he said the Church can give blessing to gay people when they ask for it.

“Pope Francis is right when he said anyone who asks for a blessing should get the blessing — whether they are gay or a mass murderer. But they should ask for it in a sincere manner. The Pope is blessing the gay people, not the union,” Rev. Brown said.

Pew Research Center says there are now over 30 countries allowing same-sex marriage, mostly in Europe and the Americas, following the first of such marriage in the Netherlands in 2001.

In the Philippines, some members of the LGBT community have hoped for a same-sex marriage amid legislative proposals to permit the civil union of same-sex individuals that will enable them to enjoy rights on property and on other life aspects as straight couples do.

However, Rev. Brown said the Catholic-baptized people and believers should not be swayed by opinions.

“In the beginning of time, every society knew what marriage was until 15 minutes ago. There’s something in the air that is the popularity of ideas,” he said.

Respect to life

People’s awareness of what is popular should not also be a consideration for women on whether to give birth or abort their babies.

“Abortion is not a religious issue; it’s a human rights issue. It’s wrong to kill an innocent person, whether the baby will live in the slums of Manila,” Rev. Brown said.

This is because some women who commit or plan for an abortion argue that they do not want their children with their poor parents to suffer from lack of food and other basic needs.

However, Rev. Brown said this situation should not be hopeless or permanent.

“The duty of the state is to make people flourish in this world. There’s the issue of poverty but the government can raise taxes for the rich to fund social services for the poor or provide better education to poor people. There are practical means,” he said.

Demographic factor

Rev. Brown agreed that the population of Catholic believers has been shrinking.

He said he is aware that some people attribute this to people’s higher usage of technology where they learn about other cultures and lifestyles, such as atheism.

However, Rev. Brown said the declining number of Catholic believers could be mainly driven by lower fertility rates worldwide.

“In 2012 in the Philippines, approximately 1.8 million babies were born. It looks like there were 1 million in 2023 — that’s an enormous decline in fertility. Japan had your fertility level in 1975,” he said.

Rev. Brown said the lower fertility levels signal a slow and limited spread of Catholic teachings.

“It is also less likely that a boy will go to a seminary especially if he’s an only child. In Japan, 400 schools each year are being closed,” he shared.

“Once the population goes down, you have to create tax incentives for day care centers. It’s very hard to reverse,” he added.

Nevertheless, global data shows the Philippine population remains young and ready for birth with a median age of 26 compared to Japan’s 48.

Protection of peace

Rev. Brown said the Holy See, which is the government of the Roman Catholic Church, will continue to help ensure peace in Israel and Palestine-occupied areas amid their territorial conflict over Gaza.

Israel and Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, have been exchanging attacks since October last year when the latter bombed Israel and took over 240 people as hostages.

However, their conflict goes way back in 1948 when the Jewish Israel became a state and left its Arab Palestinian residents displaced to Gaza.

“You can be sure that our diplomats will be working to help end the war. But honestly, our possibilities are limited because neither is influenced by Catholicism. But the Holy See is willing to mediate,” Rev. Brown said.

Since last October, over 1,200 have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war.