Pope Francis meets with transgender, intersex Catholics
Pope Francis met with a group of transgender and intersex Catholics and LGBTQ allies at the Vatican on Sunday. During the meeting, participants shared their personal stories, urging the pope to support greater acceptance within the church and address its stance on gender-affirming care.
Sister Jeannine Gramick, one of the co-founders of New Ways Ministry, a U.S.-based Catholic organization advocating for LGBTQ people, arranged the meeting that took place at Casa Santa Marta, Francis’s residence in Vatican City.
The delegation that met with the pope included Nicole Santamaría, an intersex woman, Michael Sennett, a trans man, and Cynthia Herrick, a doctor who works in a gender medicine clinic.
Over the course of more than an hour, they recounted to Francis their struggles with depression and suicide on their transition journey and emphasized the positive impact of gender-affirming care.
