Francisco’s papacy ended with the same doctrine he had inherited towards people LGBTQ+: The Catholic Church rejects same -sex marriage and condemns any sexual relationship between homosexual couples as “intrinsically disorderly.”
However, unlike its predecessors, Francisco gradually transmitted through his actions, formal statements and occasional comments that wanted the Church to be a more cozy place for them.
Frustrated activists, cautious conservatives
Among the activists there was frustration due to the lack of a doctrinal advance, but still there was gratitude for their warmth towards them.
Many conservative Catholic leaders constantly distrusted Francisco LGBTQ+ and sometimes they were angry and challenging, such as when he decided in December 2023 to allow priests to bless the same -sex couples.
In response, African bishops refused to implement the Vatican’s statement, saying that same -sex relationships were “contrary to God’s will.” Some bishops from Eastern Europe, Latin America and other places also expressed their opposition.
The Vatican’s statement reaffirmed the traditional teaching of the Church that marriage is a union for life between a man and a woman, but allowed priests to offer spontaneous and non -liturgical blessings to same -sex couples who sought the grace of God in their lives, provided that these blessings do not confuse with the rites and rituals of a wedding.
In January 2024, Francisco acknowledged that the declaration of blessing had found resistance and blamed the opposition bishops for refusing to open a dialogue about it.
“A decision is made and loneliness is a price that must be paid,” he said in a television interview. “Sometimes decisions are not accepted … but in most cases, when you do not accept a decision it is because you do not understand it.”
“This has happened with these last decisions to bless everyone,” added Francisco. “The Lord bless everyone.”
The beneficiaries of Francisco’s welcoming attitude included a community of transgender women – many Latin American immigrants who worked in Rome as prostitutes – who made monthly visits to their general audiences and received VIP seats.
“Before the Church was closed for us. They did not see us as normal people. They saw us as the devil,” said Andrea Paola Torres López, born in Colombia. “Then Pope Francis arrived and the church doors opened.”
A 2023 synod reflects Francisco’s mixed legacy
The Pope’s mixed legacy was summarized in the 2023 Vatican Synod, which brought together hundreds of bishops and laity to discuss the future of the Church. One of the delegates chosen by Francisco was Reverend James Martin, a Jesuit based in the United States who was one of the most prominent defenders of a greater inclusion LGBTQ+.
However, when the final summary of the three -week Synod was published, LGBTQ+people were not mentioned, reflecting the influence of conservatives who oppose Francisco’s proposals towards that community.
During the Synod, the Pope met with a small delegation of the New Ways Ministry, based in Maryland, which advocates LGBTQ+ Catholics in the United States.
According to the group’s executive director, Francis Debernardo, the Pope urged them to lose hope.
“The LGBTQ+ Catholic community must take the message of Pope Francis seriously,” he said. “The deficiencies of the report are an invitation to talk again about their joys, their sadness and faith … now it is not time to lose hope.”
An early message: “Who am I to judge?”
At the beginning of Francisco’s papacy, it was clear that he was going to articulate a friendlier and tolerant approach to LGBTQ+ people than any previous pope.
The initial high profile moment came in 2013, during his papacy’s first air press conference, with his memorable comment “Who am I to judge?” When asked about a supposedly gay priest.
The signals had arrived before. As archbishop of Buenos Aires, it had favored to grant legal protection to same -sex couples as an alternative to support homosexual marriage, that Catholic doctrine prohibits. After being elected Pope, he repeatedly and publicly minister to the Gay and Transgender communities, constantly evolving his position. His permanent message was: “Everyone, all,” are loved by God and must be welcome in the Church.
In some specific LGBTQ+ issues, Francisco initially disappointed the activists with their decisions, but then softened them as a way of highlighting their most cozy position.
Francisco was criticized by the Catholic gay community for a 2021 decree of the Vatican doctrine office that said that the Church cannot bless the unions between people of the same sex because “God cannot bless sin.” But that position was then relegated with the declaration on the blessings of December 2023.
Another change of course occurred at the end of 2023, when a Vatican statement said that it is allowed, under certain circumstances, that transgender people are baptized as Catholics and serve as godparents.
The document was signed by Francisco and Cardinal VÃctor Manuel Fernández, who directs the Dicastery for the Vatican’s doctrine.
If it does not cause scandal or “disorientation” among other Catholics, a transgender person “can receive baptism in the same conditions as the other faithful,” he said.
Similarly, the document said that trans adults, even if they undergo gender transition surgery, could serve as sponsors or godmothers under certain conditions.
The new pronouncement revoked the absolute prohibitions that transgender people served as godparents issued by the Vatican doctrine office in 2015.
The defenders of the rights of transgender people in the United States welcomed Francisco’s inclusive tone, noting that some political and religious leaders in the United States were pointing to transgender people with discriminatory laws and policies.
“Being homosexual is not a crime”
Another issue addressed by Francisco has to do with laws in dozens of countries that penalize homosexuality.
In 2008, the Vatican refused to sign a UN statement that requested the end of such laws. But in an interview with The Associated Press in January 2023, Francisco attacked them by calling them unfair and asked for their elimination.
“Being homosexual is not a crime,” Francisco said during the interview.
The Pope acknowledged that the Catholic bishops of some regions support laws that penalize homosexuality or discriminate against people LGBTQ+. But he attributed such attitudes to cultural history and said that bishops must recognize everyone’s dignity.
“These bishops have to have a conversion process,” he said, suggesting that they should apply “tenderness, please, as God has it with each of us.”
The defenders of greater inclusion LGBTQ+ praised Francisco’s comments.
“Its historic statement should send a message to world leaders and millions of Catholics worldwide: LGBTQ people deserve to live in a world without violence or condemnation, and with more goodness and understanding,” said Sarah Kate Ellis, executive director of the Glaad Defense Group, based in the United States.
The praise also came from MartÃn, the Jesuit later chosen by Francisco as delegate of the Synod.
“Few bishops or episcopal conferences have condemned the criminalizing laws that the Pope rejected today,” MartÃn wrote while analyzing the AP interview. “As always, Pope Francis puts himself on the side of life, of human dignity and the belief that we are all created in the image and likeness of God.”
Less impressed was Jamie Manson, a lesbian who is president of the American group Catholics for Choice, who defends the right to abortion.
“LGBTQ people need more than words that sound good in an interview in a newspaper to be safe in the Catholic Church,” he wrote. “We need a doctrinal change.”
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The religious coverage of The Associated Press receives support through a collaboration with The Conversation Us, with funds from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for the content.
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This story was translated from English by an AP editor with the help of a generative artificial intelligence tool.
This article was published by David Crary on 2025-04-24 01:43:00
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