Pope believes HIV crisis in Africa is only a ‘small, partial’ problem
The pontiff claims that the world has bigger problems to deal with.
Pope Francis has said that the world has bigger problems to deal with than HIV prevention.
The Catholic leader made the claim after being asked a question by a reporter regarding the prevention of HIV and the use of condoms in Africa ahead of World AIDS Day today.
The pontiff failed to hide is discomfort when he was quizzed on the church’s current anti-condom stance.
The reporter asked him if he the church would reconsider its approach to the subject, following the leader’s recent trip to sub-Saharan Africa – where an estimated 22 million people are living with the virus.
However, Pope Francis replied by saying that both condoms and HIV were “morally complicated for the Church,” and that questions on the subject seemed “too small, partial.”
“I don’t like getting into questions or reflections that are so technical when people die because they don’t have water or food or housing,” he said.
The Pope then attempted to buy himself some time – by saying that once the other, more important problems facing Africa had been dealt with, the subject of HIV and condoms could be addressed.
The pontiff disappointed thousands of LGBT activists across Uganda over the weekend by failing to address the strict anti-gay laws that exist in the country.
The country’s LGBT community were hoping that the Pope would raise the issue of LGBT equality during his first visit to Africa.
His silence on the issue was highlighted as he visited a shrine in the country –where a new law aimed at weakening those who promote LGBT rights was only recently passed.
The Pope has been hailed by many for being more progressive on LGBT issues than his predecessor, having previously told reporters “If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?”
Despite this, Pope Francis has also been reluctant to address the issue of homosexuality as anything other than a sin.
