The Vatican continues to stay silent on allegations the Pope used a derogatory homophobic slur while claiming homosexual men should not be allowed into colleges to train for the priesthood.
Pope Francis, 87, was claimed to have said ‘there is too much of an air of f*****ry’ in the church, translated from Italian, in comments made last week and first circulated by Italian tabloid news website Dasgopia on Monday.
Bishops at the meeting were reportedly taken aback by the language the pontiff used to make the statement – the derogatory word ‘frociaggine’, which roughly translates to f*****ry.
Italian news agency Adnkronos, citing sources, reported that the Pope said in the speech: ‘Look: there is already an air of f*****ry around that is not good. There is today’s culture of homosexuality with respect to those who have a homosexual orientation [who] are better off not being accepted [into the seminary].’
The remark was met with ‘incredulous laughter’, bishops told newspaper Corriere della Sera, but represents a huge step back for campaigners after prolonged efforts to reform the church’s position on LGBTQ+ rights.
Pope Francis is pictured during a meeting with the Italian Bishops’ Conference at the Vatican
The comments were allegedly made in a closed-door meeting ahead of the conference. Pictured: The opening session of the 79th general assembly of the Italian Bishops Conference
Pope Francis attends a Mass in St Peter’s Square for the first World Children’s Day on May 26
Remaining silent on the matter, the Pope has not posted on Twitter/X since Monday.
The Vatican’s Press Bulletin also has not been updated since yesterday, referencing a meeting with a delegation of Buddhist Monks in Thailand in which the Pope called for the building of a ‘more inclusive world’.
As of Tuesday morning, Vatican News – set up by order of Pope Francis in 2015 with the Secretariat for Communication – reported this morning that the Pope today met with World Children’s Day artists and volunteers in Rome.
Italian media has quoted the Pope as having said: ‘Look, there is already an air of f*****ry going around that isn’t good.
‘There is a culture today of homosexuality, because of which those with a homosexual orientation are better off not being welcomed [into the seminary].
‘It is very difficult for a boy who has this tendency not to fall [into sin] because they come [to the seminary] thinking that the life of the priest can support them, but then they fall during the work of the ministry.’
Some suggested the comments were an honest translation mistake for the Pope, for whom Italian is a second language, and that he ‘did not know’ how offensive the word was.
But the allegations could spell a significant step back for the church after years spent shifting its position on LGBTQ+ matters.
When asked about his views on homosexuality in 2013, he famously said: ‘If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?’
Last year, he described laws that criminalise homosexuality as a ‘sin’ and an ‘injustice’, and allowed Catholic priests to bless same-sex couples in a significant advance for LGBT rights in the church.
However, the Pope delivered a similar message on gay seminarians – minus the reported swear word – when he met Italian bishops in 2018, telling them to carefully vet priesthood applicants and reject anyone suspected of being homosexual.
Political gossip website Dagospia was the first to report on the alleged incident, said to have happened on May 20, when the Italian Bishops Conference opened a four-day assembly with a non-public meeting with the pontiff.
Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Francis’s native language is Spanish, and though he is fluent in Italian he has made a number of linguistic faux pas in the past.
He has previously said that if a boy is unsure about his sexuality and is facing mental health challenges he might need ‘psychiatric’ support.
It widely believed he instead meant ‘psychological’ help, words he has also confused on other occasions.
Francesco Lepore, a former priest who is now a gay rights activist, said he was ‘stunned’ by the comments allegedly made by Francis, who is also known by his birth name Jorge Mario Bergoglio.
‘Despite being accustomed by now to the type of direct language on the part of Bergoglio, speaking of ‘f*****ry’ in the seminaries seems more like a bar and a tavern than a Pontiff,’ he told la Repubblica.
‘This expression would never have appeared on the lips of Paul VI, John Paul II or Benedict XVI, who also took damning positions towards homosexuality.
He added: ‘The Pope is right that the number of homosexual seminarians and clerics is very high. But the simplicity of language has nothing to do with vulgarity.’
Reports about the pontiff’s remarks at the meeting come after bishops approved a document regulating admission to Italian seminaries, according to Corriere.
The Pope was pictured today (right) at a World Children’s Day event in Rome
Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Francis’ first language is Spanish, and though he is fluent in Italian he has made a number of linguistic faux pas in the past
The paper reported that members ‘approved by majority vote an amendment that recognized the distinction between simple homosexual orientation and ‘deeply rooted tendencies.’
This, it suggests, means ‘in substance, that a homosexual person could be admitted to the seminary if, like the heterosexual, he gave the guarantee that he knows how to live the discipline of celibacy.’
However, it reportedly implies ‘that it is more difficult for homosexuals because they will be living in an all-male community for many years.’
Francis’s latest remarks seemingly suggest he is taking ‘a more radical’ view on the issue, by preventing gay men from being allowed to join altogether.
The Holy See has not approved the document, according to reports, and the issue is still under discussion.
The 2005 Vatican document, released under Pope Benedict XVI and endorsed by Francis in 2016, states that the Church ‘cannot admit to the seminary or to holy orders those who practice homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called ‘gay culture.”
There is so far no official record of the Pope’s latest comments on the issue and the Vatican has not commented.