The Vatican, on April 8th, released a document condemning surrogacy, transgenderism, and sex changes, as well as gender theory as threats to human dignity. The document, entitled the Declaration “Dignitas Infinita” on Human Dignity comes amid heated cultural debates, particularly evident in the United States, on gender theory in general and in the context of children, as well as sex changes, again in general and with children, and the Pope’s known position condemning surrogacy.
For the most part, all these positions have been previously taken by the Pope and the Vatican, however, the Church decided to reaffirm these positions. The declaration contains biblical perspectives and biblical insight into the position taken by the Church.
In regards to the sex changes and transgenderism, the Church regarded both as grave assaults on human dignity, as expressed in the document, human dignity is bestowed on us by God, “it is neither claimed nor deserved”. The Vatican included scripture from Genesis 1:26-27 which refers to God having created man and women in his image, which the Vatican said is an example of God’s love. To alter that, as previously stated in the document and reaffirmed throughout, is an affront to the human dignity bestowed upon mankind by God.
Before its statements on such, the Catholic Church reiterated that yes, all people are loved by God. Continuing, however, it states that their sin is not the part God loves. The reiteration said, “The Church wishes, first of all, “to reaffirm that every person, regardless of sexual orientation, ought to be respected in his or her dignity and treated with consideration, while ‘every sign of unjust discrimination’ is to be carefully avoided, particularly any form of aggression and violence.”
In a scathing blast towards attempts to differentiate ‘gender’ and ‘sex,’ the document states, “Therefore, all attempts to obscure reference to the ineliminable sexual difference between man and woman are to be rejected: “We cannot separate the masculine and the feminine from God’s work of creation, which is prior to all our decisions and experiences, and where biological elements exist which are impossible to ignore.”, the statement continues, “Only by acknowledging and accepting this difference in reciprocity can each person fully discover themselves, their dignity, and their identity.”
The document also emphasizes its points on the Vatican’s sex change position. In point 60 it says, “The dignity of the body cannot be considered inferior to that of the person as such. The Catechism of the Catholic Church expressly invites us to recognize that “the human body shares in the dignity of ‘the image of God.’ Such a truth deserves to be remembered, especially when it comes to sex change, for humans are inseparably composed of both body and soul.”
Additionally to its positions on sex changes and gender ideology, the Vatican reiterated its surrogacy position. The document says that surrogacy turns an ‘immensely worthy child’ into a ‘mere object’. The Vatican’s document included words from Pope Francis saying, “The path to peace calls for respect for life, for every human life, starting with the life of the unborn child in the mother’s womb, which cannot be suppressed or turned into an object of trafficking. In this regard, I deem deplorable the practice of so-called surrogate motherhood, which represents a grave violation of the dignity of the woman and the child, based on the exploitation of situations of the mother’s material needs. A child is always a gift and never the basis of a commercial contract. Consequently, I express my hope for an effort by the international community to prohibit this practice universally.”
In addition to the aforementioned positions that were reiterated in the document, the Vatican’s press release also covered the Church’s concerns and positions on abortion, violence against women, sexual abuse, digital violence, and the marginalization of the disabled – among other expressed positions that you can find here.
