France set to ban words 'mother' and 'father' on official documents under plans to legalize gay marriage

France is set to ban the words "mother" and "father" from all official documents under new plans to legalize gay marriage and give equal adoption rights to homosexual and heterosexual couples.

Under the proposed law, only the word "parents" would be used in marriage ceremonies for all heterosexual and same-sex couples, a move that has sparked widespread outrage, The Telegraph reports.

Changes to the civil code would mean swapping all references to "mothers and fathers," in legal documents, with the word "parents."

The proposed law has been met with resistance by members of the Catholic Church.

"Gay marriage would herald a complete breakdown in society," Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, the head of the French Catholic Church, told Christian’s RFC radio last week.

"This could have innumerable consequences. Afterward they will want to create couples with three or four members. And after that, perhaps one day the taboo of incest will fall," he said, according to the report.

"Who is to say that a heterosexual couple will bring up a child better than a homosexual couple, that they will guarantee the best conditions for the child’s development?" Justice Minister Christiane Taubira told France's Catholic newspaper, La Croix.

Pope Benedict XVI urged French bishops to fight against the law, The Telegraph reports.

French Catholics also have published a 'Prayer for France,' which says, "Children should not be subjected to adults' desires and conflicts, so they can fully benefit from the love of their mother and father," according to the report.

The law will be presented to France’s President Francois Hollande's cabinet for approval on October 31. Hollande has pledged to legalize gay marriage.

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