Pope Francis has come under fire from the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium after his statement on the role of women in the Catholic Church. It happened during the celebration of the 600th anniversary of the institution, when the Pope answered questions from students and professors about the Church's teaching on women.
In his speech, Francis noted: "A woman is a daughter, a sister, a mother, just as a man is a son, a brother, a father." He emphasized that women have "fruitful reception, care and dedication to life." However, these words did not find understanding among the academic community of the university, where professors and students expressed their dissatisfaction. They characterized the Pope's position as "deterministic and reductionist."
Criticism of the Pope was not limited to the academic environment. The king and prime minister of Belgium also called on him to take more concrete measures to help victims of violence by the Catholic clergy. The rector of one of the Catholic universities made a request to the Pope to review the Church's ban on the ordination of women as priests, emphasizing the importance of this issue for modern society.
This incident is not the first scandal for Francis. In the spring, the media reported that he allegedly ordered bishops not to allow gays to study to become priests and used homophobic language during closed meetings. His spokesman later apologized for these statements. In addition, last year, the Pope called on the participants of the All-Russian meeting of Catholic youth in St. Petersburg "not to forget the legacy of the empire", which also caused mixed reactions.
