Pope Francis has said in an interview published on Monday that Africans were a “special case” in the opposition of bishops and many other people in the continent to homosexuality. But he said he was confident that, except for Africans, critics of his decision to allow blessings for same-sex couples would eventually understand it.
Blessings were allowed last month in a document called Fiducia Supplicans (Supplicating Trust), which has caused widespread debate in the Catholic Church, with particularly strong resistance coming from African bishops.
“Those who protest vehemently belong to small ideological groups,” Francis told Italian newspaper La Stampa. “A special case are Africans: for them homosexuality is something ‘bad’ from a cultural point of view, they don’t tolerate it.
“But in general, I trust that gradually everyone will be reassured by the spirit of the ‘Fiducia Supplicans’ declaration by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith: it aims to include, not divide,” the pope said.
Last week, Francis appeared to acknowledge the pushback the document received, especially in Africa, where bishops have rejected it and where in some countries same-sex can lead to prison or even death penalty.
He said when the blessings are given, priests could “naturally take into account the context, the sensitivities, the places where one lives and the most appropriate ways to do it”.
Declaration Fiducia supplicans, published on December 18, opens the possibility of blessing couples whose situation is considered “irregular” in Catho- lic church. Those include unmarried couples, divorced-and-remarried couples, and same-sex couples.
“The Gospel is to sanctify everyone …we are all sinners: why should we make a list of sinners who can enter the Church and a list of sinners who cannot be in the Church?,” he asked.
Doubling down that the blessing is about was “blessing the people not their union.”
