Pope Francis looks on as he meets with French President Emmanuel Macron (not pictured) at the Palais du Pharo, on the occasion of the Mediterranean Meetings (MED 2023), in Marseille, France September 23, 2023. Andreas Solaro/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing Rights
Pope Francis has appeared to leave open the possibility of priests blessing same-sex couples, if they are limited, decided on a case-by-case basis and not confused with wedding ceremonies of heterosexuals.
Francis made his opinion known in one answer to five questions from five conservative cardinals from Asia, Europe, Africa, the United States and Latin America.
The cardinals sent the pope a set of formal questions, known as “dubia” (“doubts” in Latin), about issues relating to a global gathering that starts at the Vatican on Wednesday.
One of the questions specifically regarded the practice, which has become relatively common in places like Germany, of priests blessing same sex couples who are in a committed relationship.
The written exchange took place in July and the Vatican published the pope’s responses on Monday after the five cardinals unilaterally disclosed their initiative, saying they were not satisfied with Francis’ answers.
Pope Francis appeared to ask Russians to seek the truth about their country’s invasion of Ukraine in his Easter message to the world on Sunday and appealed for dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians following recent violence.
Francis, 86, presided at a solemn Easter day Mass in a sunny St. Peter’s Square after unseasonal cold forced him to skip an outdoor service on Friday – a precaution following his hospitalisation for bronchitis at the end of March.
A carpet of 38,000 flowers donated by the Netherlands bedecked the square for the most important and joyous date in the Church’s liturgical calendar – commemorating the day Christians believe Jesus rose from the dead. Honour units of Vatican Swiss Guards and Italian Carabinieri police – both in ceremonial dress – stood at attention.
But the traditional pomp and sacred singing then gave way to modern realities. Francis later went up to the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica to deliver his twice-yearly “Urbi et Orbi” (to the city and the world) message and blessing, addressing a crowd the Vatican estimated at about 100,000.
There, from the same spot where he first appeared to the world as pope on the night of his election in 2013, he spoke of “the darkness and the gloom in which, all too often, our world finds itself enveloped”, and prayed to God for peace.
“Help the beloved Ukrainian people on their journey towards peace, and shed the light of Easter upon the people of Russia,” he said.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year, Francis has at least twice a week referred to Ukraine and its people as being “martyred” and has used words such as aggression and atrocities to describe Russia’s actions.
On Sunday he asked God to “comfort the wounded and all those who have lost loved ones because of the war, and grant that prisoners may return safe and sound to their families. Open the hearts of the entire international community to strive to end this war and all conflict and bloodshed in our world.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in his nightly video address, denounced Russian attacks that coincided with the observance of Orthodox Palm Sunday, including an attack that killed a father and daughter in the city of Zaporizhzhia.
Pope Francis arrives to attend the Easter Sunday mass at St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, April 9, 2023. REUTERS/Yara Nardi
“This is how the terrorist state marks Palm Sunday,” Zelenskiy said. “This is how Russia places itself in even greater isolation from the world.”
The majority of Ukraine’s 41 million people are Orthodox Christians who celebrate Easter a week from now.
As he has done every Easter, Francis called for peace in the Middle East, his appeal made more urgent by recent violence in Jerusalem and cross-border exchanges of fire involving Israel, Lebanon and Syria.
“On this day, Lord, we entrust to you the city of Jerusalem, the first witness of your resurrection. I express deep worry over the attacks of these last few days that threaten the hoped-for climate of trust and reciprocal respect, needed to resume the dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians, so that peace may reign in the Holy City and in the entire region,” he said.
Pope Francis waves from his car as he leaves the Agostino Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, on Saturday, Apr 1, 2023, after receiving treatment for bronchitis, The Vatican said. (Photo: AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
ROME: A jovial Pope Francis joked with well-wishers on Saturday (Apr 1) as he left hospital after a three-night stay for bronchitis, and headed back to the Vatican to prepare for Christianity’s most important week.
The 86-year-old pontiff, who was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital on Wednesday with breathing difficulties, got out of the car transporting him and smiled and joked with the crowd.
Asked by someone how he felt, he quipped twice with a big smile “I am still alive!”
Pope Francis will now begin preparations for Holy Week and Easter, the most important week in the Christian calendar.
The pontiff felt unwell Wednesday after a general audience in St Peter’s Square, but his condition improved after he was given antibiotics.
As he left on Saturday, he reached out to bless sick people, signed the plaster cast of a young boy with a broken arm and stopped to hug and pray with distraught parents whose young daughter had just died.
The Argentine pope confirmed on Saturday he will preside over Palm Sunday mass in St Peter’s Square, the start of a busy week of events leading up to Easter.
Pope Francis talks with a young boy as he leaves the Agostino Gemelli University Hospital in Rome, Saturday, Apr 1, 2023, after receiving treatment for bronchitis, The Vatican said. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)Serena Subania hugs Pope Francis while her husband, Matteo Rugghia, mourns after they lost their five-year-old child Angelica yesterday at the Gemelli Hospital, as the Pope leaves Rome’s Gemelli hospital in Rome, Italy, Apr 1, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli
“NOT SCARED”
Pope Francis’ hospitalisation was his second since 2021, when he underwent colon surgery, also at Gemelli.
His increasing health issues over the past year have sparked widespread concern, including speculation that he might choose to retire rather than stay in the job for life.
Pressed by journalists Saturday as to whether he had been scared by his latest illness, he shook his head and said “no”.
He is set to dive back into work at the Vatican, with a meeting with a top cardinal on the agenda for later Saturday.
His predecessor, Benedict XVI, quit in 2013, in a radical step not seen since the Middle Ages.
