Pope Francis I is taking a much softer line with gays in the clergy than his predecessor, the notoriously anti-gay Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. In a news conference while returning from his first foreign trip, Francis asked, “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?”
Not God, obviously. Or that vindictive Vatican queen Benedict.
Though Benedict and Francis wholeheartedly agree on banning the gays from marriage, Francis at least is willing to throw open his luxuriously-robed arms to welcome them into the flock. Benedict, pre-emeritus days, had vehemently objected to the gays becoming priests, but Francis is willing to forgive and forget the sin thing.
Perhaps Francis is just tired of fighting the Vatican’s gay lobby, the existence of which he himself confirmed last month. Eh, if you can’t beat ’em, might as well begrudgingly have ’em join you.
Make no mistake, though, His Holiness is not dying his vestments rainbow anytime soon — though how stunning would that be? — but he’s slowly trying to make the church a less intolerant place. To wit, Francis also spoke out in favor of the “theology of women in the church.” That doesn’t mean the church will do something crazy like accept women priests or reverse its position on abortion, but Francis is at least willing to concede that “Mary is more important than the apostles.”
You heard ’em, Marys, get your hails on.
Steve Rider
Well Francis, you are the CEO of a multinational corporation with a long history of demonizing and attacking the rights of gay people. Your corporation is a leading supplier of ancient fairy tales used to justify modern bigotry. You are in charge of this abomination. That is who you are to judge gay people, Francis.
BJ McFrisky
@Steve Rider:
Your key word was “history.” Perhaps Pope Frankie is looking to take the church in a new direction.
Caliban
What do you expect the Pope to say, “We take it all back”? Of course he’s going to say that gay sex is a sin, but this is a MUCH better stance than Pope Ratfucker ever had. Believe me, I’m just as resentful and angry about the Catholic church’s war against gays as anyone (and I’m not Catholic), but you have to recognize progress when you see it. Francis also said that gays should not be judged, abused, or marginalized, which is a HUGE change from his predecessor.
The Papacy is in many ways like the Presidency here in the US, in that it sets the tone for what lesser priests/politicians do. Ratzinger was always saying hateful things about gays and that empowered local Bishops, Cardinals. etc. to make their own hateful statements, threatening to withhold communion from marriage equality supporters, etc. Francis is taking away some of the top-down implicit approval to judge and hate.
Benny must be stamping his Prada-clad feet right now! First Francis refuses to live in the Papal quarters, deeming them too opulent and separate, and moves into a dormitory with other priests, then he switches out Ratzy’s gilded THRONE for a much simpler wooden (though still impressive) seat and tells priests, Bishops, Cardinals, etc to stop driving fancy cars and living like royalty. Now he’s telling them not to judge or marginalize gays, Benny’s favorite target.
I may not like everything he thinks or but says he’s still a BIG improvement over the Nazi piece of shit he replaced. For a Pope, I almost like him!
the other Greg
@Caliban: Good summary. I’m not Catholic either and see it in terms of marketing. The RCC can’t expect to endlessly expand ONLY in the more homophobic regions (Africa) while endlessly pissing off the existing customers, I mean parishioners, in the more homophile regions (Europe / N. & S. America). The numbers just don’t crunch.
The new CEO sees that Ratzy’s strategy was a dead end. It’s kind of like JC Penney!
1EqualityUSA
Caliban, …But he is marginalizing gays, if he thinks we are not deserving of rights that every other heterosexual person is given. We were born this way. We didn’t choose to be the orientations we are, anymore than straight people choose their orientations. I’m so done with this notion that we are not deserving of equality. We are marginalized by Pope Francis.
MK Ultra
So he wants us to be part of his group, his followers, his sheep, his slaves,
but still without any rights or benefits.
Yipee, where do I sign up?
Guys, the other Greg is right. This is marketing. Once again I want to remind you, words mean nothing. Words can be twisted, mis-used, mis-interpreted, manipulated.
Actions are what counts. So far, still none of that from the Popolo or his minions.
2eo
I see nothing of any substance whatsoever. No apologies, no action, no meaningful moves of any kind.
Talking is cheap, the catholic church has unrilvalled deep pockets, it’s time they started backing something up that isn’t lawyers for kid fucking.
mykelb
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sESuKAT3VGc
OutnProud
Not buying it Francis. Actions speaker LOUDER then words
Kieran
The Holy Father Pope Francis: “Who am I to judge the Gays?”
Let’s hope that virulently homophobic bigot Bill Donohue over at the Catholic League and other self-righteous judgemental “religious” types learn something from the words of the Pope. But don’t hold your breath. Throwing stones at other “sinners” is what they live for.
Jerry12
Men created GODS, lots of GODS out of Fear of The Unknown. Now that we know how the natural events of Nature really work, there isn’t any reason to keep supporting Dictatorships of Religious Brands of Priests, Rabies, Ministers, etc, etc, who produce nothing but fear and bigotry among us.
HernanMinogue
Way to go Pope Francis!
reojie
You read something against, you hate.. You read something favorable, you still hate! Come on people wtf? this is way better than some Rick Warren who killed his own gay son because of his anti-gay campaigns and a few months later still pushing the kill gays bill. WTF is wrong with some people.
Matt G
I really hope and pray (to Mary directly, suck on that fundies) this pope can do something positive with the church in the order of channeling the non-infinite resources of the church into more positive activity like service to the poor, needy, marginalized, and exploited and away from fighting other movements like queer lib. Just let it play out without church influence and let them spend all their money they use fighting gay marriage in the US on fighting homelessness.
Mark Jenkins
@1EqualityUSA: Better marginalized than condemned and rejected. It’s a start. On the other hand- you might possibly sponge the spots off a leopard- but he’d still be a leopard. I’ll wait and see.
Teleny
@Caliban: well said. I think this guy is different. I think we have to applaud any statement in the right direction.
fredhotman
Pope Francis is judgemental of gays in general. Advising that gays shut off their feeling & become monks. The beautiful remark he made was forgive the priests who abused children & forget about it. Marvellous understanding. The church should be forgiven any aberration and the rest is sin. It says nothing new.
LadyL
Yeah, I want to like him for this… but it sounds suspiciously like a PR attempt to tamp down criticism of the Vatican. Besides, who and what is he really talking about? Isn’t this a veiled effort to make the whole pedophile priest controversy go away? Aren’t we really being asked to forgive and forget the sins of priests who have abused children?
1EqualityUSA
Marginalized (is) rejected.
Kangol
The comment was in response to a question about that notorious priest he appointed to the Vatican Bank, Battista Ricca, who was thrown out of Uruguay for his out-of-control behavior. (Battista Ricca had a male Swiss Guard living with him, got beaten up while looking for out looking for rough sex, and had Uruguayan government members asking the Church to send him back.)
If Francis had spoken about gay people generally, I’d be more heartened, but it’s really about his pal. When he truly changes his tune on gay and trans people in general, though, he will deserve a lot of praise. As things go, he is far better than that monster Benedict.
He’s good on economic issues, though.
2eo
@fredhotman: This, the apologism from so many in our own community is pathetic. These people are monsters and bland platitudes do NOT right their institutional wrongs.
GayTampaCowboy
Well, it didn’t take long for the Vatican “spin team” to quash and re-qualify his statement. In fact, they had the Cardinal of NYC on the Today Show this morning who basically said that the Pope didn’t really say anything new and that the RCC is called to love gay folks, but that sex between 2 men (leagally married or not) is still a sin and those who partake in such acts are outside God’s grace.
So much for a change!
So, to paraphrase, he is telling his flock to ease up on the gay bashing because the RCC will NEVER accept homosexuality, gay marriage, or gay rights: IE: they are still all going to hell so just let it go!