Pope Francis has called for leniency towards divorced and remarried Catholics and the LGBT community in a document released earlier today.
The document – titled “Amoris Laetitia” or in Latin “the joy of love” – says the church must open itself up to more ‘irregular’ family situations, like single parents, gay families and those who have divorced.
The document reads:
Pastors are to avoid judgements that do not take into account the complexity of various situations. By thinking that everything is black and white, we sometimes close off the way of grace and of growth.
He also spoke out about another group that the Catholic church has historically marginalised, the LGBT community, though he still drew the line of being accepting of same-sex marriage.
The document continues:
Every person, regardless of sexual orientation, ought to be respected in his or her dignity and treated with consideration. As for proposals to place unions between homosexual persons on the same level as marriage, there are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God’s plan for marriage and family.
This document was a culmination of conferences held in Rome over the last two years to discuss the future of the Catholic faith.
It’s fair to say that Francis has built a bit of a reputation for being the most ‘progressive’ pope, but even though this is a historic moment in the faith’s history, it still shows how far they have to go.
