What happened to, “who am I to judge”? There must be some misunderstanding, based on that remark. The pope rather laid that marker down as an invitation for trouble.
Now that it has arrived (trouble), our pope gets serious, demonstrating that he does have a clue?
Which is it?
I’m glad, of course, and sad. It is whiplash with our pope from one day to the next. It is also painful and so unnecessary for his words to be so confusing to so many, so much of the time.
We were all used to linear thinking, no matter the complexity any subject. Having to get used to rabbit trails passing for thought patterns is not easy.
I don’t judge whether a person deserves heaven or hell, that’s God’s responsibility, not mine. However, I find it wise to be honest about how morally right or morally wrong certain behaviors are, that is wise and caring judgement.
The Pope has every right to decide that an ambassador does or does not deserve to be there on behalf of a nation, especially when said person promotes certain behavior as okay that isn’t.
His “who am I to judge comment” was the end of his sentence. The pope was asked about what has been described as a “gay lobby” in the Vatican, allegedly a group of priests and bishops who work at the Vatican and protect each other. Pope Francis said it was important to “distinguish between a person who is gay and someone who makes a gay lobby.”
“A gay person who is seeking God, who is of good will — well, who am I to judge him?” the pope said. “The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains this very well. It says one must not marginalize these persons, they must be integrated into society. The problem isn’t this (homosexual) orientation — we must be like brothers and sisters. The problem is something else, the problem is lobbying either for this orientation or a political lobby or a Masonic lobby.”
The church distinguishes between homosexual acts and homosexual tendencies or orientation, it said. The church, unlike much of the public, does not assume all those with a homosexual orientation are sexually active, just as it does not assume all heterosexuals are sexually active.