Gay rights magazine names Pope Francis their ‘person of the year’
Pope Francis has followed up his recent Time magazine accolade as its person of the year with the receipt of a similar honour from America’s oldest gay rights magazine.
Naming Francis as the, ‘single most influential person on the lives of LGBT people’, The Advocate chose to reward a recent speech by the Catholic leader in which he vowed not to ‘judge’ gay people.
Francis has sought to build bridges with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community over the churches widely held hostility to non-traditional relationships.
In its editorial The Advocate explained: “While 2013 will be remembered for the work of hundreds in advancing marriage equality, it will also be remembered for the example of one man.”
Picking up on the Pope’s public comments the title said they “… became a signal to Catholics and the world that the new pope is not like the old pope.”
Francis has stopped short of supporting civil unions between same-sex couples however.