Pope Francis has been considered more pro-gay than his predecessors, but the Catholic Church still has a tough attitude towards sexual and gender minorities.
Pope Francis used an offensive word when talking about sexual minorities with Italian bishops, news agencies say.
On Tuesday, the Pope expressed his apologies “to all those who have been offended by anti-gay language”, the Vatican statement said.
Italian media reported on Monday that Pope Francis used the Italian word “frociaggine”, which is a very low-key word for gays.
According to Italian media, the Pope used the word earlier in May in a closed-door meeting with 250 Italian bishops. At the meeting, the pope said, according to media reports, that he is against accepting homosexual men as priests.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni says in a statement that the pope did not mean to use derogatory language. In the statement, Bruni does not directly admit that the Pope used the word frociaggine, but he does not deny it either.
According to Brun, everyone is still welcome in the Catholic Church, regardless of sexuality.
The roar of a gay-friendly pope is surprising
The Pope’s speeches have attracted attention, among other things, because he is thought to have a more positive attitude towards sexual and gender minorities than his predecessors.
In 2013, he said that gay people must be given mercy and stated that he cannot judge them. In 2020, the Pope supported gay people’s right to a registered partnership.
The Pope does not speak Italian as his mother tongue, and he is known to have taken a very frank position on issues in the past.
The Catholic Church still generally has a negative attitude towards homosexuality and gender minorities.
In 2023, the Pope said in an interview with the news agency AP, that homosexuality is not a crime, but it is a sin nonetheless. In April The Vatican declared gender reassignment treatments an “insult to human dignity”.
Sources: AP, AFP, Reuters