The strongest collective resistance to Fiducia Supplicans came from the Catholic Church’s African bishops.
The Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) was clear and vocal about its outright rejection of spontaneous nonliturgical blessings, which it said “caused a shockwave” and “sow[ed] misconceptions and unrest in the minds” of many Catholic faithful.
“We, the African bishops, do not consider it appropriate for Africa to bless homosexual unions or same-sex couples because, in our context, this would cause confusion and would be in direct contradiction to the cultural ethos of African communities,” read the Jan. 11, 2024, SECAM statement signed by Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo.
Middle East
The controversy sparked by Fiducia Supplicans extended into north Africa and the Church in the Middle East.
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Just months after the document’s release, Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Church halted dialogue with the Vatican following consultation with other Eastern Orthodox churches in the region — a setback to ecumenical dialogue after Pope Francis instituted an annual “Day of Friendship Between Copts and Catholics” in 2013 and included the Coptic Orthodox martyrs to the Catholic Church’s list of saints in 2023.
Following the Coptic Orthodox Church’s 2024 synod, spokesman Father Moussa Ibrahim confirmed the decision to halt theological dialogue with the Catholic Church after its perceived “change of position on the issue of homosexuality.”
Latin America
A 2024 article published by ADN Celam, a news service of the Latin American and Caribbean Episcopal Council (CELAM), described Fiducia Supplicans as “an instrument of merciful love and great pastoral richness” that does not change Church teaching on human sexuality and morality.
Defending the document signed by Argentine DDF prefect Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández as “clear and firm,” ADN Celam added that the Dec. 18, 2023, release of Fiducia Supplicans on the feast of Our Lady of Hope, one week before Christmas Day, was not a “random” decision.
“We trust that this pastoral approach to couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples, through blessing outside the liturgical or semi-liturgical context, will invoke the help of God for those who humbly turn to him,” the ADN Celam report said.
Asia
In the Catholic Church’s stronghold in the region, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, endorsed Fiducia Supplicans, stating: “The document speaks for itself and therefore does not require much explanation,” CBCP News reported.
The Dec. 20, 2023, CBCP advisory highlighted five key paragraphs — namely paragraphs 13, 25, 31, 38, and 39 — for Filipino priests to consider for prudent discernment and fatherly care for the country’s Catholic faithful.
Both Singapore’s Cardinal William Goh and India’s Cardinal Oswald Gracias believe the Vatican document left little room for misunderstanding the Church’s teachings on human sexuality.
“We show mercy but we do not approve of same-sex unions because without truth, love is compromised,” Goh shared through his communications office.
“Fiducia Supplicans has become the subject of controversy because it is misunderstood ... There is no change in Church doctrine on marriage between a man and a woman,” Gracias told Asia News. “The tradition of the Church, the magisterium is very clear and there is no contradiction.”