VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis is urging parents not to condemn their children if they are gay. It’s his latest gesture of outreach to the LGBTQ community, which has long been marginalized by the Catholic hierarchy. Francis spoke off the cuff during his weekly Wednesday general audience dedicated to the figure of St. Joseph, the father of Jesus. Francis said he was thinking in particular about parents who are confronted with “sad” situations in their children’s lives, and said that includes parents whose “children have different sexual orientations.” He said: “Never condemn a child.” Official church teaching calls for gay men and lesbians to be respected and loved, but considers homosexual activity “intrinsically disordered.”
Photo:Pope Francis says the vespers in the Roman Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls on the solemnity of the conversion of St. Paul, in Rome, Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
