Pope Francis has signalled that he could see the Catholic church tolerating some forms of same-sex civil unions -- though not marriage -- when it comes to situations such as medical care and property for gay couples.
In an interview with the Italian daily Corriere della Sera, the pope said that "matrimony is between a man and a woman," but moves to "regulate diverse situations of cohabitation (are) driven by the need to regulate economic aspects among persons, as for instance to assure medical care," according to a translation by Catholic News Service.
"It is necessary to look at the diverse cases and evaluate them in their variety," Francis said.
While the remarks were far from endorsing same-sex marriage, something Francis and his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI have spoken out against, they represent the latest in what many Catholics and church observers have read as a more gay-friendly tone of the church under the pope, who was elected nearly a year ago.
In an interview over the summer, the pope famously said, "If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?” Francis' call for the church to focus more broadly on positive messages about Jesus Christ and love as opposed to focusing narrowly on gay marriage, abortion and contraception, has also been widely reported.
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