An Italian bishop has argued in an interview, which many Catholics are likely to find controversial, that he finds nothing wrong with the practise of homosexuality.
Bishop Francesco Savino of Cassano all’Jonio says in the interview that people in same-sex relationships “should not be denied the opportunity to be loved and to love, even on an intimate, sexual level, because denying them this, denying them their right, I repeat, is simply wrong”.
Speaking to DirittoDiCronaca.it, the 70-year-old prelate, who serves as one of three vice-presidents of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, said that the Church must “restore dignity to everyone, especially to those who have been denied it”.
The bishop is known for his LGBT activism and recently grabbed the headlines for celebrating Mass, on 6 September at the Church of the Gesù in Rome, for LGBT Catholic pilgrims taking part in the 2025 Jubilee of Hope.
The service, attended by more than 1,000 people from around the world, was organised by the lay association Tenda di Gionata. Pope Leo XIV had reportedly urged Bishop Savino to preside, telling him, “Go and celebrate the Jubilee organised by Tenda di Gionata and the other groups that work with brothers and sisters who are all of you.”
During the Mass, concelebrated by around 30 priests including Jesuit Father James Martin, a well-known US cleric due to his LGBT-focused activism, Bishop Savino spoke about the dignity of every person and the meaning of conversion.
Many of the attending LGBT pilgrims wore shirts printed with the words “nell’amore non c’è timore” – “there is no fear in love” – from the First Letter of John, and some waved rainbow-coloured fans in the crowded Jesuit church. The LGBT Mass concluded with a pilgrim carrying a rainbow cross to lead the procession from the church.
Continue reading at the Catholic Herald