Only opposite sex marriage can guarantee survival of society, says Pope

Castel Gandolfo, Italy – Condemning same–sex marriage and warning those who advocate it, Pope John Paul II said, “Only marriage between a man and a woman can guarantee the survival of a society and its culture, and hence cannot be equated with same–sex unions.”

The Pope made this statement recently when he received the letters of credence of Donald Smith, the new ambassador of Canada to the Holy See.

“For generations, Canadians have recognized and celebrated the place of marriage at the heart of your society,” the Pontiff noted, as he expressed concern over the rapid social changes under way in the North American country.

“Established by the Creator with its own nature and purpose, and preserved in natural moral law, the institution of marriage necessarily entails the complementarities of husbands and wives who participate in God's creative activity through the raising of children,” the Pope explained.

“Spouses thereby ensure the survival of society and culture, and rightly deserve specific and categorical legal recognition by the state,” the Holy Father said.

“Any attempts to change the meaning of the word 'spouse' contradict right reason: legal guarantees, analogous to those granted to marriage, cannot be applied to unions between persons of the same sex without creating a false understanding of the nature of marriage,” he added.

“It is this sublime and fundamental truth concerning the human person – created male and female in the image and likeness of God – which constitutes the immutable basis for all other anthropological truths,” the Pope concluded.