How Did Pope Francis Do on His LGBT Report Card?

On March 13th, the second anniversary of Pope Francis’ election, Bondings 2.0 initiated a week-long survey entitled “What Grade Would You Give Pope Francis on LGBT Issues?”    We thought you might like to know about the results.

665 readers of this blog responded to the survey,  and the percentages for each grade were as follows:

A         14%

B         34%

C         28%

D         11%

F          2%

Incomplete    7%

                                                                           Other              4%

Since “B” received the most votes, with “C” being a close second, I think we could fairly say that our readers gave Pope Francis a “B-.”  Since our readers tend to be people who are deeply concerned about Catholic LGBT issues, I think that this poll reflects that segment of the population, not all Catholic people or all LGBT people.

One interesting thing to note, however is that the number of people who gave him an “A” (14%) is almost equal to the total of those who gave him a “D” (11%) or an “F” (2%).  It seems that those who think who is doing an excellent job on LGBT issues are equally balanced with those who are very disappointed in his performance on these issues.

Some of the folks who graded him “Other” wrote their comments to explain their choices.  Here are some of their remarks:

” The 2015 Synod will be key.”

“With improvement needed.”

“He negates much of the positive done.”

“I would give him a “C” on LGB issues, an “F” on trans issues. Very different responses.”

“He needs to chip away at the flaws in the “official” theology of human sexuality.”

“Actions speak louder than words. So far just a few good words.”

“Same as all popes.”

In my view, “B-” is a good grade, but it is one that shows there is room for improvement, as well as usually showing that the grader believes that the student actually can improve, if more effort and work were done.  At least, that is how I always viewed “B-” grades, both when I was a teacher and a student. As a teacher, I used to use a “minus” grade as a way to encourage students to work a little harder, and to let them know that I believed that they could do better.

So it seems to me that people are happy with the track that Pope Francis is on regarding LGBT issues, but that they would like to see him improve, and they believe that he can improve.

What do you think that “B-” means? Offer your thoughts in the “Comments” section of this post.

–Francis DeBernardo, New Ways Ministry

 

 

3 replies
  1. amagjuka
    amagjuka says:

    I gave him “points” for his emphasis on dignity of all. I took points away for his dogmatic and cruel comments about LGBT adoption. I perceive that he is open to civil unions, and this would be a good thing. But I fear that this issue will drag on and on and on…much like the ordination of women. In the 70’s, I was full of hope regarding women in the church. Now I am resigned that I will never see it in my lifetime. I thought surely, when the priest shortage plus the sex scandals hit, a great solution would be ordaining women. Nope. So the church is beyond frustrating. As an Indiana resident, I do feel a lot of hope from the strong reaction Hoosiers and the entire country has had to the RFRA that was just signed into law. There has been a shift for the better. I think Hoosiers seeing the national response has allowed those “on the fence” to become more open about supporting LGBT rights. Back to Pope Francis, though. I think he is a kind, loving soul. He has focused the church on what is right and good. I think he has a long way to go in truly understanding that LGBT people are exactly like everyone else and should be treated as such.

    Reply

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