(23 Apr 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Philadelphia – 23 April 2025
1. Wide of church with bell ringing
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Paul Morrissey, Catholic priest:
“It’s not either or. Like you don’t have to leave the church for instance to be gay. God loves you. It’s right there. So I was called I feel to be both. Both gay and a priest and that reconciliation that healing that I discovered in myself I could share with other people.”
3. Tight of bible
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Paul Morrissey, Catholic priest:
“The church is so against gay people. How in the world could I mix those two roles together in myself?”
5. Church interior
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Paul Morrissey, Catholic priest:
“That’s what Pope Francis amazingly changed. He started approaching people, not just gay and lesbian people, but all people. Not just as like caricatures and with doctrine to tell them what they should be doing. But he wanted to listen to our stories and he approached us pastorally.”
7. Church interior
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Paul Morrissey, Catholic priest:
“Life would have been boring if I wasn’t gay. It gives me a heart of compassion for people struggling with anything. And that’s what the pope taught us. Pope Francis, the pope of hope, taught us to have compassion for those on the edges who are being rejected and poor and marginalized in the church and society he will be missed for that but he… we’ll practice that in his name for our lifetimes.”
9. Church exterior
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Gerri Burns, mother:
”Pope Francis has made me once again, very proud to be the parent of a gay child. He’s loved and other people know that it’s okay to love him.”
11. Church interior
SOUNDBITE (English) Gerri Burns, mother:
“He just seems to come across as so genuine. It’s not an act, it’s not a thing for the cameras. You can almost see it in his eyes, the love that he has for everybody, gay, straight, whatever. I think he’s gonna be terribly, terribly missed.”
12. Church interior
13. Cross outside church
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Bob Burns, father:
“I’d hope the Pope — next Pope — at least takes about 80% of what he’s doing, you know. It’s gotta, it’ll be a big change if it isn’t… straight backwards.
15. Christ of the cross painting
STORYLINE:
The papacy of Pope Francis ended with the same core doctrine for LGBTQ+ people that he had inherited. The Catholic Church still rejected same-sex marriage and condemned any sexual relations between gay or lesbian partners as “intrinsically disordered.”
Yet unlike his predecessors, Francis incrementally conveyed through his actions, formal statements and occasional casual remarks that he wanted the church to be a more welcoming place for LGBTQ+ people.
Among activists, there was some frustration over the lack of a doctrinal breakthrough, but they still expressed gratitude for his warmth toward them.
It was clear early in his papacy that Francis would articulate a gentler, more tolerant approach to LGBTQ+ people than any previous pope.
Bob and Gerri Burns described it as a shock when their son told them he was gay. Through consultation with friends, family, and people of faith, the couple said they learned to accept and continue loving their son — decisions made easier due to Pope Francis’ communication with the LGBTQ community.
Growing up in the 1970s presented difficulties, said Father Paul Morrissey, who grappled with the church’s stance on homosexuality. The challenges, however, enabled him to guide the marginalized better.
===========================================================
Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/
You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/57d5bec178d34656aa21be05dfa2c7ce
Author: AP Archive
Go to Source
News post in April 28, 2025, 6:06 pm.
Visit Our Sponsor’s:
News Post In – News
