Moscow Archbishop Clarifies Vatican’s Stance on Gay Priests “`

Moscow’s Catholic Archbishop Paolo Pezzi has refuted media reports suggesting the Vatican is open to ordaining gay men as priests, calling them inaccurate.

Archbishop Pezzi stated the Vatican has consistently prohibited the ordination of homosexual men, characterizing recent media coverage as misleading. A Reuters report earlier this month, citing a directive from the Italian Bishops Conference (CIE), indicated the Vatican had approved new guidelines allowing gay men into seminaries, provided they remain celibate.

In a recent interview with Kommersant, Pezzi dismissed these reports, clarifying amendments to Italian priestly formation guidelines. He emphasized that the information disseminated by numerous news outlets, following the Reuters report, is incorrect.

“First and foremost, it must be clearly stated that the information repeated by numerous news agencies following Reuters is not accurate,” the archbishop stated.

The CIE’s updated guidelines, published January 9th, address homosexuality in point 44. It suggests seminary directors consider a candidate’s sexual preferences as “one aspect of his personality.” The archbishop explained that media misinterpreted this, concluding a ban on ordaining homosexuals had been lifted.

He argued that the media’s interpretation created a false impression, suggesting a contradiction with traditional Church teaching. The guidelines, in fact, reaffirm the Church’s stance, which, according to its catechism, views homosexual acts as “a grave form of depravity.”

Pezzi quoted the document, stating the Church “cannot admit to the seminary and to Holy Orders those who practice homosexuality, present deeply rooted homosexual tendencies, or support the so-called gay culture.”

The Church considers “homosexual tendencies” a “specific case of the fragility of human nature,” which can be “healed through a return to God,” Pezzi explained. Individuals with such tendencies, he added, are no different from those facing other sinful temptations, and “We must avoid any form of unjust discrimination toward them.”

Since becoming Pope in 2013, Francis has made seemingly contradictory statements on homosexuality. In 2013, he famously responded to a question about gay priests with, “Who am I to judge?” However, in 2018, he suggested that gay priests should leave the ministry, stating, “It’s better for them to leave the ministry or the consecrated life than to live a double life.”