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A clarification of Pope Francis’ most recent confusing public statement

~ You may have heard or heard about a recent public comment made by Pope Francis, in regard to seemingly giving credence and affirmation to homosexual unions.  Given what he has clearly stated earlier in his pontificate, this is simply not the case.   Pope Francis’ Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation of 2016 entitled, ‘Amoris Laetitia’ (‘The joy of Love’) #251 states:  “In discussing the dignity and mission of the family, the Synod Fathers observed that, “as for proposals to place unions between homosexual persons on the same level as marriage, there are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God’s plan for marriage and family”. It is unacceptable “that local Churches should be subjected to pressure in this matter and that international bodies should make financial aid to poor countries dependent on the introduction of laws to establish ‘marriage’ between persons of the same sex”.  As to what he was actually implying (if at all) with his recent statement---as recorded and used within the context of a documentary movie---I do not have an answer and I think it is imprudent on my part to guess.  To the point that, at times, Pope Francis makes statements that are baffling and unclear and are taken out of context and mis-interpreted by a variety of news sources and individuals, there is no doubt.  Going forward, let us continue to pray for Pope Francis and that he is careful with his word choice and that those reporting what he states do not jump to conclusions through “guess-work!

~Fr Stirniman