Bishop Strickland calls Chris Christie's changing gay marriage views 'compromise with sin'
Bishop Joseph Strickland, a frequent critic of Pope Francis, criticized 2024 GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie's shifting his views on marriage and pushed back against his claim that the Catholic Church's views on the subject are changing.
Christie, a self-professed Catholic, said last Thursday during a town hall event in Epping, New Hampshire, that his views on gay marriage have evolved since he opposed it while serving as New Jersey governor from 2010 to 2018, as noted by Catholic News Agency.
"And so you know, for me, it's still, it was a process I had to go through to change the way I've been raised both from a family perspective and what my mother and father taught me and felt and also from a religious perspective and […] what my church taught me to believe," he said.
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Christie added that in recent weeks, "Pope Francis is now allowing blessings of same-sex couples; even the Church is changing."
"Society has changed, and what people are accepting in our country now is different than when I was growing up, certainly than when I was your age. And you know, I don't have any objection to it any longer. In the end, I think I've been convinced," he added.
While running for governor in 2009, Christie promised to veto any bill that would legalize gay marriage in New Jersey. He criticized the Supreme Court's 2013 decision to overturn Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act as "judicial supremacy." In 2015, Christie expressed his belief that defining marriage should be left up to the states.
In a post to X on Saturday, Strickland, an outspoken conservative prelate who was bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler, Texas, before Pope Francis removed him from office in November, said Christie's shift on the issue is "the sad result of confusion and compromise with sin." Strickland responded to the former governor's claim that the Catholic Church's teachings are changing.
"[T]he Church will not change to embrace sinful behavior," Strickland wrote.
"Some in the Church may do so but the Church, the Bride of Christ, will continue to proclaim the truth revealed by Jesus Christ."
Mr. Christie’s political shift is the sad result of confusion and compromise with sin, the Church will not change to embrace sinful behavior. Some in the Church may do so but the Church, the Bride of Christ, will continue to proclaim the truth revealed by Jesus Christ. https://t.co/Oty9qOBk00
— Bishop J. Strickland (@BishStrickland) December 30, 2023
Strickland, a critic of Pope Francis, told LifeSiteNews hours after his removal from office that he believed there were "forces in the [Catholic] Church" that "don't want the truth of the Gospel" but instead want "it changed" and "ignored."
Pope Francis signed off last month on "Fiducia Supplicans," a declaration from the Vatican's Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith that allows for "spontaneous pastoral blessing" for "same-sex couples" and other couples in "irregular situations."
The guidance has prompted mixed reactions from Catholic prelates around the world.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) emphasized that the declaration from the Vatican made a "distinction between liturgical (sacramental) blessings, and pastoral blessings, which may be given to persons who desire God's loving grace in their lives."
"The Church's teaching on marriage has not changed, and this declaration affirms that, while also making an effort to accompany people through the imparting of pastoral blessings because each of us needs God's healing love and mercy in our lives," the USCCB said in a statement.
Christie, who narrowly qualified for the GOP primary debate last month, has consistently maintained low favorability ratings among potential voters. As of Dec. 22, 51.9% of Americans view Christie unfavorably, while only 22.4% view him favorably, according to FiveThirtyEight's polling average.
