Pope Francis has said that he believes
the Catholic Church must help parents stand by their gay children.
The Argentine-born Francis made his
remarks in an interview with the Argentinian daily La
Nacion.
In October, an assembly of bishops
gathered at the Vatican released a draft report on the family which
suggested that the Roman Catholic Church should be more accepting of
gay people. However, the language was not included in the final
report.
“Nobody mentioned homosexual marriage
at the synod, it did not cross our minds,” the pope said. “[T]he
synod addressed the family and the homosexual persons in relation to
their families, because we come across this reality all the time in
the confessional: a father and a mother whose son or daughter is in
that situation.”
Francis said this “happened to me
several times in Buenos Aires.”
“We have to find a way to help that
father or that mother to stand by their son or daughter,” he added.
“That's what the synod addressed. That's why someone mentioned
positive factors in the first draft. But this was just a draft.”