Pope Francis has clarified his position on allowing Catholic priests to bless same-sex couples.
In December, the 87-year-old pontiff said that allowing same-sex couples to be blessed is โas an expression of the Churchโs maternal heart,โ comments that were made two months after he made waves for seemingly suggesting he would be open to some Catholic priests blessing same-sex unions.
In PEOPLEโs exclusive look at the popeโs conversation with Norah OโDonnell, he went into further detail about his stance on the matter.
โWhat I allowed was not to bless the union. That cannot be done because that is not the sacrament. I cannot. The Lord made it that way,โ he said during the interview. โBut to bless each person, yes. The blessing is for everyone. For everyone.โ
Pope Francis Condemns Anti-Gay Laws Around the World: โBeing Homosexual Is Not a Crimeโ
โTo bless a homosexual-type union, however, goes against the given right, the law of the Church. But to bless each person, why not?โ he added. โThe blessing is for all. Some people were scandalized by this. But why? Everyone! Everyone!โ
When OโDonnell noted that Pope Francis once said that โHomosexuality is not a crime,โ the pontiff responded in agreement, saying, โIt is a human fact.โ
โIn our rare and wide-ranging conversation, we speak to Pope Francis about his efforts to open up the Catholic Church to everyone โ including to those who have long been shunned by the institution,โ
