This situation and this statement are very tricky spiritually - I hope unintentionally.
Everything spiritual is literally black and white (except in my “Red Letter” edition, where there is also red ink), but we cannot close off the way of grace and growth. The priest’s job is to find the right balance that welcomes people to God’s grace without supporting the confusion that people who reject God’s word try to generate. It’s hard. I know, having often spent hours with my wife discussing how to approach the latest parenting challenge. It’s also the priest’s job and (I hope) his calling.
The rigorous pastoral care that leaves no room for confusion must be combined with a Church attentive to the goodness which the Holy Spirit sows in the midst of human weakness. But the Church must also be attentive to the evil that Satan sows in that weakness.
Every person, regardless of sexual orientation, ought to be respected in his or her dignity and treated with consideration. An essential element of consideration and dignity is firm guidance. I love my children too much to allow them to go astray without guiding them back to the right path, so I raised them with a careful balance between firmness and love. The Church must give its members the same love.
‘The priest’s job is to find the right balance that welcomes people to God’s grace without supporting the confusion that people who reject God’s word try to generate.’
Whether it is the priest, the preacher, or the lay member, we all have to find the right balance. In my opinion, this is in your face by this pope. Doesn’t he understand, especially in America, there is effort by most Christians to be fair? We avoid some things because God says to follow Him first. By allowing ourselves into some situations, OUR own faith can be weakened. I do not consume alchohol and so therefore do not frequent the bar. That does not mean I think less of those that do. We know the homosexual needs the Lord too, and we can meet those who are seeking the Lord earnestly. The homosexual lobby will not stop, however much we give, and this pope should draw a hard line.