A homosexual man who was expelled from a seminary for this reason and turned to Pope Francis has received a response from the pontiff: "The Church must be open to all. Go ahead with your vocation," he wrote, the newspaper "Il Messaggero" reported on Sunday.
The 22-year-old Lorenzo Michele Noè Caruso had written to the Vatican at the end of May.
"I was expelled from the seminary because I said I was gay," he told the newspaper. He wrote to Francis following his recent statements. He considers the Pope's words, which included in his reply: "Jesus calls everyone, everyone", to be "wonderful". That gives him courage. He also sees in his immediate church environment that attitudes towards social diversity are changing.
Bishop Giuseppe Betori of Florence, for example, has decided to set up an LGBT pastoral commission in the pastoral care of families. Caruso is currently studying history at the University of Florence. He has high hopes for the World Synod. He trusts "that it will be a turning point" and a sign of more accommodation towards LGBTIQ+ people.
The Pope recently caused a stir with homophobic statements. In a discussion with around 200 Italian bishops, he spoke out against the admission of "active" homosexuals to seminaries. Because there is already"too much faggotry" there.
The Vatican explained that the head of the Church "never intended to offend anyone or to express himself in homophobic terms".
He asked for forgiveness from those "who feel offended by the use of a term that has been reproduced by others".