EU Bishops Critique Court Ruling Expanding Same-Gender Marriage Rights

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A recent ruling on same-gender marriage by the European Court of Justice (CJEU) has elicited critique from the bishops of the European Union, though largely along legal, not moral, lines. 

In a December 9 statement the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) “expressed concern about a ruling which expanded marriage equality rights to couples moving to member nations that do not legally recognize same-gender relationships. The court, which serves the European Union (EU), said  that EU member states have “the obligation to recognise a marriage between two Union citizens of the same sex that has been lawfully concluded in another Member State where they have exercised their freedom to move and reside.”

The court case involved a same-sex couple married in Germany who want to transfer their marriage documentation to the civil registry in Poland, where same-sex marriage is not legal, reported Vatican News.

The EU bishops raised concerns that the ruling impinged on “national competence”  and expanded “jurisprudence beyond the boundaries of EU competences.”  

Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union

The COMECE statement said in part that they are  “observing with concern the tendency to apply provisions intended to protect sensitive elements of national legal systems in a way that dilutes their meaning.”

In its reporting on the matter, Katholische.de said that the ruling leads to a “convergence” of family law despite the EU not having a “family mandate.” 

The bishops cited Article 9 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights which states that marriage and family rights is “guaranteed by national laws”, wrote Vatican News. 

Anti-European Union sentiment is among the bishops’ concerns, who said that such rulings feed into separatist agendas by eroding the prerogatives of sovereign states. 

As of late 2025, 18 of 27 EU countries allow same-sex marriage, with the remainder split between offering civil unions, as in Italyand not recognizing same-gender relationships to any substantive degree, such as in Poland. 

The following EU member states do not allow same-sex marriage or civil unions:

• Poland
• Hungary
• Bulgaria
• Slovakia
• Romania
• Cyprus

Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia are Catholic-majority countries, while the others maintain majority adherence to Eastern Orthodox churches. 

To compare EU member states’ position on same-sex marriage with their Catholic population and their local Church’s treatment of LGBTQ+ issues, consult Bondings 2.0’s coverage of the 2025 RICE Index. 

—Jeromiah Taylor, New Ways Ministry, December 15, 2025