Really? That would be news to anyone who’s read the Bible, or even the Ten Commandments, most of which contain the words thou shalt not, which are specifically intended as “hindrances.” In fact, the entire arc of salvation history demonstrates God telling what not to do, us doing it anyway, and God passing His judgment on us for disobedience.

Don Lemon has another take on monotheism, apparently:

CNN's Don Lemon reacts to the Vatican declaring that God cannot bless same-sex unions:

"God is not about hindering people or even judging people." pic.twitter.com/j2PTumaZXv

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) March 15, 2021

“We learned that the Vatican said the Catholic Church won’t bless same sex unions, quote, ‘since God cannot bless sin.’ They go on to say this does not imply a judgment on persons,” Meghan McCain said, before putting the question to Lemon. “Do you think this sends a damaging message? How do you feel about that given that obviously you’re now engaged and going to get married?”

Lemon said he respected people’s rights to believe whatever they wanted, noting his own opinion that any set of beliefs that didn’t afford everyone the same rights was wrong.

“I think that the Catholic Church and many other churches really need to re-examine themselves and their teachings. That’s not what God is about. God is not about hindering people or even judging people,” Lemon claimed. …

“I would say to the Pope and Vatican and all Christians or Catholics, or whomever, whatever religion you happen to belong to, go meet people. Try to understand people,” Lemon added. “Do what the Bible Jesus actually said, if you believe in Jesus, and that is love your fellow man and judge not lest you be not judged.”

Ah, suuuuure. What Jesus actually said was “judge not lest ye be judged,” and it was in reference to judgment of a person’s soul. This teaching is exactly the opposite of Lemon’s claim, because Jesus warned that God alone had the authority for this kind of judgment. Later, of course, Jesus would also task his apostles with the authority to forgive or bind sins, and that the church’s judgment would be binding, but that’s another theological point.

Anyway, what touched this off on The View was the shocking announcement from the Vatican that the Catholic Church would remain Catholic on the issue of same-sex marriage. If you missed my post earlier, feel free to catch up to it now; to recap, the policy barring blessings was explicitly about same-sex marriages and unions, not gays and lesbians in general. It’s consistent with Catholic teaching, and consistent with what every pope including Francis has repeatedly taught about the sacramental nature of marriage.

Of course, you don’t have to believe in Catholicism or Christianity in general. In the words of Wooderson, it’d be a lot cooler if you did, but belief is a choice. If it’s not your thing, that’s fine — but if that’s the case, then why worry about blessings from Catholic priests in the first place?

If you do believe, though, don’t kid yourself. Contra Lemon’s theology, the Bible is chock full of God’s judgment and “hindrances,” starting with the Garden of Eden and going right through the Acts of Apostles, at the very least. A quick search of the Ignatian Bible shows over 300 appearances of the word “judgment,” starting with Genesis 15:14 (“but I will bring judgment on the nation which they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions”) and ending with Revelation 20:4 (“Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom judgment was committed”), with a whole lotta judgment going on in between. You can’t say you weren’t warned.