Catholic World News

Nigerian bishops warn against legalization of same-sex marriage

August 12, 2013

The bishops of the ecclesiastical province of Ibadan, which is located in southwestern Nigeria, warned against attempts to legalize same-sex marriage.

“We confirm that a family consists of a man, a woman and children,” the bishops said in a statement, as reported by the Fides news agency. “We empathize with people who live with homosexual and gay tendencies and call on society not to discriminate against them.”

“We however firmly reject all attempts to enshrine these tendencies in the Nigerian constitution, and we appeal to every Nigerian to protect the traditional values of marriage and the family as a way of fostering a cohesive society,” they added.

The bishops also lamented the violence afflicting northern Nigeria, rued the reinstitution of capital punishment, and said that the Year of Faith “has witnessed a new zeal and energy and zeal in the laity’s outreach in evangelization.”

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