Cardinal Gerhard Müller has called on the next pope to stand up to the “gay lobby” as the race to choose the next leader of the Catholic church continues.
Speaking to local media, Müller, a German cardinal who served as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith from 2012 to 2017, said homosexuality was “contrary to the doctrine of the Church” and urged the next pope to not give into “pressure” from external sources and be “strong on doctrine.”
Why It Matters
The late pope was widely considered to be an inclusive one, sometimes to the dismay of the more traditionalist within the Catholic Church. Tensions between liberal and conservative wings, between pro- and anti-Francis camps, are sure to arise during the opaque proceedings of the conclave that will elect the next pope.
What To Know
Speaking to Italian newspaper La Stampa on April 28, Müller said the next pope should have “a solid theological and doctrinal formation,” which is “neither authoritarian nor weak.”
“If Jesus says that marriage is between a man and a woman and is indissoluble, no pope can change this doctrine,” he added. “The homosexual lobbies want to equate unions between people of the same sex to marriage, but this totally contradicts the doctrine of the Bible. We can discuss concrete, individual pastoral care for individuals, to guide them to Christian life, but we cannot accept gender ideology, which is contrary to the doctrine of the Church.”
Pope Francis kept the Vatican’s position that homosexual acts were sinful, however the late pope also took a more inclusive stance on LGBTQ+ rights. In 2023, he allowed the blessing of same-sex couples and said being homosexual was “not a crime.” He also said transgender people can be baptized and serve as godparents.
Müller previously criticized the late pope for his more liberal views.
What People Are Saying
Müller told La Stampa: “We are not representatives of ideological factions or some lobby, we must not give in to external and media pressure, we belong to the whole Church.”
President Donald Trump recently weighed in on the election, telling reporters on April 29: “I’d like to be pope. That would be my number one choice. No, I don’t know, I have no preference…I must say we have a cardinal [Timothy Dolan, who has been the archbishop of New York since 2009] that happens to be out of a place called New York who’s very good.”
What Happens Next
The Vatican announced Tuesday that cardinals from around the world would meet for the conclave inside the Sistine Chapel on May 7 to elect the next pope.
They will vote in rounds until one receives a two-thirds majority. There is no set time for how long a conclave may last, but the last two concluded within two days.
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