Pope Francis Told A Gay Man God Made Him And Loves Him That Way
A victim of clerical sexual abuse has said Pope Francis told him God made him gay, and that both the Pope and God love him that way.
Juan Carlos Cruz spent three days with the Pope at the Vatican last month, where he discussed the abuse he suffered as a child. The man who abused him, Fernando Karadima, was found guilty by the Vatican in 2011, and on Friday all 31 active bishops in Chile offered their resignation to the Pope.
“He told me, ‘Juan Carlos, that you are gay does not matter. God made you like this and loves you like this and I don’t care. The pope loves you like this. You have to be happy with who you are,’” Cruz, pictured above, told Spanish newspaper El País, according to The Guardian.
"We do not normally comment on the Pope's private conversations," said Vatican spokesman Greg Burke told CNN when asked for a response to the report.
Cruz said the issue of his sexual orientation was raised as some of the bishops attempted to paint him as a pervert who was lying about the abuse.
The Pope has made previous statements showing a more progressive view around homosexuality than his predecessors. Most famously, when asked about the existence of a "gay lobby" within the Vatican in 2013 he said, "Who am I to judge?"
He has also shown some support for civil unions for same-sex couples, while objecting to marriage equality.
The meeting with Cruz came after the Pope dismissed the allegations that Bishop Juan Barros—whom he appointed in Osorno, Chile, in 2015—knew about the abuse as "slander."
Cruz said the Pope has apologized for saying he and other survivors were lying.
