Pope Francis explained in a letter on Saturday about an earlier statement in which he had described homosexual acts as a sin. Those who criminalize homosexuality are “wrong,” he said.
Francis had caused some controversy earlier this week in an interview with the AP agency with a statement about homosexuality. “It’s not a crime. Yes, but it is a sin,” the pope had said. He added: “It is also a sin to lack love towards others.”
In a letter to the American pastor James Martin, the pope tried to better interpret his words on Saturday. “When I say it is a sin, I am simply referring to Catholic morality, which states that any sexual act outside of marriage is a sin,” he wrote. “Of course, one must always consider the circumstances that can limit or eliminate a debt.”
“Neither good nor fair”
Francis insists that criminalization is “neither good nor just”. “I would like to say that those who want to criminalize homosexuality are wrong,” Francis said in the letter published Saturday on the website of the Catholic LGBTQ magazine Outreach. James Martin, editor-in-chief of Outreach, had written to Francis about the interview.
The 86-year-old pope stated that it was an oral interview. In addition, it is “understandable” that certain nuances have been lost in the written representation, he stated.
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