Archbishop Defends Trans People in Slovakian Legislative Battle

A retired archbishop from Slovakia has spoken out against a proposed change to the nation’s civil code which would automatically end the marriages of people who legally change their gender. 

Archbishop Emeritus of Trnava Róbert Bezák, who has been an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ+ Catholics commented on the proposal saying:“We do not live in a religious country, those in parliament should know this and separate it from themselves,” he said in response to the proposed change. 

Pope Francis met with Archbishop Bezák on at least two occasions.

According to The Tablet, the Slovakian government has drafted a proposal to add a clause to the Civil Code which states, in part, that “Marriage shall end with the change of sex of one of the spouses.” This addition would automatically–and without consent–terminate the marriage of any transgender person who has legally transitioned. The proposal has since sparked controversy, with some critics naming it one of the most intrusive additions to Slovak law in years. 

Bezák has made previous statements supporting the LGBTQ+ community, demonstrating an attitude of openness and curiosity: “These are such new things that the Church is not clear about. What is essential for a person’s life is not gender but their way of behaving, what comes out of them,” he once noted. 

The archbishop was removed from his archdiocese in 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI, a rare move for a pope to make.  Many believe it was because of Bezák’s criticism of his predecessor who was a very conservative prelate.  Lay Catholics in Trnava protested the removal, and Bezák had a public meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican in 2015.  When Pope Francis visited Slovakia in 2021, he had a personal meeting with Bezák to show his support of the deposed archbishop. 

The anti-transgendeer proposal has garnered mixed responses from the Catholic community in Slovakia, the majority of which lean conservative. Earlier in 2025, Slovak bishops praised the government for changing the Slovak constitution to legally recognize only two sexes, male and female, and in previous years, the bishops provided pastoral guidance to parishes in which the queer community was likened to “a culture of death.”

“Slovakia sent a signal that it wishes to strengthen a society based on the values of truth, freedom, justice, and the dignity of human life,” said Archbishop Bernard Bober of Košice, the chairman of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Slovakia, in praise of the government’s recent actions.

Other Slovak Catholics have taken an even more aggressive stance against LGBTQ+ individuals and “gender ideology.” Stefan Kuffa, a Catholic politician and former MP, has become the face of the government’s anti-transgender legislation and has previously stated that “it would be better [for LGBT+ people] to put a millstone around your neck and toss you in the water”.

However, LGBTQ+ Catholics in Slovakia are not without advocates and allies. “Treating someone’s transition like a death is cruel, illogical and unnecessary,” said Dominika Patzko, a lawyer from the Slovak initiative Inakosť (“Otherness”).

The continuing trend of anti-transgender legislation across the globe is a sobering fact. An enduring source of hope is the persistent courage of LGBTQ+ Catholics and their allies who stand up and speak out on behalf of LGBTQ+ individuals. These advocates, such as Archbishop Emeritus Róbert Bezák, provide much-needed reassurance to LGBTQ+ Catholics that their faith community has not abandoned them.

—Phoebe Carstens, New Ways Ministry, December 8, 2025