Italy's Gay Center said Monday
Pope Francis was wrong to say gay kids could be helped by
psychiatry.
"We're not ill," said the group's spokesman Fabrizio
Marrazzo.
On his flight back from Ireland Sunday evening, the pope
recommended parents seek psychiatric help for children who show
homosexual tendencies.
A journalist asked Francis what he would say to parents who
observe homosexual traits in their children.
"I would say first of all pray, not to condemn, to dialogue,
to understand, to give space to the son or the daughter," he
responded.
Parents must also consider the age of their child, he said.
"When it shows itself from childhood, there is a lot that can
be done through psychiatry, to see how things are. It is
something else if it shows itself after 20 years."
He emphasised that parents should not respond with "silence".
"Ignoring a son or daughter who has homosexual tendencies is
an error of fatherhood or motherhood."
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