Manila, Philippines, Jun 15, 2016 / 23:39 pm
Encounter and dialogue are the proper response to disagreements over morality, said the Catholic bishops of the Philippines, emphasizing in the wake of the Orlando shooting that hatred and violence have no place in the lives of Christians.
"Bearing in the depth of his or her soul the image of the Creator, no human person should ever be the object of disgust," the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines said June 13. "While we may have reasons to disagree with sexual preferences, or reprove certain forms of sexual activity, this can never justify hatred, let alone, murder of another human being."
"No matter that we may disapprove of the actions, decisions and choices of others, there is absolutely no reason to reject the person, no justification for cruelty, no reason for making outcasts of them," the bishops commented.
Early Sunday morning, a 29-year-old gunman opened fire at a gay Orlando nightclub and began taking hostages. He killed 49 people and injured 53 more before he himself was killed by SWAT officers responding to the scene.