Pope Backs Civil Unions, Says LGBTQ Have ‘Right to a Family’

  • If confirmed, this is a major shift with Catholic tradition
  • The reveal was made in a new documentary about Francis

Before being elected pope, Francis advocated for same-sex civil unions in an attempt to block a same-sex marriage law.

Photographer: Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images
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Pope Francis called for civil unions for gay couples, in what would be a significant shift from the Catholic Church’s long-held opposition to homosexuals getting married.

“They’re children of God and have a right to a family. Nobody should be thrown out, or be made miserable because of it,” Francis says in a new documentary. “What we have to create is a civil union law. That way they are legally covered. I stood up for that.”