Vatican Balks At Receiving Gay Ambassador [View all]
Vatican Balks At Receiving Gay Ambassador
Laurent Stefanini, appointed ambassador to the Vatican last January, has yet to be accepted by the Curia, even though the post has been vacant since March 1.
Europe's Blasting News lived up to its name this week, denouncing the Vatican for stalling the appointment of the first gay ambassador.
"Homophobia is unacceptable." proclaimed the news site. "In 2015, it is inconceivable to accept for a single second that a man can be excluded for a position of such importance because of his sexual and emotional orientation."
The man in question is long-serving French diplomat Laurent Stefanini, who is openly gay. Most recently, the 55-year-old career diplomat has served as France's Chief of Protocol. (That's him in the photo above, accepting the credentials of U.S. Ambassador to France Jane Hartley.)
Last January, the Council of Ministers appointed Stefanini France's Ambassador to the Vatican. That post, to the historic Villa Bonaparte Embassy in Rome, is considered a plum assignment, often given as a reward for years of service by members of France's diplomatic corps. That ambassadorship has been vacant for more than a month now, but Stefanini has yet to be credentialed by the Vatican, and the rumors are growing that it is because Stefanini is gay. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has recently alluded publicly to that explanation, calling the appointment of a gay diplomat "a provocation."
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French President Hollande has promised he won't back down on the appointment.
http://www.thenewcivilrightsmovement.com/uncucumbered/vatican_balks_at_receiving_gay_ambassador
Why do so many catholics continue to support their anti-human rights leader?