0
For the Catholic Church, gay men can become priests, as long as they choose a life without having sex — celibacy. The information is contained in a Vatican document published on Thursday (9/1).
Produced by the Italian Episcopal Conference (CIE), the statement changes an instruction published nine years ago that barred seminarians with “profound homosexual tendencies”.
Although the update to the CEI document still considers the sexual orientation of a seminarian, the chance of the man being gay will only be added as an aspect of the candidate for the priest career.
“When dealing with homosexual tendencies in the training process, it is appropriate that the assessment is not limited to just this aspect, but rather seeks to understand its meaning in the entire structure of the young person’s personality”, says the text.
The CEI update can be interpreted as a nod from Pope Francis to the LGBTQIA+ population. The pontiff is known for giving welcoming speeches to faithful and same-sex couples, but he has also made comments considered homophobic and received criticism from the community.
