Pope Francis last week held a private mass with Ludovine Rochere, the president of France's viciously anti-gay Manif Pour Tous, which held many massive and often violent rallies during the battle for same-sex marriage. From the right wing newspaper Le Figaro (via Google Translate):
The Pope "listened very carefully," according to the president of Manif Pour Tous, Ludovine Rochere, in a statement she made on Thursday morning in Sainte Marthe in Rome, where she was invited to participate in a private Mass with the Pope. "I was placed in the middle of the meeting," said Rochère, "but someone picked me before the start of the Mass, wondering if I was the president of the Manif Pour Tous, to put me at the forefront of the faithful along the aisle, just behind the priests."This protocol detail is not unimportant. Especially during this Mass, where only thirty people are allowed. It clearly means that the Pope wanted to honor this non-denominational movement since he did invite its principle representative.
After Mass, Pope Francis gave an interview to Rochère, who told him that she was there "on behalf of hundreds of thousands of French who mobilized against the law for gay marriage." She also told him that they were currently advocating on the issue of medically assisted procreation (MAP) and surrogacy. Although the language barrier did not favor the exchange that lasted about five minutes (the Pope understands but does not speak French), he promised that he "would consider" the best way to send a message to the French.
In the photo above you'll see that Rochere presented Pope Francis with a Manif Pour Tous sweatshirt. According to Le Figaro, she handed it to him with a warning: "In France, the police will arrest you for wearing this."
No comments:
Post a Comment