New twist in the controversy over the Pope’s ‘faggot’ and the seminary door closed to homosexuals. In a letter written to a 22-year-old young man, a history student in Florence and expelled from the seminary for revealing his homosexuality, Francis invites him to “ move forward” with “your vocation.
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“Some think that the Church is a customs office and that is bad. The Church must be open to everyone. Brother, continue with your vocation,” Francis wrote, in his own handwriting, to the young man, as Caruso himself reveals to Il Messaggero, from whose website he had sent an email to Bergoglio, lamenting the phrase that he had already “ too faggot” in the seminaries leaked during the closed-door meeting that the Pope held with the Italian bishops.
An open door, waiting for the Synod to rethink what, to date, seems immovable, and to allow entry to the seminary to anyone (male) who commits to living celibacy, regardless of their sexual condition? It seems strange, since the most widespread interpretation of Francico’s words to the CEI was, precisely, his opposition to any change in this practice.
On the other hand, the Pope’s words to Caruso seem like a caress in the face of the “wound” that this and many other young people (and not so young) felt upon learning of Francis’ expression, for which the Holy See has already asked for forgiveness. clarifying that “ The Pope never intended to offend or express themselves in homophobic terms, and addresses its apologies to those who felt offended by the use of a term, referred to by others.
“Do you know that clericalism is a plague?”
In any case, Francisco responded to Caruso with a reflection that gives food for thought. “Do you know that clericalism is a plague? It is an ugly worldliness and, as a great theologian says, ‘worldliness is the worst thing that can happen to the Church, even worse than the time of the concubinary Popes.’ Jesus calls everyone, everyone. Some think that the Church is a customs office and that is bad. The Church must be open to all. Brother, continue with your vocation.”
And what does the interested party think? For Lorenzo Michele Noè Caruso, the papal response was “beautiful.” “The real Pope is not the one we have been led to believe. This letter gives me hope, the Seminary continues to be a dream that has not been left aside,” he confides.
