The Pope invited transgender women to dinner: many of them are prostitutes

The Pope invited transgender women to dinner / Collage 24 Channel

On the eve, Pope Francis hosted a lunch at the Vatican on the occasion of World Day of the Poor. He invited a group of transgender women to attend.

Interestingly, many of them are sex workers or migrants from Latin America. They sat with the Pope at table with more than 1,000 other poor and homeless people on Sunday.

Previously the church was closed to them

Please note that the Pope is known for his appeals to the LGBTQ+ community. Inviting the transgender women of Torvianica is one of his gestures of inclusion.

Previously, the church was closed to us. They did not see normal people among us, they saw the devil among us. Then Pope Francis arrived and the church door opened for us,” said Andrea Paola Torres Lopez.

Please note that the latest initiative of Pope Francis was a document from the Vatican Office of Doctrine of Faith. It states that under certain circumstances, transgender people can be baptized and can serve as godparents and witnesses at weddings.

Before this there was another statement by the pontiff. In it, he suggested that same-sex couples could receive a church blessing.

The pope's new statements in both cases lifted absolute bans on transgender people as godparents. They were issued by the Vatican Doctrine Service in 2021. The same applies to the blessing of same-sex couples, which the service banned in 2021.

The Pope's rhetoric is evolving

• Recall that in 2013 he was remembered for the comment: “Who am I to judge?” He did it in relation to a gay priest. Then he noted that “being homosexual is not a crime.”
• Over time he has evolved in his position. He increasingly makes it clear that everyone is a child of God, loved by God and welcomed into the church.
• True, this position is not necessarily shared by the rest of the Catholic Church. Thus, during a recent meeting of bishops and laity in the Vatican, known as the Synod, they abandoned language that explicitly called for the acceptance of LGBTQ+ Catholics. Conservative Catholics, particularly cardinals, have questioned the Pope's approach.