Pope John Paul kept up his campaign against gay marriage, telling the ambassador from Canada -- where some provinces allow same-sex couples to wed -- that such unions create a "false understanding" of marriage. The Pope spoke Saturday to Donald Smith, the new Canadian ambassador to the Holy See.
"Any attempts to change the meaning of the word 'spouse' contradict right reason: legal guarantees, analogous to those granted to marriage, cannot be applied to unions between persons of the same sex without creating a false understanding of the nature of marriage," said the pontiff, according to the text of the speech released by the Vatican
Three provinces, accounting for about 70% of Canada's 31 million people, allow same-sex marriage: Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia. The Liberal government has promised legislation legalizing gay marriage.