Vatican CityPope Francis has praised the virtues of sex, describing it as “one of the beautiful things God has given to the human person” in a documentary released on Wednesday. The 86-year-old pontiff made the remarks on the Disney+ production “The Pope Answers,” which shows a meeting he had with 10 people in their 20s in Rome last year.
Francis was questioned by him on a variety of topics, including LGBT rights, abortion, the porn industry, sex, and faith, and sexual abuse within the Catholic Church. In the documentary, he said, “Sex is one of the beautiful things that God has given to human beings.” Referring to masturbation, he said, “Expressing yourself sexually is an enrichment. Therefore, anything that detracts from genuine sexual expression depletes you and diminishes this richness.”
Francis was also asked if he knew what a “non-binary person” was, and he replied in the affirmative. He reiterated that LGBT people should be welcomed by the Catholic Church. He said, “All persons are children of God, all persons. God does not reject anyone, God is a father. And I have no right to excommunicate anyone from the Church.”
On abortion, Francis said priests should be “compassionate” towards women who have abortions, but said the practice was unacceptable. He said, “It is good to call a spade a spade. It is one thing to support a person who has had an (abortion), it is another thing to justify the act.”
The Pope’s comments were published by the Vatican’s official newspaper L’Osservatore Romano, which described his conversation with the youth as an “open and honest dialogue”.