New guidelines suggest gay men can become priests

New guidelines released by the Italian Bishops’ Conference suggest that out gay men may become priests.

The conference’s guidelines say gay men should not be barred from the priesthood if they meet other ordination conditions.

The report is of the title Seminary Guidelines and Norms“When referring to homosexual tendencies, it is also appropriate not to limit discernment to this aspect only, but also to understand its meaning within the global framework of the young person’s personality, as with all candidates. “There is,” he wrote.

However, it has become clear that gay priests cannot have sex like straight priests, who have always been prohibited from doing so.

The Catholic Church has long maintained that homosexual people should be treated with dignity and respect, but that homosexuality is “intrinsically disordered” and that “people who practice homosexuality, display deep-seated homosexual tendencies, or It declared that men who “support homosexual culture” would be banned. Ordained.

The new guidelines are a major step forward in suggesting that gay men are not exclusively prohibited from the priesthood.

They also suggest a holistic view of the priestly candidate, as sexuality should only be considered as one aspect of the priestly candidate’s personality.

However, it is unclear whether this guideline will be accepted in other countries.

This comes after the incumbent Pope Francis made strides towards acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community within the Catholic Church. previously told The Associated Press in 2023 He insists that “being homosexual is not a crime,” and allows the blessing of same-sex couples, but not marriage.

But while Francis has been more supportive of LGBTQ+ rights than any previous pope, his statement last May used homophobic slurs to suggest that gay men should be allowed to enter the priesthood. He also said that it was not.

Pope Francis said seminary candidates should be carefully vetted and priests who seek sexual relationships should resign from the priesthood.