A Truly New Pope

Yesterday is was reported that Pope Francis said something about gay people. 

What he said was not nearly so important as the fact he said anything at all. The very fact that the pontiff, God's representative on Earth, said anything about gays other than a dismissal is truly astonishing. 

What did he say? According to today's New York Times he told reporters "If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?” 

I thought I would never hear this from the leader of the Catholic church. Our last pope dismissed homosexuality as "an intrinsic moral evil," carrying the banner of hatred and bigotry that has been ubiquitous in the Church for millennia. But not this pope. What a difference a papacy makes. 

I was less than thrilled when Francis' papacy was announced earlier this year. I tweeted that he seemed to be more of the same. I now officially recant that position. 

He may never say another word about gays again. But the fact that he did will stick with me for many years to come.