Several hundred Catholics, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and their family members participated in a pilgrimage in Rome today, on the occasion of the Holy or Jubilee Year.
With this pilgrimage, they celebrate a new level of acceptance of their community in the Catholic Church after a long feeling of rejection, attributing the credit for this change to former Pope Francis, writes the AP agency.
The vice president of the Italian Bishops' Conference, Bishop Francesco Savino, celebrated Mass for pilgrims in a packed Jesuit church in Rome.
The crowd greeted his words with standing ovations in the middle of the sermon, when he recalled that in the Bible, Jubilee years were intended for the forgiveness of debts and the restoration of hope to those on the margins.
Several LGBTQ+ groups participated in the pilgrimage, which is listed on the official Vatican calendar of events for the Holy Year.
Vatican organizers, however, stressed that listing the event on the calendar does not imply endorsement or sponsorship.
The main organizer of the pilgrimage is the Italian LGBTQ+ advocacy organization "Jonathan's Tent", but the American group Outreach, founded by James Martin, a Jesuit priest who advocated for greater acceptance of LGBTQ+ Catholics in the church, also participated in the organization.
Pope Leo XIV had a special audience today for all pilgrims who are in Rome this weekend.
He did not specifically mention LGBTQ+ Catholics, who are expected to pass through the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica during the day.
During the Holy Year, which is held once every quarter of a century, and which this year is dedicated to hope, the faithful are invited to make a pilgrimage to Rome.
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