UNITED STATES
Los Angeles Times

By Michael McGough
July 29, 2013

In an interview with journalists on his flight back to Rome, Pope Francis said: “When I meet a gay person, I have to distinguish between their being gay and being part of a lobby. If they accept the Lord and have goodwill, who am I to judge them? They shouldn’t be marginalized. The tendency [to homosexuality] is not the problem…. They’re our brothers.”

Journalists and commentators — Roman Catholic and non-Catholic, conservative Catholic and liberal Catholic — quickly chimed in.

My colleague Tracy Wilkinson wrote: “The church has traditionally labeled homosexuality a ‘disorder’ and under Pope Benedict XVI, who resigned in February, men with ‘deep-seated tendencies’ toward homosexuality were to be barred from the priesthood. Francis’ comments seemed to back away from an absolute ban.”

The conservative National Catholic Register interpreted the pope’s comments more cautiously but…