Pope Francis says homosexuality isn't a crime, calls on church leaders - USA TODAY

Pope Francis said laws criminalizing homosexuality are “unjust,” calling homosexuality a misdeed for Catholic worshippers – but not a crime.  

“Being homosexual isn’t a crime,” Francis said successful an interrogation this week with The Associated Press. 

He noted that Catholic bishops astir the satellite enactment laws criminalizing homosexuality and discriminating against LGBTQ individuals. He said the leaders should "have to person a process of conversion,” and opt for “tenderness, please, arsenic God has for each 1 of us.” 

“We are each children of God, and God loves america arsenic we are and for the spot that each of america fights for our dignity,” Francis said,

The pope said the Catholic Church should enactment to extremity laws criminalizing homosexuality.

Approximately 67 countries and jurisdictions astir the satellite criminalize same-sex intersexual activity. In the United States, much than a twelve states inactive person anti-sodomy laws, though the Supreme Court ruled successful 2003 that the statutes are unconstitutional.  

Francis’ comments were not a afloat clasp of LGBTQ people. The religion inactive calls homosexuality a sin. 

“It’s not a crime. Yes, but it’s a sin. Fine, but archetypal let’s separate betwixt a misdeed and a crime,” Francis said during the interview.  

“It’s besides a misdeed to deficiency foundation with 1 another,” helium added. 

What has Pope Francis antecedently said astir LGBTQ rights?  

Francis past twelvemonth called connected parents astir the satellite to ne'er condemn their children if they are gay.

• During a play wide audience, he was speaking astir the biblical fig Joseph. 
• Francis addressed parents "who spot that their children person antithetic intersexual orientations, however they negociate that and travel their children and not fell down a condemning attitude.”  
• “Never condemn a child,” helium said 

However, the Vatican successful 2021 said the Catholic Church and its priests cannot bless same-sex unions, arguing that God “cannot bless sin.”  

• "There are perfectly nary grounds for considering homosexual unions to beryllium successful immoderate mode akin oregon adjacent remotely analogous to God’s program for matrimony and family,” the Vatican’s orthodoxy office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has said.  

Francis has antecedently endorsed civilian unions and called cheery and transgender radical children of God.  

"Homosexual radical person the close to beryllium successful a family. They are children of God," Francis said successful an interrogation for a 2020 documentary. "You can't footwear idiosyncratic retired of a family, nor marque their beingness miserable for this. What we person to person is simply a civilian national law; that mode they are legally covered."  

How were the pope’s comments received?  

Francis’ comments this week were not a alteration successful religion teachings, but they were inactive lauded by respective LGBTQ groups.  

Sarah Kate Ellis, the president and CEO of GLAAD, said Francis’ “historic connection should nonstop a connection to satellite leaders and millions of Catholics astir the world: LGBTQ radical merit to unrecorded successful a satellite without unit and condemnation, and much kindness and understanding.”  

Francis DeBernardo, the enforcement manager of New Ways Ministry, an LGBTQ-centered Catholic group, said successful a connection to USA TODAY that Francis’ declaration “will assistance prevention lives and beforehand respect for LGBTQ+ people, peculiarly successful areas wherever instrumentality oregon societal norms marque them victims of fear, hatred, unit and death.”  

“The pope is reminding the religion that the mode radical dainty 1 different successful the societal satellite is of overmuch greater motivation value (than) what radical whitethorn perchance bash successful the privateness of a bedroom,” the statement said.  

Contributing: Orlando Mayorquin, USA TODAY; Associated Press