Catholic bishops in Europe express concern over EU ruling mandating recognition of same-sex unions

The flag of the European Union. / Credit: U. J. Alexander/Shutterstock

ACI Prensa Staff, Dec 10, 2025 / 12:35 pm (CNA).

The Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) has expressed concern about a recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union, which obliges all member states to recognize so-called “homosexual marriages” legally performed in another country.

In a Dec. 9 statement, the president of COMECE, Bishop Mariano Crociata, warned that the ruling could have an impact on the legal sovereignty of each nation, since the recognition of these unions is mandatory even if they are not valid under a country’s own legal system.

The ruling concerns a same-sex Polish couple who “married” in Germany in 2018. Upon returning to Poland, the authorities refused to record their union in the civil registry. The European court has deemed this refusal contrary to EU law, meaning that all member states are now obligated to recognize the rights stemming from this bond.

Union between a man and a woman

On behalf of the Church in Europe, Crociata referred to the Church’s anthropological vision, “founded on natural law,” and reiterated that marriage is a “union between a man and a woman.”

In this context, the Italian prelate pointed out that the ruling restricts the rights of each nation, especially those in which “the definition of marriage is part of their national identity.” In his opinion, the ruling could generate “pressure to amend national family law” and also increase “legal uncertainty.”

Currently, almost half of the European Union countries have not legalized same-sex unions: Poland, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Slovakia, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, and Romania.

In this regard, the bishops emphasized the need for “a prudent and cautious approach” to family law with cross-border implications and urges avoiding “undue influence” on national legal systems in Europe.

Surrogacy could be a consequence of the ruling

Crociata also cited Article 9 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, which states that “The right to marry and the right to found a family shall be guaranteed in accordance with the national laws governing the exercise of these rights.”

Consequently, the European bishops warned that the approach adopted in this ruling could lead to “negative developments in other sensitive areas,” such as surrogacy.

They therefore expressed their concern about “the current challenging situation in the EU and the polarization present in our societies,” warning that such rulings “can give rise to anti-European [Union] sentiments in member states and can be easily instrumentalized in this sense.”

 This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.