Pope Francis made some sweeping and one might say presumptuous statements this past Sunday which have caused more traditional Catholics to wonder whether their church will survive the often off-the-cuff remarks of the pontiff.
Following the lead of Cardinal Reinhard Marx, who seemed to be testing the waters for a statement on LGBT relations with the church and beyond, the Pope made the following observations:
“I repeat what the Catechism of the Catholic Church says: that they must not be discriminated against, that they must be respected and accompanied pastorally,” Francis said at a press conference aboard the papal plane returning from Armenia.
“The Church must ask forgiveness for not behaving many times — when I say the Church, I mean Christians! The Church is holy, we are sinners!”
“I believe that the church not only should apologize to the person who is gay whom it has offended,” he added, “but has to apologize to the poor, to exploited women, to children exploited for labor; it has to ask forgiveness for having blessed many weapons.”
Francis first uttered that rhetorical question — Who am I to judge gay people? — in 2013, also during a news conference on the papal plane. His comments were hailed as a breakthrough for a church that has historically condemned homosexuality, often in harsh terms. Francis has not changed church doctrine that calls homosexual acts sinful, but he has shown a more merciful approach to people on the margins, including gays and lesbians.
A leading cardinal of the Catholic Church, one who is part of a council to help advise Pope Francis, preceded the pontiffs remarks at a different venue, saying that the church should apologize to gays and lesbians for the “scandalous and terrible treatment” inflicted on them for many years by the church and its members. Cardinal Reinhard Marx stated that “the history of homosexuals in our societies is very bad because we’ve done a lot to marginalize [them].”
It is worth wondering if the social changes in society and the drifting of membership has caused a new perspective in the church.
Cardinals comments question Church position on gays and lesbians, page 2:
Why on earth should any one appologize for the very thing that they will not appologize for
Love to know what I.Q. HE IS BLESSED WITH…………….
WTF?
Church is turning a bunch of sheep
The Cardinals that elected Pope Pollyanna owe The Church a confession of a major egregious intellectual sin.
He should apologize for impersonating a Holy man of the cloth!!!
No…we dont
…….and the horse you rode in on! How many people do you want to leave the church! Do you know how quick you will go broke! People tithe on a regular basis cause we believe in what the Catholic Church teaches! Not because the pope tell us to do ignorant things! Why do you think we are still in the church? It’s not the pope! This guy has jumped the shark!
He follows OVOMIT! I believe he is the popes new god! Not being disrespectful, I just don’t put OVOMIT up there with “GOD”! And the pope disrespects his own position, I just see he can’t be a true Catholic as God intended! His day will come!
Heather Moyer atheists don’t believe in what they can’t see or touch! When you see air ant touch it you will believe! That would be never! But that’s ok cause you have the same religious freedom the rest of us do! Even when we can’t see God we know he is there! He exists!