But let me point this out: if you don't want to end up with an openly homosexual person on the parish council, here's how you prevent that.
First, get rid of people who are in irregular heterosexual unions from the boards. This includes: people living together without being married, people who are not actually sacramentally married (divorced and cohabitating people).
Secondly, get rid of people who are, although technically in 'legitimate' marriages, are open about using contraception. Remember the only difference between a homosexual who should be on a parish council and one who should not be is that the former is trying to live chastely, and should be encouraged and rewarded for doing so. After all, such a person edifies us all. Someone who is openly defiant about Church teaching re. contraception is no different from a homosexual who is openly defiant. This is the sort of nonsense that actually makes us bona fide bigots: we persecute homosexuals but not heterosexuals who defy Church teaching. No doubt Cardinal Schonborn took one quick look at the parish councils in his diocese and realized this.
Finally, get rid of homosexualists.
Now you have the credibility to do so. Until you do steps one and two, don't bother with the third. Why? Because you are an inconsistent bigot.
Sure, there is a lower proportion of anti-Catholic Church-destroyers in groups one and two, but there are way more of them, since those groups are way, way larger. Sure, homosexualists are more intrinsically dangerous per capita, but their legal argument against the Church is being provided for them by groups one and two. If the Church only forbids people from the third category then they are singling them out. That verges on the illegal.
I don't think we should care so much about the legality. I think religious groups should have the freedom to inconsistently apply their own teachings. I believe in the legal right to dissent from one's own religious group.
However, Colin points out a major problem.
We didn't come down on contraception between marriage people.
And contraception lead to cohabitation.
And we didn't crack down on cohabitation.
So it's only natural that now homosexuals are demanding their sin be tolerated and even accepted.
This is why we have same-sex marriage. If you're contracepting or shacking up, you're part of the problem. Stop contracepting, be open to life, legitimize your union with the Church, otherwise, you're perpetuating the very thing that leads to same-sex marriage.
