Pope Francis said on Sunday that laws criminalizing LGBT people are a sin and an injustice because God loves and accompanies people with same-sex attraction.
Francis, who made his remarks in response to a reporter’s question aboard the plane returning from a two-country trip to Africa, received the full backing for his comments from two other Christian leaders on the plane with him.
“The criminalization of homosexuality is a problem that cannot be ignored,” said Francis, who then cited anonymous statistics according to which 50 countries criminalize LGBT people “in one way or another,” and about ten others have laws including the death penalty for them.
Sixty-six UN member states continue to criminalize consensual same-sex sexual relations, according to data from ILGA World – the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association. In several countries where same-sex relations are illegal, punishments can include a possible death penalty.
“This is not right. Persons with homosexual tendencies are children of God. God loves them. God accompanies them … condemning a person like this is a sin. Criminalizing people with homosexual tendencies is an injustice,” Francis said.
He noted that the Catholic Church’s catechism, or book of teachings, says same-sex attraction is not a sin, but homosexual acts are. It also says that LGBT people should not be marginalized.
Francis mentioned his now-famous phase from soon after he became pope in 2013 that he could not judge people with same-sex tendencies who are seeking God. He also noted that while visiting Ireland in 2018, he said parents could not disown their LGBT children but had to keep them in a loving family.
Support from Christian leaders
The pope made the trip to South Sudan, the second country on tour, as a peace pilgrimage with Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Iain Greenshields.
Both Christian leaders were on the plane returning from there and participated in the pope’s customary news conference with reporters, a first on any papal trip.
Both praised the pope’s comments.
“I entirely agree with every word he said there,” Welby noted that the Anglican communion was divided over gay rights and that two resolutions against criminalizing LGBT people “have not changed many people’s minds.”
Welby added: “I shall certainly quote the Holy Father. He said it so beautifully and accurately”.
Expressing his support of Francis, Greenshields referred to the Bible, saying:
“There is nowhere in my reading of the four Gospels where I see Jesus turning anyone away. On the contrary, nowhere in the four Gospels can I see anything other than Jesus expressing love to whoever he meets. As Christians, that is the only expression we can give to any human being”.
Francis repeated that the Catholic Church cannot permit sacramental marriage of same-sex couples but that he supported so-called civil union legislation giving same-sex couples legal protection in issues such as pensions, inheritance and health care. (Reuters)
