PREVIEW

Pope Francis Uses Offensive Slur for Gay Men. Last week, the pope used a derogatory term to refer to gay men in a closed-door meeting with bishops, two sources tell NBC News. They were reportedly debating the issue of allowing gay men to train in seminaries to become priests. That's when Francis used the offensive Italian term to express his opposition to the idea. His comments left many shocked, considering his previous statements depicting a more welcoming nature toward the LGBTQ+ community. On May 28, the Vatican apologized "to those who were offended". The church said Francis was "aware of articles that recently came out about a conversation, behind closed doors, with the bishops". "As he has had the opportunity to state on several occasions, 'In the Church there is room for everyone, for everyone! No one is useless, no one is superfluous, there is room for everyone. Just as we are, everyone.'", "The pope never intended to offend or express himself in homophobic terms, and he extends his apologies to those who were offended by the use of a term, reported by others.", Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni, via statement. 'Corriere della Sera,' an Italian newspaper, quoted several sources who suggest that the pope may not have understood just how offensive the term is. Since he's a nonnative Italian speaker, the comment was likely "a gaffe on the part of the pope, rather than a slur," according to reporter Gerry O’Connell. THIS VIDEO MUST NOT BE EDITED FOR LENGTH TO COMBINE WITH OTHER CONTENT