The Archbishop of Hobart, the Most Rev. Adrian Doyle, said he was puzzled by a report in The Mercury (24 Dec) about the Pope attacking the gay community.
“I have personally read the original address His Holiness gave to the Curia on the 22nd of December and it makes no reference or gives any condemnation to the gay and lesbian community,” Archbishop Doyle said.
“To use the quote in the Mercury headline – “homosexuality is as great a threat as rainforest destruction” – is completely incorrect and inflammatory.
“The address focuses very much on the events of World Youth Day here in Sydney and has the theme of an authentic vision of ecology – that if we respect God’s creation in the earth and the environment, as we must, then we must also respect God’s creation of humankind and the wonderful way human beings were created. If we fail to keep the two things in balance, we strike trouble.
“To me, this is a fundamental message focused around the current issues of climate change.”
Archbishop Doyle said His Holiness has spoken of joy being the expression of happiness, of being in harmony with oneself, which is only possible if one is in harmony with God and His creation.
“Sadly, it is the media who have created the adversarial environment in this case by choosing to misquote key parts of the speech of His Holiness.”
Released by The Archdiocese of Hobart