Pope Francis said Tuesday that "being homosexual is not a crime,” and called on Catholic bishops who support "unjust" laws criminalizing homosexuality to instead welcome LGBTQ people into their flocks.

The pontiff's comments during an interview with The Associated Press in Vatican City are reflective of his more open tone, compared to past popes, toward LGBTQ people and their place in the Catholic Church. At the same time, he reiterated the Catholic Church's teaching that, while gay people should be treated with respect, "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered and can in no case be approved of."

“Being homosexual is not a crime. It’s not a crime," Francis said in the interview. "'Yes, but it’s a sin.' Well, yes, but let’s make the distinction first between sin and crime. It’s also a sin to lack charity with one another, so what about that?"

Read more at the link in our bio. This post was produced and edited by Julia Griffin, Yasmeen Alamiri, Dan Cooney and Serena Golden.

Stream your PBS favorites with the PBS app: https://to.pbs.org/2Jb8twG
Find more from PBS NewsHour at https://www.pbs.org/newshour
Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2HfsCD6

Follow us:
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@pbsnews
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/newshour
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/newshour
Facebook: http://www.pbs.org/newshour

Subscribe:
PBS NewsHour podcasts: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/podcasts
Newsletters: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/subscribe