In a clear break from tradition, Pope Francis is having surveys sent to parishes all over the world, asking churchgoers for their thoughts on previously avoided family topics.
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The questionnaire has been sent to bishops around the world asking them for detailed information about the “many new situations requiring the Church’s attention and pastoral care”.
The Pope wants answers from his flock on family issues that are common in 21st-century life — from gay marriage to divorce – in preparation for next year's synod of bishops, a grassroots effort that experts say is unprecedented.
“Concerns which were unheard of until a few years ago have arisen today as a result of different situations, from the widespread practice of cohabitation… to same-sex unions,” it said.
Referring to gay couples, one question in the survey asks: “What pastoral attention can be given to people who have chosen to live in these types of union?”
“In the case of unions of persons of the same sex who have adopted children, what can be done pastorally in light of transmitting the faith?”
The results will be collated and presented at a key meeting next October – an extraordinary synod of bishops which will discuss “the pastoral care of the person and the family"
Boston College theology professor Thomas Groome told NBC News, the survey was a positive step for the church.
"All of these things have been closed issues and you could be fired for even talking about them. Raising these questions and polling people — it at least signals something other than a closed mind," he said.
Expanding on the explosive comments he made about homosexuality in July when he was returning to Rome from Rio de Janeiro, where he had celebrated World Youth Day, the Pope said he has no right to judge anyone from the LGBT community.
“A person once asked me, in a provocative manner, if I approved of homosexuality,” he said in the interview.
“I replied with another question: ‘Tell me: when God looks at a gay person, does he endorse the existence of this person with love, or reject and condemn this person?’ We must always consider the person.”
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'Money Has To Serve, Not To Rule!'(02 of21)
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Pope Francis has denounced the global financial system, blasting the "cult of money" that he says is tyrannizing the poor and turning humans into expendable consumer goods.Read more (credit:AP)
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'Oh, how I would like a poor Church, and for the poor."Read more (credit:Getty Images)
Men And Women Sacrificed To the Idols Of Profit (04 of21)
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Man is not in charge today, money is in charge, money rules. God our Father did not give the task of caring for the earth to money, but to us, to men and women: we have this task! Instead, men and women are sacrificed to the idols of profit and consumption: it is the "culture of waste." On World Environment Day (credit:AP)
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"Today, and it breaks my heart to say it, finding a homeless person who has died of cold, is not news. Today, the news is scandals, that is news, but the many children who don't have food - that's not news. This is grave. We can't rest easy while things are this way."Read more (credit:AP)
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Pope Francis waves to faithful upon his arrival at the Pontiff's residence of Castel Gandolfo, near Rome, Sunday July 14, 2013, in a Ford Focus.The down-to-earth Pope called for greater austerity from religious figures last week, saying, “It hurts me when I see a priest or nun with the latest-model car. You can’t do this. A car is necessary to do a lot of work, but, please, choose a more humble one. If you like the fancy one, just think about how many children are dying of hunger in the world." The Ford Focus is a compact car with a starting sticker price of just about $16,000.Read more (credit:AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
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"A headline that really struck me on the day of the tragedy in Bangladesh was 'Living on 38 euros a month'. That is what the people who died were being paid. This is called slave labour." "Not paying fairly, not giving a job because you are only looking at balance sheets, only looking at how to make a profit. That goes against God!" Read more (credit:AP)
(08 of21)
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"To live charitably means not looking out for our own interests, but carrying the burdens of the weakest and poorest among us." (credit:@pontifex)
(09 of21)
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"We cannot sleep peacefully while babies are dying of hunger and the elderly are without medical assistance." (credit:@pontifex)
(10 of21)
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"There are many people in need in today’s world. Am I self-absorbed in my own concerns or am I aware of those who need help?" (credit:@pontifex)
(11 of21)
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"True charity requires courage: let us overcome the fear of getting our hands dirty so as to help those in need." (credit:@pontifex)
(12 of21)
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"The “throw-away” culture produces many bitter fruits, from wasting food to isolating many elderly people." (credit:@pontifex)
(13 of21)
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"If money and material things become the center of our lives, they seize us and make us slaves." (credit:@pontifex)
(14 of21)
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"Let us ask the Lord to give us the gentleness to look upon the poor with understanding and love, devoid of human calculation and fear." (credit:@pontifex)
(15 of21)
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"Take care of God’s creation. But above all, take care of people in need." (credit:@pontifex)
(16 of21)
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"To live charitably means not looking out for our own interests, but carrying the burdens of the weakest and poorest among us." (credit:@pontifex)
(17 of21)
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On Waste(21 of21)
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"Consumerism has accustomed us to waste. But throwing food away is like stealing it from the poor and hungry." (credit:@pontifex)