Headlines Keep Pouring Forth: "Pope Francis Goes Full Homophobic"; "Pope Tells Gay Clergy to Quit" — Some Mercy. Some Hope. Some Welcome!

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And the headlines just keep pouring out around the world: "Pope Francis goes full homophobic"; "Pope Francis doesn’t want homosexuals to join the priesthood"; "The Catholic Church is still homophobic"; "Pope Francis says gay life has become 'fashionable' and is hurting the Catholic Church"; "Pope tells gay clergy to quit"; "Gay people not welcome in clergy."

Let the Church always be a place of mercy and hope, where everyone is welcomed, loved and forgiven.

— Pope Francis (@Pontifex) June 16, 2013

How does a religious community claiming to walk in the footsteps of Jesus manage to convince people of its redemptive, loving, welcoming embrace of the part of the human community God has made queer, when it behaves this way — in the person of its top spokesperson? Perhaps it's time now for those groups inside the Catholic church who keep trying to spin the church as showing a different face to LGBTQ folks to start listening to the many of us who have been really harmed by the deeply entrenched homophobia in the church, to give a real hearing to our testimony, to provide a place for us to make our voices heard in those groups. 

Otherwise, let the cynical, malicious games that help nobody at all continue.

Pope Francis goes full homophobic, now "very worried" about homosexuality in the church https://t.co/fdNDddpa5d

— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) December 2, 2018

Pope Francis doesn’t want homosexuals to join the priesthood. He describes being gay as ‘fashionable’ rather than natural and implies a link with paedophilia.

Why spout this hateful nonsense? Is it helpful? Is it kind? Is it good? Is it Christian? https://t.co/NraWTxrvPR

— Barnaby Edwards (@BarnabyEdwards) December 2, 2018

Pope Francis says gay life has become ‘fashionable’ and is hurting the Catholic Church https://t.co/cnCg6FYy94 pic.twitter.com/1sswunh4jk

— ThinkProgress (@thinkprogress) December 3, 2018

Gay people should not join Catholic clergy, Pope Francis says https://t.co/YDotMco4WO

— The Guardian (@guardian) December 2, 2018

Pope Francis says gay people in Catholic clergy ‘worries’ him https://t.co/BlyosdCgpq pic.twitter.com/B1V60bJNjx

— The Independent (@Independent) December 1, 2018

#LGBTQ people are not the cause of your child sex scandals @Pontifex #Vatican https://t.co/BVZY6NZ2S3

— The Advocate (@TheAdvocateMag) December 2, 2018

Actively gay people should leave the Catholic clergy, says the Pope, who also warns homosexuality is becoming “fashionable”.https://t.co/d85tbYPzwf

— The Australian (@australian) December 3, 2018

I am sad that on #WorldAIDSDay
The core message from the Cathilic Church is still exclusion, division & vilification. No sane gay person can remain part of this organisation.https://t.co/nWMYLnyFtV

— albert combrink (@albertcombrink) December 1, 2018