The Pope does not change Catholic doctrine on homosexuality, marriage, birth control or abortion in the paper.
In fact, he reiterates that marriage between a man and a woman remains the Catholic ideal, superior to other forms of union.
"In order to avoid all misunderstanding, I would point out that in no way must the Church desist from proposing the full idea of marriage," he writes.
A "great variety of family situations ... can offer a certain stability, but de facto or same-sex unions, for example, may not simply be equated with marriage," he says. And he holds the line against artificial birth control, rejecting the phrase "safe sex."
The very wording, he says, operates as if "an eventual child were an enemy to be protected against."
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Ever notice how there's often more truth in the body of the article than in the headlines?
What are these "other forms of union" that Francis speaks of? Are not all other sexual unions immoral in the eyes of the Church? Why can't the pope state this? Answer: because he doesn't believe it.
"It ... can no longer simply be said that all those in any 'irregular' situation are living in a state of mortal sin and are deprived of sanctifying grace," states the pontiff at one point in the document, released by the Vatican Friday."
"It is reductive simply to consider whether or not an individuals actions correspond to a general law or rule, because that is not enough to discern and ensure full fidelity to God in the concrete life of a human being," the pope writes later.
"Discernment must help to find possible ways of responding to God and growing in the midst of limits," states Francis. "By thinking that everything is black and white, we sometimes close off the way of grace and of growth, and discourage paths of sanctification which give glory to God."
https://www.ncronline.org/news/vatican/francis-exhortation-radical-shift-see-grace-imperfection-without-fearing-moral
Francis warm greeting a "married" homosexual couple.
Which is more important to the homosexual “community” - doctrine or the perception manufactured by the MSM’s headlines?
If someone is gay and searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?
http://time.com/3975630/pope-francis-lgbt-issues/
What did this mean to the homosexual community?