Vatican again proclaims opposition to gay marriage

VATICAN CITY �?? The Vatican is digging in after gay marriage initiatives scored big wins this week in the U.S. and Europe, vowing to never stop insisting that marriage can only be between a man and a woman.

In a front-page article in Saturday�??s Vatican newspaper L�??Osservatore Romano, the Holy See sought to frame itself as the lone voice of courage in opposing initiatives to give same-sex couples legal recognition. In a separate Vatican Radio editorial, the pope�??s spokesman asked sarcastically why gay marriage proponents don�??t now push for legal recognition for polygamous couples as well.

Catholic teaching holds that homosexuals should be respected and treated with dignity but that homosexual acts are �??intrinsically disordered.�?� The Vatican also opposes same-sex marriage, insisting on the sanctity of marriage between a man and woman as the foundation for society.

The Vatican�??s anti-gay marriage media blitz came after three U.S. states approved same-sex marriage by popular vote in Tuesday�??s election, Spain upheld its gay marriage law, and France pushed ahead with legislation that could see gay marriage legalized early next year.

The L�??Osservatore Romano article insisted that Catholics were putting up a valiant fight to uphold church teaching in the face of �??politically correct ideologies invading every culture of the world�?� that are backed by institutions like the United Nations, which last year passed a non-binding resolution condemning