The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the
nation's largest LGBT rights advocate, on Monday applauded Pope
Francis' remarks on the Catholic Church helping parents support their
gay children.
Francis told Argentinian daily La
Nacion that a recently concluded synod on the family addressed
“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. … We have
to find a way to help that father or that mother to stand by their
son or daughter.”
(Related: Pope
Francis: Church must help parents stand by their gay children.)
Lisbeth Melendez Rivera, director of
Latino/a and Catholic initiatives for the HRC Foundation's Religion
and Faith Program said HRC celebrates “these small steps.”
“These are welcome remarks by Pope
Francis, and we hope that the leadership of the U.S. Conference of
Catholic Bishops is paying attention,” she said. “Embracing
inclusion goes a long way to heal the lives of the many hurt by the
destructiveness of church leaders past and present who have
encouraged parents to reject their children based on sexual
orientation or gender identity.”
“There is much to do, but we
celebrate these small steps and look forward to more progress in our
lifetime. Who we are, what we believe, and who we love should not be
undermined by doctrine or dogma.”