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Vatican approves Italian guidelines allowing gay men to become priests
[Reuters] VATICAN CITY, Jan 10 (Reuters) - The Vatican has approved new guidelines from Italian bishops that allow gay men to enter seminaries as long as they abstain from sex, in an unexpected adjustment to how the global Catholic Church considers possible future priests.Although the Vatican had not explicitly barred gay men from entering the priesthood in the past, an earlier 2016 instruction had said seminaries cannot admit men who have "deep-seated homosexual tendencies". The new guidelines, posted without fanfare on the website of the Italian bishops' conference on Thursday, say seminary directors should consider a priestly candidate's sexual preferences, but only as one aspect of their personality. "When referring to homosexual tendencies in the formation process, it is also appropriate not to reduce the discernment to this aspect alone, but... to understand its meaning within the whole framework of the young person's personality," state the guidelines. Related: Vatican: 2025-02-01 Not the First Time. Why the US Is Right to War for the Panama Canal Vatican: 2025-01-25 Father Tom Homan has a short homily for the Pope Vatican: 2025-01-21 Pope Francis Debuts on TikTok to Hawk New Autobiography Posted by: Besoeker 2025-02-02 |
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