Doctors defend Bishop against charges of ‘inciting hate’

by Christine Dhanagom

April 19, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) - As homosexuals lobby for the prosecution of Bishop Juan Antonio Reig Pla of Alcala de Henares for teaching the Catholic Church’s position on homosexual acts, an international group of Catholic doctors has rushed to the Spanish Bishop’s defense, reports the CatholicNewsAgency (CNA).

Bishop Reig came under intense criticism after condemning homosexual acts in a Good Friday homily, and saying that persons with homosexual attractions can experience a kind of “hell” in their lives when they visit gay night clubs.

Bishop Juan Antonio Reig Pla

In a later interview with the Internet news service Religion en Libertad (Religion in Liberty), he reiterated that “the consequences for many people” of such behavior, are “coloquially speaking a ‘hell’ in their lives” and asserted that homosexual inclinations can be cured through therapy.

Responding to the controversy, the State Federation of Lesbians, Gays, Transsexuals and Bisexuals (FELGTB), with the Gay Collectives of Madrid, said that it plans to file charges against the Bishop for “inciting hate.” The organization also condemned outright the formal teachings of the Catholic Church, claiming that they “promote segregation and discrimination” and are not protected by the Spanish Constitution.

In an April 17th statement, the International Federation of Catholic Doctors Associations defended both Bishop Reig and the teachings of the Catholic Church. 

Reinforcing a distinction that Bishop Reig had already made, the Federation emphasized that Catholic doctors had “profound respect” for persons with homosexual inclinations, but reiterated the teaching of the Church against “the practice of homosexuality.”

The bishop had condemned discrimination against persons with homosexual inclinations in his interview with Religion en Libertad, but noted that the Catholic Church had always taught that it was “intrinsically evil” to act on those inclinations.