Australian Jesuit schools cautiously endorse same-sex marriage

Two prominent Jesuit schools in Australia have cautiously expressed support for same-sex marriage as the country prepares for a referendum on the issue.

While not explicitly endorsing a "yes" vote, St. Ignatius's College in Sydney and Xavier College in Melbourne sent a message to parents, staff and students calling on them to reflect on Pope Francis' teaching on love, mercy and non-judgmentalism.

Father Chris Middleton, a rector at Xavier College, noted that same-sex marriage is popular among young people.

"In my experience, there is almost total unanimity amongst the young in favour of same-sex marriage, and arguments against it have almost no impact on them," he said.

"They are driven by a strong emotional commitment to equality, and this is surely something to respect and admire. They are idealistic in the value they ascribe to love, the primary gospel value," he added.

Middleton expressed concern that the church could be accused of hypocrisy following the findings of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

"To be brutally honest, the church speaking out in controversial areas around sexuality risks being mired in vitriolic attacks on its credibility in the aftermath of the royal commission," the rector said, according to Catholic Herald.

St. Ignatius rector Father Ross Jones noted that same-sex couples already had many rights, adding that many wish to marry "for the same reasons as their opposite-sex counterparts."

He argued that Catholic couples could engage in sexual relations "in good conscience" for reasons other than procreation under the "order of reason."

"Presumably, same sex-couples, who make such a commitment to each other in good conscience, do so by reflecting on experience and on what it is to be human, using their God-given reason," he said.

The two Jesuit schools have been attended by generations of Australian politicians, according to Sydney Morning Herald.

Among those who attended Xavier College were current opposition leader Bill Shorten and the late Dr. John Billings, the renowned pioneer of natural fertility regulation.

St. Ignatius, which is independent of the local Catholic school system, is the alma mater of former prime minister Tony Abbott, who is a strong opponent of same-sex marriage.

A voluntary postal survey on same-sex marriage will be conducted in Australia beginning in September. The government is expected to introduce a bill to legalize gay marriage if the postal ballots indicate a "Yes" majority, and a challenge is expected from LGBT activists if the ballots return a majority of "No" votes.

A recent poll has indicated that 66 percent of Catholics said they were leaning toward a "yes" vote in the upcoming referendum, representing the same percentage as the general population.