Thanks.
By the way, here’s a better link to what the Pope said:
ncregister.com/daily-news/pope-francis-church-must-accompany-gays-not-discriminate/
As usual, context is everything. He was asked a specific question, answered with reference to the Catechism, and then broadened his perspective to speak of marginalization in general, as well as mercy.
And for those who want the full interview, which touched on a lot of other topics, here’s a transcript:
ncregister.com/daily-news/full-text-pope-francis-in-flight-press-conference-from-armenia/
Thanks for that link! Hope it’s ok to post the quote from the Pope in the first article:
“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,” the Pope said June 26 on board his return flight from Armenia to Rome.
The problem is “a person that has a condition,” he said, but, echoing his comment on the way back from Rio de Janeiro in 2013, noted that that if the person “has good will and who seeks God, who are we to judge?”
“We must accompany them well…this is what the catechism says, a clear catechism.”
Unfortunately, I get the sense some Catholics essentially are arguing with the background assumption that “let’s be real, we know those sinful gays are all going to hell in the end, so there’s no point in being charitable or pastoral to them, all we need to do is oppose them and defeat their nefarious schemes”.
I get the feeling if they were living in Biblical times they might have had the same attitude toward the prostitutes and tax collectors Jesus spent time with. “Let’s be real, those people are horrible sinners with are obviously not gonna repent, so there’s no point in being pastoral”.
And while I agree that it can be problematic for someone to base their entire identity around sexuality – the problem is that it’s often the “traditional” minded people who discuss “the gays” as if all that matters about anyone who identifies as “gay” is that identity.
There also seems to be as assumption that “anyone who identifies as gay or homosexual MUST be marching in lockstep with the homosexual political agenda”. I think this is something the Pope would not agree with, considering that his initial reference to the person who has good will and seeks God, was in the context of a reporter asking if there was a “gay lobby” at the Vatican. The Pope did NOT praise “gay lobbies”, or indeed any “lobby”, indeed he seemed rather judgmental with his comment of “so many lobbies”. But he did not express the same attitude toward
individuals who identify as gay.
Now, I have seen some who identify as “gay” speak as if they are speaking for
all gay people, but that doesn’t mean we should take them at their word. The National Organization for Women claims to speak for all women, but I think most Catholics would not take that claim at face value, yet it seems many who oppose the “gay agenda” really do assume “all gay people are the same, they’re all enemies of the Church”.
They may express support for “those with SSA” but I get the feeling some Catholics think it is actually a sin to identify as “gay” or “homosexual”, that only those who identify as “having SSA” deserve charity.
If you really want to walk on the wild side, try TradCatKnight or Barnhardt.biz, but only on an empty stomach. 