Pope Francis, who has expressed more tolerant viewpoints on homosexuality than any pope in history, said that laws restricting or punishing people for being gay are “unjust.”
Since assuming his role in 2013, Pope Francis has made numerous statements indicating that the Church should be more accepting of LGBTQ people. In 2022, he called on parents of LGBTQ children not to condemn their children for coming out, for example., and the Vatican issued a decree in March of last year stating that such unions cannot be blessed. Francis approved of that decree.
Many pro-LGBTQ Catholic organizations celebrated Francis’s statement but called on him to go further. The pope needs to continue speaking out against LGBTQ criminalization, Francis DeBernardo, executive director for New Ways Ministry, which advocates for LGBTQ Catholics, said in an email to. That includes saying what he said this week “when he visits South Sudan during his Africa visit” later this month, DeBernardo said, noting that the country still penalizes gay and lesbian people.
Others called on Francis to reject the idea of homosexuality being a sin, saying that such claims have fueled hatred and oppression for centuries. “I’m delighted with the Pope’s comment and hopeful that Catholics around the world will see its wisdom.
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