Pope Francis recently met with a group of transgender and intersex Catholics at the Vatican. The Catholic leader met with the organization called New Ways Ministry, which advocates for those in the LGBT community. Reportedly, the group planned the meeting after the Vatican issued a declaration earlier this year that so-called “gender-affirming” care was incompatible with Christian values.
Sister Jeannine Gramick, one of the co-founders of the group was inspired to reach out to the Pope after the declaration, claiming the pope needed to consult with the LGBT community. “Part of the problem is that Vatican documents had not consulted transgender, intersex people, or any of the medical professionals who work with them. So we were encouraging the pope to consult with people more and to view people’s stories,” she said.
Subsequently, users on social media have expressed criticism to the Pope’s decision to entertain transgenderism. “#PopeFrancis met with group of “transgender, intersex,” LGBT people & @NewWaysMinistry at #Vatican today for nearly 90 mins. Among other things in mtg, they asked him to approve sex change surgery. “The pope was very receptive,” one participant said of the mtg,” one person wrote about the event.
“This Pope has a TERRIBLE communication style and a suspect support team, so it is easy to twist whatever he says into his agreeing with just about every demented agenda possible. I do not trust the visitors or the reporting on this. Sorry, I just don’t,” anoter user wrote.
However, they clarified in a follow up post, “Jesus met with prostitutes and tax collectors so I don’t have a problem with the meeting. What I would like to know is what the communication was between parties in cogent and ACCURATE reporting, and if he was actually “receptive” verses just being a good listener.”
Another person speculated about the Vatican, “There is something very insidious happening inside the walls of the Vatican (has been for years) but it’s beginning to trickle down to the parishes as well. The fox is guarding the hen house.”
One user maintained that changing one’s gender is incompatible with the teachings of the Bible. “The Pope cannot change God’s intentions . God did not create anyone in the ‘wrong body’. Trans is a man-made social contagion, to confuse and distress young people ..and lead them to surgeons and Pharma who wish to get Rich off of it. I’m sure the Pope will see the devil at work here,” they wrote.
“This is emblematic of the absolute worst of the Post-Modernist Vatican of Pope Francis. Celebrate every kind of perversion, while crushing every remaining part of genuine Catholic Faith. Shame shame shame. Pro pudore,” another person said. expressing concern about the direction of the Catholic Church.
Another user quoted wisdom from Paul in the 2 Timothy 4:3-4, which reads, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.”
Featured image credit: Casa Rosada (Argentina Presidency of the Nation), CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pope_Francis_in_March_2013.jpg